Idar
| Idar | |
|---|---|
| city | |
 | |
  Idar | |
| Coordinates: 23°50′N 73°00′E / 23.83°N 73.0°ECoordinates: 23°50′N 73°00′E / 23.83°N 73.0°E | |
| Country |
 India |
| State | Gujarat |
| District | Sabarkantha district |
| Elevation | 195 m (640 ft) |
| Population (2001) | |
| • Total | 29,597 |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Gujarati, Hindi |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
Idar is a town located about 30 km north of Himatnagar and 60 km from Gujarat's border with Rajasthan. It is known for the manufacture of handmade wooden toys, tiles, its temples and various beautiful architectural monuments, including Gadh (Palace) of Idar, Roothi Rani Ka Mahal,Vajreshwari temple, Jain Temples, Shiva & Vishnu Temples and the temple where Raja Harishchandra got married, called as Harishchandra Ki Chouri. There are numerous Bawadis similar to the ones shown in movies like Paheli, etc. The market of toys in Idar is known as Kharadi Bazaar.
Idar is at the southern end of the Aravalli Range. Many temples of Lord Shiva are found in these mountains. In history, victory over the Idar state was considered as a difficult task. So, a famous folk song was mostly sung in traditional marriages Áme Êderio Gadh Ĵitya re aanand bhayo (We are very happy that we have captured Idar fort).
It was formerly the seat of Idar, a princely state of British India. The name Idar comes from an ancient legend. As per the legend there were two devils named Elva and Durg, who stayed in the hills of Idar. So people used to talk about the place as I-dar-chhe (meaning: there is fear), the name Idar has came from there.
People
Lieutenant-General Maharaja Sri Sir Pratap Singh Sahib Bahadur of Idar GCB GCSI GCVO (22 October 1845-4 September 1922), commonly known as Sir Pratap, was a career British Indian Army officer, Maharaja of the princely state of Idar (Gujarat). Sir Pratap commanded his regiments heroically during the First World War in France and Flanders. He travelled to Europe often and was close to Queen Victoria and her family.
Pannalal Patel (Gujarati: પન્નાલાલ પટેલ) (May 7, 1912 - April 6, 1989) who was an Gujarati author. He was the recipient of Jnanpith Award in 1985 and Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1950.[1] Pannalal used to write novels in a dilect which is generally spoken in Sabarkantha district. He was educated at Sir Pratap High School of Idar.
Umashankar Joshi (Gujarati: ઉમાશંકર જોશી ) (July 12, 1911 - December 19, 1988) is an eminent poet, scholar and writer. He received the Jnanpith Award in 1967 and Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1939 for his contribution to Indian, especially Gujarati literature.[1] He was also an alumnus of The Sir Pratap High School of Idar.
Arvind Trivedi, an Indian actor. He, alongside his brother Upendra Trivedi, has been prolific in Gujarati cinema. He is also famous for portraying Ravan in Ramanand Sagar's television series Ramayan. Both the brothers belong to village Kukadiya near Idar town.
History
Idar was ruled by Rathore (Jodha) Rajputs. It was founded around 1200 by Raja Anand Singh, with the help of his brother Rai Singh and a few horseman from Palanpur and the Kolis of Gadwara, he established himself in Idar without difficulty in 1728 or 1729. He died in 1753. Then HH Maharaja Rajendra Singh became the ruler of this princely state.[2] In 1924 it was made part of the Western India States Agency. It was transferred to the Rajputana states in the early 1940s. In 1949 it was dissolved and split between Sabarkantha and Mehsana districts which were at that point in Bombay State.[3] Both these districts were became part of Gujarat when it was formed in 1960.
Geography
Idar is located at 23°50′N 73°00′E / 23.83°N 73.0°E.[4] It has an average elevation of 195 metres (639 feet). Idar is home to the very sceneic and beautiful mountains (round shaped - grey/Red granite rocks. The scenes resembles to scenes of a hit movie 'Sholey'. The amazing balances of stones which seems like a heap of round stone balls of various sizes is breathtaking. The view can be enjoyes via- route to Ambaji temple.
Idar is most famous for its natural looking mountains. Idar has also became famous for its soaring temperature which are among highest in Gujarat state. It effortlessly reaches to 46-47 C in Summers and remains hot till late evening because of its hard and bald stones.
It is a region which has become hub for cotton ginning and processing. It also has a very strong network of dairy co-operatives which helps it stay firm on economic footing in years where the rains are not good. The prominent villages in IDAR taluka are Badoli, Kukadia (Kukadiya), Kadiyadra, chhandap, Choriwad, Chotasan, Deshotter-(jaswantgadh), Bhajpura, Gazipur Umedgadh, Aaroda, Jadar, Laloda,Sherpur,Maniyor,Sadatpura, Masal, Verabar, Sabalwaad, Ravol, Kava, Virpur, Daramli, Sabli, Chitroda, Poshina, etc.
Demographics
As of 2001 India census,[5] Idar had a population of 29,567. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Idar has an average literacy rate of 68%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 75%, and female literacy is 61%. In Idar, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Patel community dominates the taluka with a largest community followed by Brahmins, Mansuri,darbars,Suthar(Mistry),vaniya,Desai (Ajna Patel),soni, vankars, thuri, etc. It also boasts as an export house of teachers in the state because of the preference and selection of educated people for teaching field. Specially in primary and secondary schools. Albeit the quality is always questionable for the teachers of Idar taluka but the security and lucrativeness of the job bears the top spot against the liking and fitness for the job.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Jnanpith Laureates Official listings". Jnanpith Website.
- ↑ uqconnect.net/~zzhsoszy/ips/i/idar.html
- ↑ Columbia-Lippincott Gazeteer, p. 824
- ↑ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Idar
- ↑ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01.