Kanpur

For other places with the same name, see Kanpur (disambiguation).
Kanpur
कानपुर
Metropolis

Clockwise from top right: Green Park Stadium; Civil Lines district; Kanpur Police headquarters; Landmark Hotel; Kanpur Memorial Church; JK Temple
Nickname(s): "Leather City of India";[1] "Manchester of the East"[2]
Kanpur
Coordinates: 26°30′N 80°18′E / 26.5°N 80.3°ECoordinates: 26°30′N 80°18′E / 26.5°N 80.3°E
Country India India
State Uttar Pradesh
Region Awadh
Lower Doab
District Kanpur Nagar District
Kanpur Dehat District
Government
 • Mayor Shri Jagat Vir Singh Drona
 • Deputy Mayor Shri Haji Suhail Ahmed
Area
 • Metropolis 3,029 km2 (1,170 sq mi)
Elevation 126 m (413 ft)
Population (2013)[3]
 • Metropolis 3,767,031
 • Rank 10th
 • Density 1,366/km2 (3,540/sq mi)
 • Metro

3,220,067

[4]
Languages
 • Official English, Hindi, Urdu, Awadhi
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 208 0xx
 • 209 2xx
  • 209 3xx
  • 209 4xx
Telephone code 0512
Vehicle registration UP-77,UP-78
Coastline 0 kilometres (0 mi)
Sex ratio 0.855 ♂/♀
Literacy 74.37%
Climate Cfa (Köppen)
Precipitation 980 millimetres (39 in)
Avg. annual temperature 22.0 °C (71.6 °F)
Avg. summer temperature 48.7 °C (119.7 °F)
Avg. winter temperature 7 °C (45 °F)
Website www.kanpurnagar.nic.in

Kanpur (/ˈkɑːnpʊər/  pronunciation ; formerly Cawnpore) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the 5th largest city in India by land area and 10th most populous urban agglomeration. It is the second largest industrial city of the Hindi belt in North India. It is the administrative headquarters of Kanpur Nagar district and Kanpur division and is known as Leather City of the world as it contains some of the largest and finest tanneries in the world. Kanpur is one of North India's main commercial and industrial centers.

Kanpur is situated on the bank of the Ganges River and has been an important place in the history of modern India. Kanpur was one of the main centers of industrial revolution in India. It was known as Manchester of the East. Towards the end of 19th century, Sir John Burney Allens established a group of companies such as Kanpur Textiles, Cawnpore Woollen Mills (Lal-imli), Flex Shoes Company, Elgin Mills and North Tannery under the banner of British India Corporation having headquarters at Kanpur. In the beginning of the 20th century, Lala Kamlapat established a group of companies such as; J.K. Cotton Mills and J.K. Iron etc. under the banner of J.K. During the same period Sir J. P. Srivastava established New Victoria Mills. The Jaipuria family bought Swadeshi Cotton Mills from the Horsman family and in 1928 Sardar Inder Singh founded India's first steel re-rolling mill at Singh Engineering which later became one of India's biggest steel rolling mills. The British Government also established a number of factories like; Aircraft Manufacturing Depot, Kanpur (Now HAL), Ordnance Factory, Kanpur (Manufactured the Nirbheek Revolver) and Parachute Factory in 1886 to supplement their defence requirements.[5] Today Kanpur comprises Ghari detergent, Red Chief Shoes, Red Tape Shoes, Goldie spices, Duncans Industries, innumerous middle scale industries, a hosiery business (which is the second largest in North India) and 500 world famous leather tanneries.

It has an area of over 605 km2 with an approximate population of 4.2 million inhabitants in its area. It is administratively divided into 6 zones and 110 wards with a ward population range of 19,000 to 26,000.[6] It is the 75th largest city in the world.[7]

Others believe that the name is derived from Karnapur (meaning "town of Karna", one of the heroes of the Mahabharata). Another theory is that it came from the nearby town of Makanpur, earlier known as Khairabad, where the Sufi saint of the Madariya Sufi order, Badiuddin Zinda Shah Madar, settled.[8]

Earlier history of the area

Kanpur's development is unclear until the 13th century. Although no reference to Kanpur is found in written documents before this time, the history of two of its suburbs, Jajmau and Bithoor, can be traced back to pre-13th century times. Bithoor is located about 20 km upstream from the city and is approximately 10 km from the IIT Kanpur campus. Jajmau is about 8 km east of the city and is nearly 20 km downstream from the IIT Campus. According to Hindu mythology, just after creating the universe, Lord Brahma performed the Ashvamedha at Bithoor and established a lingam there. Another legendary site at Bithoor is the Valmiki Ashram, where the famous sage Valmiki is supposed to have written the Sanskrit epic, the Ramayana. According to this epic, Queen Seeta, on being exiled by King Ramachandra of Ayodhya, spent her days in seclusion at the ashram bringing up her twin sons, Lava and Kush.

At Jajmau, there are remains of an ancient fort, now surviving as a huge mound. Recent excavations on this mound indicate that the site is very old, perhaps dating back to the Vedic age. Popular legends state that the fort belonged to Yayati, a king of the ancient Chandravanshi race.

At Ghatampur (Bhitargaon), 45 km from kanpur central there is an ancient temple built in Gupta Era.

At Shivrajpur, 20 km from the Kanpur Central railway station, there is an ancient temple built by Chandel Raja Sati Prasad in memory of his queen. This temple is supposed to have been built in a night and is situated on the banks of the Ganges. This temple is famous for its architectural work and carving designs.

Parihar rulers of Kannauj may have ruled this place for a significant part of history long before the beginning of Mughal era. Some historical accounts suggest Pratihara emperor, Mihir Bhoja, has ruled in Kanpur since nearby Kannuaj was the capital of Parihar.[9]

Founding of the settlement

Kanpur Sangrahalaya

In 1207 AD, Raja Kanti Deo of Prayag (connected to the throne of Kannauj) established the village Kohna, which later came to be known as Kanpur. Kanpur continued its association with Kannauj during the reigns of Harsha Vardhan, Mihir Bhoja, Jai Chand and early Muslim rulers through the Sur Dynasty. The first mention of Kanpur was made in 1579 during Sher Shah's regime. Up to the first half of the 18th century, Kanpur was an insignificant village. Parihar rulers also ruled more than 200 years in Kanpur, as Kannauj was the capital of Parihar rulers & Kannauj is very near by located to Kanpur.

In May 1765, Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab of Awadh, was defeated by the British near Jajmau. From 1773 to 1801, it was part of the Oudh kingdom and then came into the hands of the British. At this time, the British realized the strategic importance of the site of Kanpur. European businessmen had, by this time, started establishing themselves in Kanpur. In order to ensure protection for their lives and property, the European business shifted the 'Awadh local forces' here in 1778. Kanpur passed into British hands under the treaty of 1801 with Nawab Saadat Ali Khan of Awadh.

Kanpur later became one of the most important military stations of British India. It was declared a district on 24 March 1803. South of Parmat were the British infantry lines and the parade grounds. Indian infantry occupied the space from the present Chunniganj to the Christ Church College. The Company Bagh was laid in 1847 and the construction of the Ganges Canal was completed in 1854.

The Kanpur Sangrahalaya/Kanpur Museum housing valuable artifacts from pre-colonial and colonial period, was established in 1999, in a section of KEM Hall, Phool Bagh Maidan.

Indian Rebellion of 1857

Up to 1,000 British troops, their families and loyal sepoys were confined in General Wheeler's entrenchment in Kanpur for three weeks in June 1857 where they were besieged by the army of Maratha prince named Nana Sahib
Charge of the Highlanders led by General Havelock, to relieve the besieged British troops held by Indian fighters.
1858 picture of Sati Chaura Ghat on the banks of the Ganges River, where on 27 June 1857 many British men lost their lives and the surviving women and children were taken prisoner during India's first war of Independence.

In the 19th century, Kanpur was an important British garrison with barracks for 7,000 soldiers. During the Indian Rebellion of 1857 900 British men, women and children were besieged in the fortifications for 22 days by rebels under Nana Sahib Peshwa. They surrendered on the agreement that they would get safe passage to the nearby Satti Chaura Ghat whereupon they would board barges and be allowed to go by river to Allahabad.

Though controversy surrounds what exactly happened at the Satti Chaura Ghat, and who fired the first shot, it is known that soon afterwards, the departing British were shot at, by the rebel sepoys, and were either killed or captured. Some of the British officers later claimed that the rebels had placed the boats as high in the mud as possible, on purpose to cause delay. They also claimed that Nana Sahib's camp had previously arranged for the rebels to fire upon and kill all the English. Although the East India Company later accused Nana Sahib of betrayal and murder of innocent people, no evidence has ever been found to prove that Nana Sahib had pre-planned or ordered the massacre. Some historians believe that the Satti Chaura Ghat massacre was the result of confusion, and not of any plan implemented by Nana Sahib and his associates. Lieutenant Mowbray Thomson, one of the four male survivors of the massacre, believed that the rank-and-file sepoys who spoke to him did not know of the killing to come.

Many were killed and the remaining 200 British women and children were brought back to shore and sent to a building called the Bibighar (the ladies' home). After some time, the commanders of the rebels decided to kill their hostages. The rebel soldiers refused to carry out orders, and butchers from the nearby town were brought in to kill the hostages three days before the British entered the city on 18 July. The dismembered bodies were thrown into a deep well nearby. The British under General Neill retook the city and committed a series of retaliations against the rebel Sepoys and those civilians caught in the area, including women, children and old men. The Kanpur Massacre, as well as similar events elsewhere, were seen by the British as justification for unrestrained vengeance.[10]

British Forces capture the rebel forces in 1857 near Kanpur, India

The British dismantled the Bibighar and raised a memorial railing and a cross at the site of the well. In 1862, they built a church called All Souls' Cathedral in memory of those killed; renamed the Kanpur Memorial Church. This Church still stands at what was the northeast corner of Wheeler’s entrenchment. The marble Gothic screen with the famous 'mournful seraph' was transferred to the churchyard after independence in 1947, and in its place a bust of Tantya Tope installed at Nana Rao Park. The well is now bricked over, but the remains of a circular ridge and 'Boodha Bargad' (Old Banyan Tree) are still there. The "Boodha Bargad" is not there anymore. Only a stone describing the Boodha Bargad is there.

After 1857 it became an important center of the leather and textile industries. The Government Harness and Saddlery Factory was set up in 1860 to supply the army with leather products, followed by Cooper Allen & Co in 1860. The first cotton textile mill, The Elgin Mills was started in 1862 and the Muir Mills in 1880, and many others followed in the next 40 years such as Victoria Mills and Atherton West & Co. made Cawnpore a major textile producer. The Elgin Mills of Cawnpore was famous for its Drill Khakhi during the early/mid 20th Century. The Khaki cloth was famous for its colour and durability. The man behind this was the Dyeing Master Gopal Sadashiv Gogate, who died on 17 December 1942.

The British India Corporation (BIC) was headquartered here and led the development of many industries. The Juggilal Kamlapat Singhania launched many factories between 1930 and 1970. Radheylaal Steel Rolling Mill formed up by Seth Radheylaal Vaishya son of Lala Pannalal at Juhi, Kanpur and the Jaipuria family contributed to the patriotic cause by building The Swadeshi Cotton Mills in response to charges that the foreign rulers were raiding India of its cotton only to sell it back to its residents. The first steel re-rolling mill of India was established at Singh Engineering which later became one of India's largest steel re-rolling mills. Kanpur was known as the "Manchester of India" in the twentieth century. Kanpur was the largest trading and manufacturing center in the United Provinces.

Kanpur is an important center of India's leather industry and small arms. It has five Indian ordinance Factories viz Ordinance Equipment Factory, Field Gun Factory, Ordinance Parachute Factory, Small Arms Factory, Ordinance Factory which manufacture products of the Indian Armed Forces.

Kanpur (Cawnpur) and Environ Map, 1911

Culture

The Nana Sahib with his escort. Steel engraved print, published in History of the Indian Revolution (late 1950s).
The well outside Bibi Ghar
Tantia Topee's leading his army from Bithoor

Nestling on the banks of the River Ganges, Kanpur stands as one of North India’s major industrial centres with its own historical, religious and commercial importance. Believed to have been founded by king Hindu Singh of the erstwhile state of Sachendi, Kanpur was originally known as "Kanhpur". Historically, Jajmau on the eastern outskirts of present day Kanpur, is regarded as one of the most archaic townships of Kanpur district. Up to the first half of the 18th century, Kanpur continued to survive as an insignificant village. Its fate, however, took a new turn soon after. In May 1765, Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab Wazir of Awadh, was defeated by the British near Jajmau. It was probably at this time that strategic importance of the site of Kanpur was realised by the British. European businessmen had by this time gradually started establishing themselves in Kanpur. In order to ensure protection to their lives and property, the "Awadh local forces" were shifted here in 1778. Kanpur passed into British hands under the treaty of 1801 with Nawab Saadat Ali Khan of Awadh. This forms a turning point in the history of Kanpur. Soon Kanpur became one of the most important military stations of British India. It was declared a district on 24 March 1803. Kanpur was founded by Chandela king Krishnadeo.

Kanpur was a hotbed of change in the independence and literary movements during the first half of the 20th century. A popular shopping centre is named Navin Market, after the poet Bal Krishna Sharma aka "Navin". Later poets included Gopal Das "Niraj" who wrote songs for Hindi films. Kanpur is also the birthplace of Shyamlal Gupta 'Parshad’, composer of the famous ditty Vijayee Vishwa Tiranga Pyara. The propagation and popularisation of Hindi also owes much to this city, with great Hindu literatteurs such as Acharya Mahavir Prasad Dwivedi, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Pratap Narain Mishra and Acharya Gaya Prasad Shukla `Sanehi’. The Agricultural University is named after the revolutionary Chandrashekhar Azad and the Medical College after Ganesh Shanker Vidyarthi; both men spent much time in Kanpur. While Chandrashekhar 'Azad' shot himself when surrounded by a huge posse of British soldiers at Alfred Park, Allahabad, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi was killed during the Hindu-Muslim riots of 1931 at Machli Bazar in Kanpur.

About 25 km from Kanpur is Bithoor(Brahmavarta). Legend goes that Sita, the wife of Lord Rama came to live at the ashram of sage Valmiki, after Rama expelled her from Ayodhya. It was here that she gave birth to the twins Lava (Ramayana) and Kusha (Ramayana), and disappeared back into the earth (from where she was born) when confronted by a repentant Rama. Bithoor is also the site of the fort to which Nana Sahib escaped following the British retaking of Kanpur. Today, Bithoor is a tourist spot on the banks of the River Ganges and Kanpur is expanding very fast with new residential complexes sprouting up everywhere. Among festivals Ganga Mela is a unique festival that is celebrated in Kanpur, 5 days after the festival Holi. Colours are thrown and people greet each other before having a dip in the sacred Ganges. Music, dance and poem recitation are organised in the evening. The festival is celebrated in memory of revolutionaries released by British government who were held prisoners during the 1857 revolution. The kanpur is the city of Ganga.

Cuisine

The city is located at the heart of the sugar bowl of India. Kanpur will serve the most variety of sweet dishes than you would get anywhere across the country. The cooking patterns of the city are similar to those of Central Asia, the Middle East, and Northern India as well. The cuisine consists of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Kanpur has been greatly influenced by Mughal cooking techniques, and the cuisine of Kanpur bears similarities to those of Kashmir, Punjab and Hyderabad; and the city is famous for its Nawabi foods and Punjabi dishes.

The bawarchis of Awadh gave birth to the dum style of cooking (the art of cooking over a slow fire), which has become synonymous with Kanpur today. Their spread would consist of elaborate dishes like kebabs, kormas, biryani, kaliya, nahari-kulchas, zarda, sheermal, taftan, roomali rotis and warqi parathas. The richness of Awadh cuisine lies not only in the variety of cuisine but also in the ingredients used like mutton, paneer, and rich spices including cardamom and saffron.

Geography

The city's coordinates are 26.4670° North and 80.3500° East. The Government of Uttar Pradesh has carved out the new district of Kanpur Dehat from the old Kanpur Rural district. Kanpur, along with Allahabad and Fatehpur, are part of the Lower Doab, which in antiquity was known as the Vatsa country. It is surrounded by two main rivers of India, the Ganges in the northeast and the Pandu River (Yamuna) in the south. The districts surrounding Kanpur are Hamirpur in the south and Unnao in the north-east. The arid region of Bundelkhand lies just south of Kanpur. Kanpur district along with Kanpur Dehat district lie between the fertile Doab region of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers. The river Yamuna marks the boundary between the Avadh and Bundelkhand regions. Kanpur City comes under the Indo-Gangetic plains of India. There are facilities of clean drinking water. Water comes from Kanpur City by Ganges Barge and there are various pumping stations for providing water to farmers for crops. Kanpur is situated on the right side of river Ganges and left side is Shuklaganj which is in Unnao District but is also the part of Kanpur.

Climate

Kanpur features an atypical version of a humid subtropical climate that resembles the climate of Delhi to some degree. It is has one of the lowest temperatures in notern plains during the winter season and is one of the warmest during the summer season. Unlike many other cities with a humid subtropical climate, Kanpur features long and very hot summers, mild and relatively short winters, dust storms and a monsoon season. Kanpur lies in northern plains of India, which witness extremes of temperature. It can drop to a minimum of 0.0 °C in the winters while it goes up to 48 °C in summers. Kanpur experiences severe fog in December and January, resulting in massive traffic and travel delays. In summer excessive dry heat is accompanied by dust storms and Loo, traits more commonly seen in desert climates. Rains appear between July and September almost at the end of regular monsoon season. Some rainfall is recorded during the harvest season of March–April. These extremes however, give the region an advantage of having three crops of versatile range of products. Best time to visit Kanpur is either October–November or February–March. Snowfall has never occurred in the city. There are sometimes hailstones accompanied with rain in the winter season during the month of January but sometimes hailstorms have also occurred in the months of March and April. In January 2002, the city witnessed a heavy hailstorm which left the city streets white with ice pieces and in 2009 when the last hailstorm was recorded. Dust storms are frequent during the months of April–June. These dust storms are sometimes accompanied with light drizzles. Such dusty winds raise the level of particulates in the atmosphere resulting in severe air pollution and increasing health hazards. Sometimes the speed of winds exceeds to more than 100 km/hr in the outer areas of the city. Kanpur City lies on the right bank of the river Ganges, which is elevated very high from the river, which is the reason that the city never floods. Some of the rural outskirts of the city lie on the flood prone areas of the Ganges, and it often floods the villages on its banks during the monsoon season. The Left bank sandy areas on the banks of the Ganges are cultivated to produce summer fruits like watermelon. The dry and Hot Loo winds help the growth of watermelon which results in its great yield. The average rainfall recorded in the city is 885 mm.

Climate data for Kanpur
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 31.1
(88)		 35.6
(96.1)		 42.8
(109)		 45.6
(114.1)		 47.2
(117)		 47.3
(117.1)		 45.0
(113)		 40.6
(105.1)		 40.0
(104)		 40.6
(105.1)		 36.1
(97)		 31.3
(88.3)		 47.3
(117.1)
Average high °C (°F) 23.1
(73.6)		 25.9
(78.6)		 32.3
(90.1)		 38.3
(100.9)		 40.7
(105.3)		 39.0
(102.2)		 33.8
(92.8)		 32.9
(91.2)		 33.2
(91.8)		 33.0
(91.4)		 29.4
(84.9)		 24.8
(76.6)		 32.2
(90)
Average low °C (°F) 7.9
(46.2)		 10.3
(50.5)		 15.3
(59.5)		 21.4
(70.5)		 25.4
(77.7)		 27.4
(81.3)		 26.3
(79.3)		 25.9
(78.6)		 24.6
(76.3)		 19.6
(67.3)		 13.0
(55.4)		 8.6
(47.5)		 18.7
(65.7)
Record low °C (°F) 1.6
(34.9)		 0.6
(33.1)		 7.2
(45)		 11.1
(52)		 16.4
(61.5)		 20.6
(69.1)		 21.7
(71.1)		 21.7
(71.1)		 11.8
(53.2)		 4.6
(40.3)		 0.5
(32.9)		 −0.9
(30.4)		 −0.9
(30.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 18.7
(0.736)		 15.7
(0.618)		 8.3
(0.327)		 7.4
(0.291)		 19.8
(0.78)		 99.0
(3.898)		 300.8
(11.843)		 233.1
(9.177)		 188.7
(7.429)		 53.8
(2.118)		 5.1
(0.201)		 9.1
(0.358)		 959.6
(37.78)
Avg. rainy days 1.9 1.5 1.0 0.8 1.2 4.6 13.7 10.7 6.8 2.1 0.4 0.7 45.5
Source: India Meteorological Department (record high and low up to 2010)[11][12]

Surrounding areas

 GT Amusement Park Town (GTAPT) Gangotri Township Shuklaganj
New Kanpur City Krishna Nagar
   Kanpur City Centre  
Rawatpur Fazalganj Govind Nagar

Flora and fauna

Kanpur is home to many residential and migratory birds. Most of them can be spotted at Bithoor, IIT Kanpur campus and areas alongside the Ganges Canal. In the IIT campus you can find a large number of peacocks and nilgai. The city has Asia's biggest (area wise) zoological garden. Exotic species of flora are present at the CSA campus also.

The Kanpur zoo is famous for its cages designed to provide a natural habitat for the animals, and has a vast variety of animals. The water supply system of the zoo is a work of art, by an artist and engineer in the Sinchai Department of that time, Murari Sharan Saxena. He was also known for the design of gates of every dam in whole Uttar Pradesh of that period. The Zoo is a part of a lush green area - The Allen Forest Zoo, Nawabganj.

Demography

Religions in Kanpur
Religion Percent
Hindus
  
 70%
Muslims
  
 20%
Christians
  
 6%
Sikhs
  
 1%
Buddhists
  
 1%
Jains
  
 1%
Others†
  
 1%
Distribution of religions
†Includes Parsis (<1%).
Kanpur Population 
CensusPop. %±
1891188,712
—
1901197,1704.5%
1911178,557-9.4%
1921216,43621.2%
1931243,75512.6%
1941487,32499.9%
1951638,73431.1%
1961705,38310.4%
19711,275,24280.8%
19811,782,66539.8%
19911,874,4095.1%
20012,551,33736.1%
20112,767,0318.5%
Source: Census of India[13]

As per 2011 census Kanpur urban agglomeration has a population of 2,920,067, out of which males were 1,584,967 and females were 1,335,100. The literacy rate was 84.37 per cent.[14]

The majority of Kanpur's population comprises people from Central and Western Uttar Pradesh. However, Punjabis and Anglo-Indians have also settled in large numbers in areas of Swaroop Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Azad Nagar and Civil Lines. While the majority of the population is Hindu, there is a significant Muslim minority population. There are also small groups of Sikhs, Jains, Christians and Buddhists. As per 20011 census literacy rate of Kanpur is 84.37%.

Kanpur is situated on the banks of the river Ganges; the population was 2,551,337 as per the 2001 census. In the last decade, the population rose rapidly. One of the factors for this kind of growth can be a higher number of immigration to Kanpur City from other areas. Languages spoken in and around Kanpur include Hindi, English, Urdu, Bengali and Punjabi. Hinduism is the largest religion followed in the city with one-fifth of the citizens adhering to Islam as a religion. Muslims in the city include wealthy business people in the well established tanning industry which accounts for India's 30% export. There is a majority population of Hindus which live in peace and friendship with their Muslims neighbours. The Sikh community consists of immigrants who were displaced due to the Partition of India in 1947. They have since well established business in the city and reside in areas such as Dada Nagar, Govind Nagar, Gumti No.5, Jawahar Nagar, Ashok Nagar and 80 ft road. Christians are 3rd largest community in Kanpur with about 20,000 Christians as per year 2000.[15] Christ Church College, Kanpur Memorial Church, British India Corporation, St.Patrick's Church and school, St Mary's Convent High School, Huddard High School, Methodist Church in Civil Lines, Kanpur Museum, Cawnpore Kotwali, Cemetery near Court, Collector Mansion Methodist High School and many old buildings and bungalows in Cantt. and Civil Lines reflect British architecture. There are 35 Parsis in Kanpur with their Fire Temple at M.G Road.[16]

Economy

Kanpur has a total GDP (PPP) of 23 billion US$ and it ranks as 9th among top 10 Industrial cities in India followed by Surat.

Kanpur is one of the biggest producers of leather production the world and they are exported in bulk. Apart from the leather and textile industries, the fertilizer, chemicals, two wheelers, soaps, pan masala, hosiery and engineering industries are also operating in the city. The private sector has also set up large units such as factories of the JK Industries group, Lohia machines, Duncans, etc.

The only unit of the Indian Institute of Pulse Research (an institute of ICAR) and one of the three units of the National Sugar Institute is situated in Kanpur which reflects the strong agrarian nature of industries here.

Kanpur was also infamous to a certain extent for being home to largest tanneries in India and the subsequent pollution they caused thereof. These tanneries were the initial source of industrial base in Kanpur during the colonial period. However owing to poor pollution record, lack of technologies and emergence of other avenues of employment has led to a slow and gradual decline of these units.

Kanpur has also begun to find favour among the outsourcing sector as a favoured location with several new startups setting up shop here owing to cheaper costs and a readily available talent pool.

Kanpur also has one of the five [17]central railway stations in India.

Kanpur has several locational advantages, i.e., location at a vantage point on four national highways, i.e., NH 2, NH-86, NH-91 and NH 25; raw material availability for many industries, viz. leather, food processing, plastics etc., proximity to large markets, availability of skilled manpower due to various institutes located within Kanpur (viz. Indian Institute of Technology, Chandr Shekhar Azad Agricultural University, Central Pulse Research Institute, Leather Institute etc.) and existing traditional industrial base attracting skilled workers to the city.

One of the Software Technology Parks of India is also situated in Kanpur in Awadhpuri locality. Central Government has sanctioned Rs. 250 crs to restart Lal Imli Mill in Kanpur which has been closed for a long time.

Business giants in the city include Kashi Jewellers, Laxman traders, Superhouse Group, Simran traders, Aone user, Mirza International, The Universal Book Stall, flex industries, Kesarvani, Bajrangbali, deals in handicraft materials, Pan Parag, super glue etc.

In Kanpur, the banking services were availed by only 61 percent of the households (Census 2001). About 8 percent of the households did not possess basic assets such as vehicles (bicycles, scooter, moped, car, jeep, etc.), televisions and radios. Katiyabaaz (Powerless), a 2014 Indian documentary film deals with the issue of power theft in the city of Kanpur.[18]

Pollution

Kanpur is one of the most polluted cities in the world. In addition to the historical pollution from the tanneries[19] there are more modern problems, including air pollution[20] and contaminated water supplies.[21][22]

City centre

The City Center of Kanpur is along the Mall Road, which is known as the vein or life line of Kanpur. It adjoins the Civil Lines locality. Innumerous Banks like The Reserve Bank of India, SBI, Federal Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Allahabad Bank, The GPO (General Post Office), British India Corporation is headquartered here, BSNL Tower, UP Stock Exchange, Indian Merchants' Chamber of Uttar Pradesh, LIC headquarters, Green Park Stadium, Ursala Horseman District Hospital, Kanpur Judiciary, Cawnpore Kotwali, Parks like Moti Jheel and Nana Rao Park and Phool Bagh, Z Square Shopping Mall, Som Dutt Plaza along with The Landmak Hotel, Navin Market and various other shopping centers and plazas are a feature of the City Center. It is the major economic centre of Kanpur. The area is of 10 km sq approximately and has a population of around 200,000. The renovation of city centre is carried under by JNNURM and Kanpur Municipal Corporation. Recently, musical fountains and expanding of the Mall Road has taken place. Activities like protection of old buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries have taken place.

Major industries in Kanpur

There are innumerous large, medium and small scale industries and manufacturing centers in Kanpur.

Major business clusters in Kanpur

Cotton Hosiery Cluster About 476 small industrial units are working in this cluster. Cotton Hosiery industry provides employment to over 10,000 people in the city and exports goods worth 6 crore annually.

Readymade Garments Cluster Industries associated in this cluster produce items like dyed stitching fleece, knitting sinker and other hosiery items. The total exports from this relatively new business segment in Kanpur are to the tune of 50 crore.

Soap and Detergent Business Cluster The industrial units associated in this cluster produce detergent powder, liquid detergents and glass and floor cleaners among other items. The turnover of this business cluster is around 600 crore annually though the items are consumed within the state and neighbouring states.

Paint and Allied Industries Cluster This business cluster functions under the ambit of Paint and Allied Products Manufacturers Association. Around 50 units work in this business cluster within the city limits of Kanpur and produce products as enamel based paints, varnishes and thinners along with other allied products.

Harness and Saddlery Business Cluster The major products produced in this business cluster include saddlers, harness and saddlery products. Around 225 micro units are associated in this business and value of exports from this cluster has touched a high of Rs 375 crore last year.

Leather and Leather products Business Cluster Industries associated in leather business in Kanpur produce leather footwear, leather garments and other leather goods. Around 1635 units in Kanpur produce leather goods and the turnover of the cluster was in the range of 292 crore last year.

Steel furniture Business Cluster Around 685 industrial units are functioning in this business cluster. The industrial units associated with steel furniture business in Kanpur provide employment to over 50,000 people and has been able to achieve a turnover of 181 crore last year.

Cold Storage Business Cluster The 100 units working in this cluster function under the ambit of Uttar Pradesh Cold Storage Association. The turnover of this cluster was in range of 50 crore last year and the industrial units associated in this business provide employment to over 2000 people.

Pharmaceutical Business Cluster Around 75 business units are functioning in this business clusters. These include major multinationals like Ranbaxy and Cipla besides local pharmaceutical units. The turnover of the cluster is in the tune of 70 crore and the industrial units provide employment to over 2300 people.

Property

Property is one of the growing sectors of the Kanpur's economy. Kanpur has one of the fastest growing property rates in almost all the areas due to overpopulation.

Metropolitan Area

The metropolitan region defined under JNNURM by Kanpur Nagar Nigam, includes the Kanpur Nagar Nigam area, 8 kilometer around KNN boundary and newly included 47 villages of Unnao district on the north-eastern side, it extends to Murtaza Nagar, in the west its limit is up to Akbarpur, Kanpur Dehat Nagar Panchayat limit, in the eastern side the limit has been expanded on the road leading to Fatehpur and in extended up to. The metropolitan region area includes the area of Shuklaganj Municipal Committee (Nagar Palika), Unnao Municipal Committee (Nagar Palika), Akbarpur Village Authority (Nagar Panchayat) and Bithoor Village Authority (Nagar Panchayat) area.[6] In 1997-98, total metropolitan region area has increased to 89131.15 hectare out of which 4,743.9 hectare (5.31%) was non-defined (prohibited area) and rest 29,683 hectare and 54,704 hectare (61.39%) was urban and rural area respectively.

Kanpur Urban Area

Aerial view of Old Central Business District near The Mall as viewed from The Landmark Hotel

Important cities and towns of Kanpur Urban Area are:

Civic administration

Kanpur Municipal Corporation HQ
Kanpur City officials
Divisional Commissioner
Mukul Singhal[23]
Mayor
Captain Jagatveer Singh Dron[24]
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate
Peeyush Pandey[25]
Metropolitan Magistrate
Pradeep Kumar Jayant[25]
District Magistrate
Dr Roshan Jacob[26]

Kanpur Municipal Corporation

This body is responsible for administration of Kanpur City area.

Kanpur Development Authority

Kanpur Development Authority (KDA) is a board for development of Kanpur. The Secretary of Kanpur Development Authority is Shakuntla Gautam. Kanpur Development Authority is responsible for constructing Governmental Building and flats in Kanpur.

Police

The Kanpur Metropolitan Police has six geographic zones, includes the Traffic Police, the City Armed Reserve, the Central Crime Branch and the City Crime Record Bureau and runs 73 police stations, including two all-women police stations.

Electricity and Water Supply

Electricity in Kanpur is regulated through the Kanpur Electricity Supply Company (KESA), now called KESCO, [47] while water supply and sanitation facilities are provided by the Kanpur Water Supply and Sewerage Board (KWSSB). The city is facing problems due to erratic power supply and spoilt roads due to laying down of new sewerage pipes. U.P.S.I.D.C (Uttar Pradesh State Industrial Development Corporation Ltd.) Head Office is in Kanpur.

The Special Zones

The special zones of Kanpur are:[27]

State Government/Private SEZs notified/approved prior to SEZ Act 2005

Media

Kanpur is home to the Dainik Jagran newspaper which is the most read Hindi newspaper in India. Other newspapers that are widely read include Amar Ujala, Aaj, Rashtriya Sahara, Hindustan. The English dailies published are The Times of India, Hindustan Times, Economic Times, The Pioneer, etc. There is also the Hindi and English mixed Newspaper Tabloid I-NEXT.

There are currently five FM radio stations and one All India Radio Akashwani Station being broadcast in Kanpur. The 6 Radio Stations are following:

Education

UIET Kanpur is known for its lush-green campus
PK Kelkar Library, IIT Kanpur, designed by Achyut Kanvinde
International Centre, Kanpur University
CSA, Kanpur
Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur

N.S.I. KANPUE Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Department of Food & Public Distribution Kanpur-208017 India

Kanpur has been a centre of education as many prominent universities and colleges are situated here. The world renowned institute in the field of science and technology IIT Kanpur, established in 1959, is situated on Grand Trunk Road. Harcourt Butler Technological Institute (HBTI) is Kanpur's oldest technical institute situated in Nawabganj. The history of Harcourt Butler Technological Institute dates to the 1920s when there was a growing realization of the need for advancement in science and technology among the people of what was then called the United Provinces. Consequently, the Indian Industrial Commission at its Nainital meeting proposed two institutions for engineering — one at Roorkee and the other at Kanpur. To boost entrepreneurship, accelerate industrial development, to create a sound environment for contemporary applied research and to inculcate scientific and technical temper, an institute called `Government Research Institute, Cawnpore' was started in 1920. It was housed in two rooms of what was called Sher Wali Kothi. The old majestic building is still intact at the northwest corner of the Company Bagh crossing, Nawabganj. Dr. Annett was then the principal of the Opium Research Laboratory of which the new institute was an adjunct. Kanpur also boasts of Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial Medical College ( GSVM Medical College ) which is one of the best medical colleges in the country. Chatrapati Shahau Ji Maharaj University formerly Kanpur University offers courses in various departments at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels. STEP-HBTI (Leading management institute affiliated to GBTU)University Institute of Engineering and Technology, Kanpur University(http://uietkanpur.com/), Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Uttar Pradesh Textile Technology Institute, Government Leather Institute formerly known as Government Leather Working School, Indian Institute of Pulses Research, National Sugar Institute, Institute of Productivity & Management, Government Polytechnic, Advanced Training Institute, Prof. H.N. Misra College of Education (formerly known as International Centre College of Education), Brahmanand Degree College, vssd Degree College, PPN Degree College, D.A-V. P.G. College, Halim Muslim Degree College, BNSD College, Christ Church College are some of the popular educational institutions of Kanpur city. There are more than 70 Agricultural, Degree, Engineering, Management and Medical colleges in Kanpur. Also in the city we have Central India Regional Council of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Apart from these there are various renowned schools (pre-primary to class XII); Seth Anandram Jaipuria School is one of the best schools in India. Among the oldest are the Methodist High School, operating since 1876, and Huddard High School, a private, CISCE-affiliated high school established in 1926. B.N.S.D. Inter College, Jawaharlal Nehru Inter College, Christ Church Inter College, D.A-V. Inter College and Government Inter College are the repotted government intermediate colleges of the city.


IIT Kanpur, Harcourt Butler Technological Institute, Indian Institute of Pulses Research, National Sugar Institute, Kanpur University, Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology are working tremendously in the field of research and development. A non-governmental association, Society for Tropical Plant Research also serves the scientific community through its international scientific journal - Tropical Plant Research.

Notable locations

"IIT Kanpur panaroma from Hall 7"
Foreigners Cycling near Lower Ganga Canal

Parks

Rhinoceros at the zoo

Historical and places of attraction

JK Temple in artificial lights
Massacre Ghat

Water bodies

Transport

Kanpur Metro

Line 1: Central-Kalyanpur - Bithoor

Legend
Kanpur Central
Kanpur Anwarganj
Rawatpur
Kalyanpur
Mandhana
Bithoor

Kanpur Mahanagar Bus Seva

The Central Government providing the Kanpur city administration with 300 buses under JNNURM. Central Government will bear 50% cost while State Government and Nagar Nigam will bear 20% and 30% cost respectively.

Suburban bus service

The suburban bus service is run by Kanpur upnagariya parivahan sewa. Its fleet is around 120 buses. These buses cater the need of suburban towns and tehsils in Kanpur and neighbouring districts. Suburban services is from Shahid Major Salman Khan Bus Station and Rawatpur. Towns connected by Shahid Major Salman Khan Bus Station are Unnao, Fatehpur, Akbarpur, Jajmau, Chakeri, Sarsaul, Maharajpur. Towns connected by Bithoor are Bilhaur, Mandhana, Chobepur, Shivrajpur, nayi jail. It is a division of Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation.

Inter-state bus service

One of Kanpur's major bus terminals is Shahid Major Salman Khan bus station at Jhakarkatti. Another important bus station is at Rawatpur. Earlier, another bus terminal operated at Govind Puri, directly in front of the main railway station, but this has now been reestablished as a city bus station. The move was taken to remove congestion in front of the railway station. Kanpur Lucknow Roadways Service is a very important service for commuters. The cities outside Uttar Pradesh that are covered by bus service are Jaipur, New Delhi, Gwalior, Bharatpur, Singrauli, Faridabad, Gurgaon Sagar and Dausa.

Railways

Kanpur Central (CNB)

Served by Indian Railways, Kanpur is connected by trains to almost every part of India like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Raipur, Indore, Bhopal, Aligarh, Agra, Farrukhabad, Jabalpur, Jamshedpur, Srinagar, Jaipur, Gorakhpur, Guwahati, Jhansi, Khajuraho, Jalgaon, Durg, Pune, Surat, Lucknow, Nagpur and Coimbatore.

Kanpur has ten railway stations within its city limits: Kanpur Central, Kanpur Anwarganj, Govindpuri (Kanpur South), Panki, Chakeri, Rawatpur, Kalyanpur (Kalyanpur), Kanpur Bridge Left Bank, Bhimsen Jn. and Rooma. There was one more station called "Purana Kanpur" from which the first train ran in Northern India in 1859 - however now it is defunct.

Kanpur Central is the main railway station of Kanpur and is the largest railway station of North Central Railways. Kanpur Central lies as one of the most important railway stations on Delhi-Howrah Trunk Line of Indian Railways. The first Rajdhani Express of India ran via this railway station.

Air travel

Air India (Regional) landing at Kanpur Airport

Kanpur Airport has scheduled commercial flights to Delhi. The nearest International Airport is the Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport at Lucknow, which is around 75 km from Kanpur.

Roads

Upstream view of Ganges from Kanpur railway bridge
Downstream view of Ganges from Kanpur railway bridge

The city has had chronic problems with maintaining local roads.[22] There are several important National Highways that pass through Kanpur.

NH No Route Total Length
NH 2 Delhi » Mathura » Agra » Kanpur » Allahabad » Varanasi » Mohania » Barhi » Palsit » Dankuni (near Kolkata) 2542
NH 25 Lucknow » Kanpur » Jhansi 352
NH 86 Kanpur » Hamirpur » Mahoba » Chhatarpur » Sagar » Bhopal » Indore 674
NH 91 Ghaziabad » Aligarh » Etah » Kannauj » Kanpur 405
NH 157 (Proposed) Kanpur » Raebareli » Sultanpur » Shahganj » Azamgarh » Gaura Barhaj » Siwan » Muzaffarpur 581

The Inter State Bus Station (ISBT) of Kanpur officially named as the "Shaheed Major Salman Khan Bus Station". It is locally known as the "Jhakarkati Bus Station" enquiry number: 0512 2328381. It provides buses to important cities of India. The other bus stations are:[28]

Ring road

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is all set to develop a four-lane outer ring road along the periphery of Kanpur with an aim to prevent traffic congestion in the industrial city caused by long-distance heavy vehicles. The new road, which will help the heavy vehicles to bypass the city, will be developed on a "Built, Operate and Transfer" (BOT) basis under the phase-VII of National Highways Development Programme (NHDP).[29]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Kanpur India - Kanpur Uttar Pradesh, Kanpur City, Kanpur Guide, Kanpur Location". Iloveindia.com. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
  2. ↑ "Nick Name of Indian Places". Facts-about-india.com. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
  3. ↑ "Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011; Cities having population 1 lakh and above" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  4. ↑ "Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011; Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 1 lakh and above" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  5. ↑ "About us & Kanpur City". Excisekanpur.nic.in. 1963-01-07. Retrieved 2013-12-24.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 http://jnnurm.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/CDP_Kanpur.pdf
  7. ↑ "Largest cities in the world and their mayors - 1 to 150". City Mayors. 2012-05-17. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
  8. ↑ Suvorova, Anna Aronovna (2004). Muslim saints of South Asia: the eleventh to fifteenth centuries- Volume 14 of RoutledgeCurzon Sūfī series. Routledge. p. 171. ISBN 0-415-31764-9.
  9. ↑ Kulke, Hermann; Rothermund, Dietmar. A history of India (4, illustrated ed.). Routledge, 2004. pp. 432 pages. ISBN 0-415-32920-5, ISBN 978-0-415-32920-0. In 9th century the Pratiharas kings, Bhoja (836-885) and Mahendrapala (885-910), proved to be more powerful than their contemporaries of the other two dynasties whom they defeated several times. Kannauj then emerged as the main focus of power in India.
  10. ↑ Dalrymple, W. 2007. The Last Mughal. The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857, Alfred Knopf, New York
  11. ↑ "Kanpur Climatological Table Period: 1971–1990". India Meteorological Department. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Ever recorded Maximum and minimum temperatures up to 2010" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Kanpur City Development Plan Under JNNURM" (PDF). JNNURM - Demography. pp. 3–13. Retrieved 2008-12-29.
  14. ↑ "Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 1 lakh and above" (PDF). Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011. Retrieved 2012-07-07.
  15. ↑ "Crusade Watch, Religious Conversion Watch, Evangelism watch - India - city wise Christian population". Crusadewatch.org. 2006-12-20. Retrieved 2013-12-24.
  16. ↑ http://zoroastrians.net/2014/02/05/appeal-cawnpore-parsee-anjuman-kanpur/
  17. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_station#India
  18. ↑ "'Katiyabaaz': A documentary maker challenges mainstream space". The Times of India. 23 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-30.
  19. ↑ Shukla, Neha (2 July 2014). "Untreated factory waste poisoning Ganga; Kanpur STPs not upgraded to handle tannery discharge". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 21 July 2014.
  20. ↑ "Kanpur tops air pollution chart". The Times of India. 19 January 2011. Archived from the original on 21 July 2014.
  21. ↑ "Contaminated water a curse for people". The Times of India. 6 May 2013. Archived from the original on 21 July 2014.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Potholed roads, eight to ten hours long power cut, overflowing drains and contaminated drinking water tell the tale of the Industrial town, which is fast turning into a big slum. Siddiqui, Faiz Rahman (29 April 2014). "'Outsider' Joshi takes on 'local' Jaiswal". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 21 July 2014.
  23. ↑ "70 IAS officers transferred in Uttar Pradesh". daily.bhaskar.com. 2012-04-13. Retrieved 2013-09-21.
  24. ↑ "S.K. Nataraj elected Mayor of Kanpur". The Hindu. 2010-04-24. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Court dismisses complaint against Mulayam". The Times of India. 2012-03-29. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
  26. ↑ "Dr Roshan Jacob is new Kanpur DM". The Times of India. 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2012-03-20.
  27. ↑ http://kmc.up.nic.in/#
  28. ↑ "UPSRTC". UPSRTC. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
  29. ↑ "Kanpur to get outer ring road to bypass traffic blues". Indianepress.com. Retrieved 2011-01-20.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kanpur.