Palanpur

Palanpur પાલનપુર
city
Kirti Stambh, a tower commemorating the history of the town and its former ruling dynasty
Palanpur Location in Gujarat, India
Coordinates:
Country	India
State	Gujarat
District	Banaskantha
Elevation	209 m (686 ft)
Population (2011)
• Total	140,344
Languages
• Official	Gujarati, Hindi
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	385 001
Telephone code	91-2742
Vehicle registration	GJ-8

Palanpur is a city and a municipality of Banaskantha district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Palanpur is the largest city and the administrative headquarters of the district.

Etymology

Palanpur in early times is said to have been called Pralhadan Patan, and to have been founded by Pralhadan Dev, brother of Dharavarsh Parmar of Paramara dynasty of Chandravati; it is said to have been desolate two centuries before the beginning of the Samvat era (57 B.C.). It was afterwards re-peopled by Palansi Chauhan from whom it took its modern name. Others say that it was founded by Pal Parmar whose brother Jagdev founded nearby Jagana village.

History

Main articles: History of Palanpur and Palanpur State

The history of Palanpur starts with its mention in its relation to historic city of Chandravati ruled by Paramara dynasty. The town was re-peopled ruled by Chauhans around thirteenth century. At the start of the seventeenth century, the Palanpur State was taken over by Jhalori dynasty of Pashtun Lohani tribe which was founded in 1373 and ruled from Jhalor. The dynasty came into historical prominence during the period of instability that followed the demise of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in the early 18th century. It was overrun soon afterwards by the Marathas; the Lohanis followed the trend of seeking recourse in the British East India Company against them and finally entered the subsidiary alliance system in 1817, along with all other neighbouring states, becoming a British protectorate. After independence of India in 1947, Palanpur State was dissolved in 1949 and merged with Union of India as a part of Bombay State. Subsequently Palanpur became the capital of Banaskantha district of Gujarat.

Geography and climate

Palanpur is located at . It has an average elevation of 209 metres (685 ft).

Climate

In Summer, it is hot and humid with an average temperature of 42 Degrees with hot sandy winds. The temperature sometimes reaches 46 Degrees. However just before monsoon it becomes swelteringly hot along with humidity. In Winter, it's 5 to 15 degrees, which is quite cold as compared to other cities in Gujarat and in Monsoon, the average rainfall is about 20 to 30  inches per season.

Demographics

As of 2011 India census, Palanpur had a population of 1,40,344. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Palanpur has an average literacy rate of 86%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 94%, and female literacy is 78%. In Palanpur, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Population Growth of Palanpur
Census	Pop.		%±
1941	20,300		—
1951	22,600		11.3%
1961	29,100		28.8%
1981	61,300		—
1991	90,300		47.3%
2001	122,300		35.4%
2011	141,592		15.8%
source:

Religions in Palanpur
Religion			Percent
Hindus			95%
Muslims			2%
Jains			3.4%
Others†			0.6%
Distribution of religions †Includes Sikhs (0.2%), Buddhists (<0.2%).

Population growth through the years

Year	Population
1941	20,300
1951	22,600
1961	29,100
1981	61,300
1991	90,300
2001	122,300
2011	141,592

♦ Source: ♦ Source:

Places of interest

An aerial view of Jorawar Palace, 1936

Mira Gate, the only surviving gate of city walls

In 1750 (Samvat 1806), Bahadur Khan built a brick and mortar city-wall, the Nagarkot of Palanpur. It was 3 miles round, 17 to 20 feet high and 6 feet broad with seven bastioned gateways,and, at the corners, round towers armed with guns. The gateways of the city-walls were Delhi Darwaja, Gathaman Darwaja, Malan Darwaja, Mira Darwaja, Virbai Darwaja, Salempura Darwaja, Sadarpur Darwaja or Shimla Darwaja. Only Mira Darwaja survives today.

Sher Muhammad Khan attended the coronation ceremony of King George V in Delhi in 1910 and built a club named after him in 1913. In 1918, his successor Tale Muhammad Khan constructed Kirti Stambh, a 22 metre tower near the railway station commemorating the gallantry of his father and the history of town and his dynasty. He also built Balaram Palace between 1922 to 1936 and later Jorawar Palace (Currently used as Judicial Court) also. In 1939, he also built Shashivan, formerly Jahanara Baug, a garden to commemorate his second marriage with a daughter of an Australian businessman.

The old marketplaces are Nanibazar, Moti Bazar and Dhalvas. Apart from Shahshivan, Chaman Bag is a major public garden in the town. Early Jhalori ruler Malik Mujahid Khan built Mansarovar, a lake dedicated to his queen Manbai Jadeja, in 1628.

Temples

Palanpur has several temples dedicated to Hinduism and Jainism.

The Solanki dynasty ruler Siddharaj Jaisinh of Anhilwad Patan is believed to be born in Palanpur. His mother Meenaldevi built Pataleshwar Temple dedicated to Shiva. Other Hindu temples are Lakshman Tekri temple, Mota Ramji Mandir, Ambaji Mata Mandir.

The major Jain temples include Motu Derasar and Nanu Derasar. The Pallaviya Parshwanath Temple, also known as Mota Derasar, was built by King Prahaladan which is dedicated to Parshwanath.

Economy

Dairy, textile, diamond polishing and marble are major industries of Palanpur. Banas Dairy is one of the largest dairy in the state. The diamond polishing and evaluation industry across India and abroad is dominated by Palanpuri Jain diaspora. Palanpuri Ittars are popular for their fragrance and earned the nickname 'city of flowers' to the town.

Surmandir is the first Multiplex of north Gujarat and is now operated by Big Cinemas. Other single screen cinemas are City Light and Movie World.

Education and culture

Palanpur is an educational hub of Banaskantha; students from nearby villages come to schools and colleges.

During rule of Jhalori Nawabs, Palanpur became well known for Gujarati ghazals and poetry. Samosas are popular snack in the town.

Notable people

Several notable persons hails from Palanpur:

• Bharat Shah, a diamond merchant, Hindi film financier and distributor
• B. K. Gadhvi, politician
• Chandrakant Bakshi, (1932–2006) A well known Gujarati author.
• Faisal Hashmi, film director and writer
• Pranav Mistry, famous computer scientist and the inventor, well known for his work of SixthSense, Samsung Galaxy Gear and many other technologies.
• Rohit Jivanlal Parikh, mathematician, logician and philosopher. He holds the position of distinguished Professor at Brooklyn College, New York (1982–present).

Transport

The town being the headquarters of Banaskantha district is well-connected by road and rail.

Palanpur Railway Station, 1952

Rail

Palanpur Railway Station, on the Jaipur-Ahmedabad line, comes under the administrative control of Western Railway zone of the Indian Railways. It has direct rail links on the broad gauge to the cities of Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Mysore, Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Delhi, Dehradun, Muzaffarpur, Bareilly and Jammu. It is connected to most of the cities and towns in Gujarat such as Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodra, Bhuj, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Porbandar.Indian Railways’ proposal to double the broad gauge line between Palanpur and Samakhiali has received government backing.The doubling will benefit the districts of Kutch, Patan and Banaskantha in the state of Gujarat.

Road

National Highway 14 connecting Beawar in Rajasthan with Radhanpur in Gujarat passes through Deesa-Palanpur ,thus connecting it with the cities of Pali, Sirohi and Abu Road. State Highways SH 712, SH 132 pass through Palanpur and connect it with nearby towns in Gujarat. State Highway SH 41 connects it with Mehsana & Ahmedabad.

Air

The nearest Airport is the Deesa Airport, originally built to serve the princely state of Palanpur. It is just 26 km from Palanpur city. The nearest International Airport is Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad which is 139 km far from Palanpur city.

Gallery

• 

  Delhi Gate area

• 

  Market scene

• 

  Shimla Gate market

• 

  Kirti Stambha

• 

  Patthar Sadak

Nearby places of interest

• Jessore Sloth Bear Sanctuary, a reserve forest sprawling over 180 km² is located in Jessore is about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) away.
• Rani ki vav, Patan
• Sun Temple, Modhera
• Dantiwada Dam
• Balaram Palace Resort
• Kedarnath Mahadev Temple, located in Jessore, about 32 kilometres (20 mi) from Palanpur and Balaram Mahadev temple, located about 14 km from the town are major temples dedicated to Shiva. A temple of Dharmata, who is a patron goddess of Sundhiya family is situated near Balaram Mahadev Temple.