Description of Gujarat

Gujarat is a beautiful state in India, and there is a great place for tourists here. Which attracts thousands of tourists every year to come here. Gujarat is the sixth largest Indian state with an area of 596024 km² and 75685 sq. Km area in western India and more than 60 million population and area. Gujarat is located on the boundaries of the Pakistani province of Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, the Arabian Sea, and Sindh. The capital of Gujarat is Gandhinagar, and the largest city is Ahmedabad. The state includes some of the ancient Indus Valley civilizations like Lothal Dholbira and Gola Dhoro. It is believed that Lothal is one of the first ports in the world. The world's largest white desert, the longest beach in India, the temple, the ancient Buddhist cave, Harapan Seidel, is more than 4000 years old and handicrafts, handloom is like a heaven for tourists. Gujarat is a good tourist destination with a mix of nature, history, culture, heritage. Gujarat is also known by the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi, the Nation creator. In 1869, he was born in Porbandar.  A primordial is known as Saurashtra and Kutch. Which is partly desert and little Marshland. The long coastline of Gujarat had enticed the foreign invaders and sea passengers coming to the business. Has left its mark on the culture of Gujarat. Gujarat is the best place to spend holiday vacations.

History of Gujarat

Gujarat was one of the main central areas of the Indus Valley Civilisation. The ancient city of Lothal was where India's first port was established.  It contains ancient metropolitan cities from the Indus Valley such as Lothal, Dholavira, and Gola Dhoro. The ancient city of Dholavira is one of the largest and most prominent archaeological sites in India, belonging to the Indus Valley Civilisation. The most recent discovery was Gola Dhoro. Altogether, about 50 Indus Valley settlement ruins have been discovered in Gujarat. The ancient history of Gujarat was enriched by the commercial activities of its inhabitants. There is clear historical evidence of trade and commerce ties with Egypt, Bahrain and Sumer in the Persian Gulf during the time period of 1000 to 750 BC. There was a succession of Hindu and Buddhist states such as the Mauryan Dynasty, Western Satraps, Satavahana dynasty, Gupta Empire, Chalukya dynasty, Rashtrakuta Empire, Pala Empire and Gurjara-Pratihara Empire, as well as local dynasties such as the Maitrakas and then the Chaulukyas. The early history of Gujarat reflects the imperial grandeur of Chandragupta Maurya who conquered a number of earlier states in what is now Gujarat. Pushyagupta, a Vaishya, was appointed the governor of Saurashtra by the Mauryan regime. He ruled Giringer (modern-day Junagadh) (322 BC to 294 BC) and built a dam on the Sudarshan lake. Emperor Ashoka, the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, not only ordered engraving of his edicts on the rock at Junagadh but asked Governor Tusherpha to cut canals from the lake where an earlier Mauryan governor had built a dam. Between the decline of Mauryan power and Saurashtra coming under the sway of the Samprati Mauryas of Ujjain, there was an Indo-Greek defeat in Gujarat of Demetrius. In 16th century manuscripts, there is an apocryphal story of a merchant of King Gondaphares landing in Gujarat with Apostle Thomas. The incident of the cup-bearer torn apart by a lion might indicate that the port city described is in Gujarat. For nearly 300 years from the start of the 1st century AD, Saka rulers played a prominent part in Gujarat's history. The weather-beaten rock at Junagadh gives a glimpse of the ruler Rudradaman I (100 AD) of the Saka satraps known as Western Satraps, or Kshatraps. Mahakshatrap Rudradaman I founded the Kardamaka dynasty which ruled from Anupa on the banks of the Narmada up to the Aparanta region which bordered Punjab. In Gujarat, several battles were fought between the south Indian Satavahana dynasty and the Western Satraps. The greatest and the mightiest ruler of the Satavahana Dynasty was Gautamiputra Satakarni who defeated the Western Satraps and conquered some parts of Gujarat in the 2nd century CE.

Coin of the Gujuras of Sindh, Chavda dynasty, circa 570–712 CE. Crowned Sasanian-style bust right / Fire altar with ribbons and attendants; star and crescent flanking flames.

The Kshatrapa dynasty was replaced by the Gupta Empire with the conquest of Gujarat by Chandragupta Vikramaditya. Vikramaditya's successor Skandagupta left an inscription (450 AD) on a rock at Junagadh which gives details of the governor's repairs to the embankment surrounding Sudarshan lake after it was damaged by floods. The Anarta and Saurashtra regions were both parts of the Gupta empire. Towards the middle of the 5th century, the Gupta empire went into decline. Senapati Bhatarka, the Maitraka general of the Guptas, took advantage of the situation and in 470 AD he set up what came to be known as the Maitraka state. He shifted his capital from Giringer to Valabhipur, near Bhavnagar, on Saurashtra's east coast. The Maitrakas of Vallabhi became very powerful with their rule prevailing over large parts of Gujarat and adjoining Malwa. A university was set up by the Maitrakas, which came to be known far and wide for its scholastic pursuits and was compared with the noted Nalanda University. It was during the rule of Dhruvasena Maitrak that Chinese philosopher-traveler Xuanzang/ I Tsing visited in 640 AD along

Geography of Gujarat

Gujarat has an area of 75,686 sq mi (196,030 km2) with the longest coastline(24% of Indian sea coast) 1,600 kilometres (990 mi), dotted with 41 ports: one major, 11 intermediate and 29 minor. Gujarat borders Pakistan's Tharparkar, Badin and Thatta districts of Sindh province to the northwest is bounded by the Arabian Sea to the southwest, the state of Rajasthan to the northeast, Madhya Pradesh to the east, and by Maharashtra, Union territories of Diu, Daman, Dadra and Nagar Haveli to the south. Historically, the north was known as Anarta, the Kathiawar peninsula Saurashtra, and the south as Lata. Gujarat was also known as Pratichya and Varuna. The Arabian Sea makes up the state's western coast. The capital of the state is Gandhinagar a planned city. 
The Sabarmati is the largest river in Gujarat followed by the Tapi, although the Narmada covers the longest distance in its passage through the state. The Sardar Sarovar Project is built on the Narmada River, one of the major rivers of peninsular India with a length of around 1,312 kilometres (815 mi). It is one of only three rivers in peninsular India that run from east to west – the others being the Tapi River and the Mahi River. A riverfront project has been built on the Sabarmati River.

How to reach Gujarat

By Air

In Gujarat has seventeen airports.

• Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at Ahmedabad
• Surat International Airport at Surat
• Bhavnagar Airport
• Bhuj Airport
• Deesa Airport Harni Airport
• Jamnagar Airport
• Kandla Airport (Gandhidham)
• Keshod Airport (Junagadh)
• Porbandar Airport
• Rajkot Airport
• Vadodara Airport
• State-operated airports
• Mehsana Airport
• Mandvi airport

By Rail

Gujarat comes under the Western Railway Zone of the Indian Railways. Vadodara Railway Station is the busiest railway station in Gujarat and the fourth busiest railway station in India. It is situated on the Mumbai – Delhi Western Railway Mainline. Other important railway stations are Surat railway station, Ahmedabad Railway Station and Rajkot Railway Station. Indian Railways is planning Delhi–Mumbai dedicated rail freight route passing through the state.

By Sea

Gujarat State has the longest sea coast of 1600 km in India. Kandla Port is one of the largest ports serving Western India. Other important ports in Gujarat are the Port of Navlakhi, Port of Magdalla, Port Pipavav, Bedi Port, Port of Porbandar, Port of Veraval and the privately owned Mundra Port.

Road

Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation (GSRTC) is the primary body responsible for providing the bus services within the state of Gujarat and also with the neighbouring states. It is a public transport corporation providing bus services and public transit within Gujarat and to the other states in India. Apart from this, there are a number of services provided by GSRTC.