Gorakhpur
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| ?Gorakhpur Uttar Pradesh • India |
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| Coordinates: | |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| District(s) | Gorakhpur |
| Website: http://gorakhpur.nic.in | |
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Gorakhpur (Hindi: गोरखपुर, Urdu: گۋڙکھ پور) ') is a city in the eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh in India, near the border with Nepal. It is the administrative headquarters of Gorakhpur District and Gorakhpur Division.
Gorakhpur is famous as a religious centre: the city was home to Buddhist, Hindu, Jain and Sikh saints and is named after the medieval saint Gorakshanath. Gorakhnath Temple is still the seat of the Nath sect. The city is also home to many historic Buddhist sites and the Gita Press, a publisher of Hindu religious texts.
In the 20th century, Gorakhpur was a focal point in the Indian independence movement. Today, the city is also a business centre, hosting the headquarters of the North Eastern Railways www.nerailway.gov.in and an industrial area, GIDA [Gorakhpur Development Authority] 15km from the old town.
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[edit] District Statistics
- Geographical Area 3483.8 sq. km.
- Total Population(2001) 3,769,456
- Sex Ratio (2001) 959
- Rural Population ( 80.40% ) (2001) 3,030,865
- Urban Population ( 19.60% ) (2001) 738,591
- Total Literates ( 43.3% ) (1991) 1,055,582
[edit] Origin of name
The city and district of Gorakhpur are named after a renowned ascetic saint, Gorakshanath, the chief disciple of the yogi Matsyendranath. Together, Matsyendranath and Gorakshanath founded the Nath Sampradaya line of saints. Gorakhnath Temple is said to stand on the spot where Gorakshanath practised Hatha Yoga to develop self-control.
Gorakhpur is the North Eastern Headquarters of Indian Railways, It is the biggest Broad Gauge railway junction in North India.
[edit] History
In ancient times the geographical area of Gorakhpur included the modern districts of Basti, Deoria, Azamgarh and parts of Nepal. According to Vedic writings, the earliest known monarch ruling over this region with his capital at Ayodhya was Iksvaku, founder of the solar dynasty. The solar dynasty produced a number of kings; Rama of the Ramayana is most well-known. The entire region was an important centre of Aryan culture and civilization, a part of the famous kingdom of Koshala, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas (states) in 6th century BCE India.
Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism, renounced his princely clothing at the confluence of the rivers Rapti and Rohini, near Gorakhpur, before setting out on his quest of truth in 600 BCE. The city is also associated with the travels of Lord Buddha's contemporary Lord Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism.
After the Iksvaku dynasty was conquered by Magadha's Nanda Dynasty in the 4th century BC, Gorakhpur became in turn part of the Maurya, Shunga, Kushana, Gupta and Harsha empires. The great emperor of india Chandragupta maurya belonged to Moriyas, a Kshatriya (warrior) clan of a little ancient republic of Pippalivana located between Rummindei in the Nepali Tarai and Kasia in the Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh.
In the 10th century, the Tharu king Mausen of Madan Singh ruled over Gorakhpur city and the adjoining area.
In medieval times, the city was home to the medieval Hindu saint Gorakshanath, who gave the city its name. The date of Gorakshanath's birth has not yet been settled, but he probably lived in the twelfth century. The site of his samadhi (ecstasy) at Gorakhpur attracts a large number of pilgrims every year.
In the 12th century, the Gorakhpur region, as much of northern India, was conquered by the Muslim ruler Muhammad Ghori. The region remained under the influence of Muslim rulers, such as Qutb-ud-din Aybak and Bahadur Shah, for some centuries. In the early 16th century, the mystic poet and famous saint Kabir lived and worked in Maghar, a village 20 km from Gorakhpur, where his burial place still attracts many pilgrims.
On Akbar's reorganisation of the empire in the 16th century, Gorakhpur gave its name to one of the five Sarkars (administrative units) in the province of Awadh.
Gorakhpur came under direct British control in 1803. It was one of major centers of the 1857 uprising, and later played a major role in the Indian independence movement.
Gorakhpur district was the scene of the Chauri Chaura incident of February 4, 1922, which was a turning point in the history of India's freedom struggle. Enraged by police atrocities, a crowd of 2,000 people burnt down the Chauri-Chaura Police Station, killing nineteen policemen. In response to this violence, Mahatma Gandhi called off the Non-Cooperation Movement that he had launched in 1920 and fasted for 21 days, until he was satisfied that all Non-Cooperation Movement activities had ceased.
In 1934, an earthquake (8.1 on the Richter scale) caused much damage in the city.
Two other important events in the district took place in 1942, shortly after the famous Quit India Resolution was proclaimed on August 8. On August 9, Jawaharlal Nehru was arrested and tried in this district; he spent the next three years in prison. At Doharia kala (in Sahjanwa Tehsil) on August 23, a protest meeting was held against the British Government. Government forces opened fire unprovoked, killing nine and injuring hundreds. A Shaheed Smarak memorial stands on the spot today.
Gorakhpur is also the birth place of King Vikas Sankrityayan Ji.
[edit] Economy
Gorakhpur is famous for handwoven fabric made on a Hathkargha, a hand-operated loom and Terracota
The GolGhar shopping district in almost the geographical center of the city includes several major shops, hotels, banks, and restaurants, as well as the Baldev Plaza shopping mall. Other malls, such as Crossroads mall, can also be found in Gorakhpur.there is a three screened "city" multiplex . The education system is quite good.
[edit] Society and culture
[edit] Literature
The mystic poet and famous saint Kabir (1440-1518) lived and worked in Maghar, a village 20 km from Gorakhpur. Here, most of his beautiful poems, urging his countrymen to live in peace and religious harmony, were composed. Kabir's burial place in Maghar attracts a large number of pilgrims.
Munshi Premchand (1880-1936), one of India's great Hindi novelists, lived in Gorakhpur. The house where he lived and wrote still stands in a park named Munshi Premchand Park.
Firaq Gorakhpuri (1896-1982) (Raghupati Sahay), the famous Urdu poet, grew up in Gorakhpur, where his childhood home still stands. He later moved to Allahabad where he was a professor of English at Allahabad University.
Urdu poet Mohd. Umar Khan Umar, a disciple of renowned Shair Dagh Dehelvi, also belonged to Gorakhpur. A collection of his selected poetry entitled Bada-i- Kuhna (The Old Wine) has recently been published.
Gorakhpur is also the home of the Gita Press the publication group who published GITA first in the world as a book before this Gita was only on the toungs of scholar Brahmins, the world famous publisher of Hindu religious books, including 'Kalyan' magazine. The publishing company is located in a building with marble walls inscribed with the 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita, and hung with paintings depicting the lives of Rama and Krishna.
[edit] Landmarks
[edit] Religious
- Jama Masjid, Rasoolpur
- Jama Masjid, Gorakhnath Gorakhnath
- Noor Masjid, Chilmapur, Rustampur
- Madina Masjid, Reti Road
- Sang-e-Masjid, Madrasa Chowk, Basantpur
- Gorakhnath Temple, a monastery dedicated to saint Gorakshanath.
- Jama Masjid (Shahi, Urdu Bazar,, a famous mosque in the old city.
- Lord Buddha Sangrahalaya, a Buddhist museum.
- Maghar - The place where saint Kabir died.
- Kushinagar - The place where Lord Buddha died.
- Kapilvastu - City where Lord Buddha grew up.
- Lumbini, Nepal - Birthplace of Lord Buddha.
- Gorakhpur, Bhudiya Maai Mandir
- Gorakhpur Lehra devi mandir, Farenda
- Gorakhpur Tarkulha devi mandir, Gorakpur
°* Taramandal Planatarium (founded by then chief minister Sri Vir Bahadur Singh)
- Ambedkar Park
- Vinod Van Zoo
- Ram Garh Tal Lake
- Geeta Press
- Nehru Park
- Syed Modi Railway Station
- The Indian Air Force &
- The GRD (Gorkha Recruitment Depot)
GolGhar forms one of the major activity center in the city. As the name implies, it is almost in the geographical center of the city. Several major shops, hotels, banks, and restaurants can be found in Golghar.
Gita Press supplies religious books such as Geeta, Ramayana & Mahabhrata at very inexpensive prices not only in India but also in the World.
The shopping mall, Baldev Plaza, The Mall is also in Golghar.
[edit] Pulse Of The City
[edit] Ground Transport
The three-wheeled, pedal powered cycle rickshaw is the basic mode of transport in the city. The city is in a growing stage and lacks the infrastructure for a city wide bus service.
Gorakhpur mahanagar bus seva and auto rickshaw and private taxis are the allied mode of transport in the city though the past year has seen encourageable improvement in the quality of auto rickshaw service.The city is also served by a municipal bus service, auto rickshaws and taxicabs.
Gorakhpur railway station is the head quarters of NE Railway. It connects to almost every major city in India. Direct trains connect to Pune (Poona), Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi and other cities. All major cities of India are directly connected by trains through Gorakhpur.
Main roads intersect at Gorakhpur, including NH 28 and 29. Some important distances are: Lucknow 276 km, Varanasi 231 km, Allahabad 339 km, Agra 624 km, Delhi 783 km and Mumbai 1690 km.
[edit] Air Transport
Gorakhpur has an Airport & Its located 6 km (East) from the city centre. It caters to Indian Air Force Related Traffic . At Present there are few Domestic Airline including JETLITE AIRWAYS which is allowed to operate Civilian Transportation Services at the Airport due to some possible security consideration.flights services to Mumbai, delhi, kolkata,allhabad etc.
[edit] External links
