Rajpipla

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?Rajpipla Gujarat • India
Rajpipla
Coordinates: 21°47′N 73°34′E / 21.78, 73.57
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area • Elevation	• 148 m (486 ft)
District(s)	Narmada
Population	34,923 (2001)
Flag: horizontal bicolor, purple over white^[1]

Coordinates: 21°47′N 73°34′E / 21.78, 73.57

Rajpipla is a city and a municipality in Narmada district in the Indian state of Gujarat.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

The princely state of Rajpipla was situated in the foothills of the Satpura range, between two important rivers of western India—the Narmada and the Tapti. Spanning an area of over 1600 sq miles (4,100 km²), of which 600 mi² (1550 km²) were forests and the rest fertile agricultural plains and river valleys, Rajpipla grew to be one of the most prosperous princely states in Gujarat, second only to Baroda in south eastern Gujarat.

Chokrana, a Parmar Rajput prince of Ujjain in Malwa (now the western part of the state of Madhya Pradesh), following disputes with his father, settled in Juna Raj or Old Rajpipla in the western Satpuras. His daughter was married to the Gohil Rajput king Mokhadaji of Ghogha, whose descendants later became the rulers of Bhavnagar. When Chokrana died heirless, his grandson Samarsinhji, younger son of Mokhadaji, succeeded to the gadi or throne of Rajpipla in the mid-fourteenth century, assuming the name Arjunsinhji. Since then Rajpipla was ruled by the Gohil Rajput dynasty. In 1730, the capital was shifted to Nandod or new Rajpipla, in the plains on the banks of the river Karjan, a tributary of the Narmada.

Those were turbulent mediaeval times and it was not easy for the Gohils to retain their territory. They had to face several invasions from the sultans of Ahmedabad, the Mughal emperors and later the Marathas, each time coming back to power by joining forces with the hill tribes, comprising mainly the Bhils, and carrying out guerrilla attacks. The golden period of Rajpipla began when Maharana Chhatrasinhji, the 35th Gohil Raja of Rajpipla came to the gadi in 1897 AD, whereupon began the progressive era of Rajpipla. He was conferred knighthood (KCIE) as a result of his efficient administration. But the builder of modern and affluent Rajpipla was his son, Maharana Vijaysinhji, who ascended the gadi in 1915 AD, and proved to be a great administrator in association with his karbhari Rasikbhai Dubla. He was also conferred knighthood (KCSI), and received the hereditary title of Maharaja. The gun salute for the ruler of Rajpipla was increased from 11 to 13.

[edit] Geography

Rajpipla is located at 21.78° N 73.57° E^[2]. It has an average elevation of 148 metres (485 feet).

[edit] Demographics

As of 2001 India census^[3], Rajpipla had a population of 34,923. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Rajpipla has an average literacy rate of 77%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 82%, and female literacy is 71%. In Rajpipla, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.