Native name	Faizabad
Other name	फ़ैज़ाबाद
Type	city
Locator position	right
State name	Uttar Pradesh
District	Faizabad
Altitude	97
Population as of	2001
Population total	1684720
Area total	2643
Area telephone	05278
Postal code	224001
Vehicle code range	UP 42
Languages spoken	Hindi, Urdu
Dialects spoken	Avadhi
Sex ratio	898/1000
Website	faizabad.nic.in/

City of Faizabad (, }}) is the headquarters of Faizabad District and a municipal board in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India, situated on the banks of river Ghaghra (locally known as Saryu). Faizabad has a twin city of Ayodhya, which is considered to be the birthplace of Lord Ram. It was the first capital of the Nawabs of Awadh and has monuments built by the Nawabs of Avadh, like the tomb of Bahu Begum, Gulab-bari etc. The city of Ayodhya is an important pilgrimage centre in Hindu belief known for its Hindu temples, as well as for the disputed site of Babri Mosque. Ayodhya is also the birth place of first Tirthankar of the Jain religion, Shri Rishabh Dev, known as the father of Jain religion. The Legend of Avadh, Umrao Jaan 'Ada', was born in Faizabad (her childhood name was Ameeran). Another legend and Hindi writer Mr. Radhika Prasad Tripathi was from this city. Akhtaribai Faizabadi, also known as Begum Akhtar, was born in Faizabad. She was a classical singer who performed ghazals, dadras, thumris, etc. Among other notable people from Faizabad are Mir Anis, a nineteenth century writer of 'Marsiya' (elegies in Urdu) and Brij Narayan Chakbast, another nineteenth century Urdu poet. Chakbast is credited to have translated Hindu epic 'Ramayan' into Urdu for the first time.

History

The earliest reference made to Faizabad is in the Ramayan, in which the city is referred to as 'Saket', the mythical private estate of King Dashrath, father of Lord Ram. However, more accurately, the reference is found in Medieval and Modern history, when Nawab Sa'adat Khan, Burhan-ul-Mulk was given the charge of the Subah (province) of Awadh (sometimes also spelled as Avadh) around 1722 by the Mughal Court. Nawab Sa'adat Khan made the first settlements along the banks of Ghaghra with a cantonment comprising of a fortress and mud barracks. Due to these temporary dwellings, Faizabad was first known as 'Bangla' (implied meaning- hutment). The city was developed later on by Sa'adat Khan's successor, Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula into a full fledged capital city, with gardens, palaces, markets , roads and other infrastructure. Under Shuja-ud-Daula's reign Faizabad achieved its culmination as an important centre of trade and commerce in northern India and attracted travellers, writers, merchants, artists and courtesans from sll over Europe and Asia. Shuja-ud-Daula also built a fortress on the banks of Saryu after he lost the battle of Buxar in 1764. however, this fort now is nothing more than a hummock.

Faizabad was also a centre of one of many battles of the Mutiny of 1857. A detailed history of Faizabad can be read in 'Tareekh-e-Farahbaksh', written by Mohd. Faiz Baksh, (after whom Faizabad is named) a courtier in the Shuja-ud-Daula's court. This book has been translated into English by Hamid Afaq Qureshi as 'Memoirs of Faizabad'. Faizabad also finds a prominent and detailed mention in 'Guzishta Lakhnau' written by Maulvi Abdul Halim 'Sharar'. The third nawab of Awadh, Nawab Asaf-ud-Dowlah (also, Asaf-ud-Daula), shifted the Capital of Avadh to Lucknow in 1775.

A section of people believe that the prominent Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary, Subash Chandra Bose spent his last days in Faizabad living incognito as a godman called 'Gumnami Baba'. This came under attention when 'Gumnami Baba' died in 1985 and was cremated secretively on the banks of river saryu (a memorial has been built at that place), in the dead of night, in the light of a motorcycle's headlight. Its also said that at the time of cremation his face was disfigured by acid to protect his identity. However, no government enquiry was launched into this matter and the identity of Gumnami Baba still remains an enigma.

The Revolutionary Acharya Narendra Dev was also born and lived in Faizabad

Geography & Demographics

Faizabad is located at . It has an average elevation of 97 metres (318 feet) above sea level. India census, Faizabad had a population of 2,088,928. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Faizabad has an average literacy rate of 71%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 76%, and female literacy is 67%. In Faizabad, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age. Yadavs are in majority in Faizabad.

Accessibilty

Faizabad is well connected with Lucknow, Varanasi, Gorakhpur and Allahabad.

By Air Nearest airports are Lucknow (128 km) and Varanasi (200 km)

By Road Faizabad is situated on National Highway 28 and has good connectivity with Lucknow (128 km), Varanasi (200 km), Allahabad (165 km) and Gorakhpur. The state government's Road Transport Service runs regular and frequent buses to and from these cities.

By Rail The Indian Railways network connects Faizabad directly with Lucknow (3 hours.), Varanasi (4 hours.) and Allahabad (5 hours). Direct trains such as Indore - Rajendra Nagar Via. Faizabad Express connects it with Indore, Ujjain, Bhopal Junction, Jhansi, Kanpur, Varanasi and Patna on weekly basis. A few mail express trains also connect Faizabad to Kolkata, New Delhi and Mumbai.

Climate

Summer (March to July) temperatures can range from 35 to 45 degrees Celsius. Winters (November to January) temperatures can range from 6 to 25 degrees Celsius. Rains during monsoon season (July to September).

Citiscape

Places to See

Gulab Bari: Literally meaning 'Garden of Roses', this place has a good collection of roses of various varieties set by the sides of water fountains. Gulab Bari also houses a maqbara (Mausoleum) of Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula, the second Nawab of Oudh (now Avadh) in the campus.

Military Temple: (The Dogra Regimental Centre/ Corps of Military Police CMP Temple) Located in cantonment area, this temple is beautifully built and the cleanlines and the pollution free environment is just spiritual.

Guptar Ghat: the Ghat (Jetty) where Lord Rama is believed to have taken 'jal samadhi' (leaving the earth for 'Baikuntha', the divine abode of Lord Vishnu, by drowning himself). It has picturesque view of the saryu river and its green banks and has several ancient temples. The view of sunset from Guptar Ghat is breathtaking. a boat ride is a must while visiting this place.

Company Gardens : Adjoining Guptar Ghat, on the banks of River Saryu, is Company Gardens, a botanical garden built during British Rule. it has a well maintained, sprawling garden set amidst lush greenery, far away from the hustle and bustle of the town. It also has an orchard spread over acres. Plants and Trees can also be bought here. The remains of the fort built by Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula after the battle of Buxar is also within walking distance.

Ghanta Ghar: The heart of Faizabad city, houses a clock tower (Ghanta means 'clock' in Hindi and Ghar is the Hindi word for 'house') in the middle of the city center. All distances within the city are measured from this location. The place is also known as Chowk, which houses the main vegetable and spice market in the town.

Bahu Begum ka Maqbara: (The Mausoleum of the Queen Bride) the memorial built for queen of Nawab Shujah-ud-Daulah, Unmatuzzohra Bano Begum. Its one of the tallest buildings in Faizabad and is a beautiful example of non-mughal Muslim architecture. Sadly, this beautiful monument is a victim of neglect and is crumbling.

Shringi Rishi Ashram: 40 km from Faizabad in Gosainganj is ashram of Sage (Rishi in Sanskrit/Hindi) Shringi. Shringi Rishi performed 'Putrakameshti Yajya' for King Dashrath of Ayodhya, after that Lord Rama and his three brothers were born. There is an ashram of Shringi Rishi situated at Sherwaghat near Mehbubganj 40 km from Gosainganj on the banks of Sarayu river at Sherwa Ghat. Legend has it that Shringi Rishi cursed King Parikshit for his sinful conduct against rishi Lomash. The boons and curse uttered by him were proved to be absolutely true. Rishi Shringi was a distinguished expert of the super science of mantras. A temple of Shringi Rishi, is also located at Sherwaghat, and a fair is held every year in May in his honour. A cave is also located in district Faizabad near Mehbubganj Near Gosaiganj where he is supposed to have stayed. It is a long cave where he is supposed to do 'yagna' (Ritual) and is worth seeing. A place called Dilasigang.This is amazing place as located on Ghaghra bank River.

Shopping

Chowk: Next to Ghanta Ghar, is the central market of Faizabad town. One can find vegetables, fruits and spices in this market. Also, there are numerous jewellery shops in the area which cater to Faizabad town and many villages which lie in near-by areas. Some leading cloth shops could be easily found in this area. This market also has many prominent books and stationary shops of the town.

Rekabgunj: About a kilometer away from Chowk (towards Lucknow) lies the Rekabgunj market which has a multitude of pharmacies. The market also has some seed shops which cater to the farmers of the adjoining regions. Many Restaurants and Hotels are there when going towards Lucknow. This is one of the Tourist's spot.

Bajaja: A place adjacent to Chowk towards Sultanpur Road holds a market for Clothes and garments. In Urdu Bajaja means cloth market. This area also holds major banks viz Union Bank of India, SBI and Allahabad Bank.

Fatehganj: This is a market mainly for wholesale grocery and other hose hold items. This area is on the same road on which Bajaja falls. A 5 start Hotel "Krishna Palace" is there besides Bank of Baroda bank. This is the place which is near to Bus Station as weel as Railway Station. This is one of the Tourist's spot.

Gudribazaar: This is also known as "Loha-Bazaar". One Hanuman Temple is there in this place, which is one of the famous temple. Opposite to this temple, one Ayurvedic shop is there. Here you can find easily all Ayurvedic medicines.

Educational institutions

There are two Universities in Faizabad District, Dr.Ram Manohar Lohia Awadh University (formerly Awadh University) Awadh University and Narendra Dev University of Agriculture and Technology (NDUAT). Kamta Prasad Sundar Lal Saket Post-Graduate degree college, one of the finest PG college of Awadh university, is also situated in Ayodhya, Faizabad.

Dr.Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University

Canossa Convent Girls Higher Secondary School

Aadarsh Academy

Bharti Inter College

Saint Mary's School (One of the oldest school of faizabad)

Forbes Inter College

M P L L Adarsh Inter College

Army School (Senior Secondary School, CBSE Board)

J B Academy (Senior Secondary School, CBSE Board)

Darsgah-e-Islami Intermediate College Faizabad

Government Inter College

Government Girls Inter College

SSSV Inter College

Rajkaran Vedic Patshala Inter Collage

Kendriya Vidyalaya, Cantonment

Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya

Jansewa Ashram Bandanpur Dist Faizabad

Grammar High School

Tiny Tots School (Senior Secondary School, CBSE Board)

The Leprosy Mission, Wellesley Bailey Vocational training Centre, Faizabad.

Anil Saraswati Vidya Mandir

Awadh International School, Darshan Nagar

Faizabad Public School

Government Polytechnic Faizabad

Sunrise Central Academy, Dufferin Hospital Road, Faizabad.

Udaya Public School, Faizabad.

Namesakes

The Town of Fyzabad in Trinidad and Tobago is named after Faizabad, when indentured labourers from Faizabad and other districts in Uttar Pradesh were taken to the islands. There are towns with same name in Afghanistan (Fayzabad, Badakhshan) and Tajikistan (Faizobod) as well. Fayzabad in Afghanistan is the administrative headquarter of the Badakhshan Province.

References

External links

Faizabad & Ayodhya, city guide and News portal

Faizabad city website

Official district web site

Category:Cities and towns in Faizabad district Category:Places connected with Jainism Category:Places of Indian Rebellion of 1857 Category:Former Indian capital cities

Name	Nitin Gadkari
Office	Maharashtra Legislative Council
Term start	1989
Office2	Minister for PWD, Maharashtra
Term start2	27th May, 1995
Term end2	1999
Office3	President of Bharatiya Janata Party
Term start3	25th December, 2009
Predecessor3	Rajnath Singh
Birth date	May 27, 1957
Birth place	Nagpur, India
Party	Bharatiya Janata Party
Spouse	Kanchan Gadkari
Nationality	Indian
Children	Nikhil, Sarang and Ketki
Occupation	Lawyer, Industrialist
Alma mater	Nagpur University
Religion	Hindu
Weight	176 Kgs
Website	nitingadkari.in

Nitin Gadkari () (born 27 May 1957)is a senior Indian politician and the current President of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He is best known for the works during his tenure as a PWD Minister in the state of Maharashta when he constructed a series of roads, highways and flyovers across the state including the Yeshwantrao Chavan Mumbai–Pune Expressway

Background, Family and Education

Nitin Gadkari was born in Nagpur, India, to a middle class, Deshastha Brahmin family hailing from Nagpur district. During his teens, he worked for the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and the student union ABVP.

He started his political career as a grass-root worker who laid down red carpets prior to party programmes. He did his M.Com, L.L.B and D.B.M. from Maharashtra, India.

Nitin Gadkari is married to Kanchan Gadkari and they have three children; Nikhil, Sarang and Ketki. He currently lives in Nagpur close to the head office of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Political career

Nitin Gadkari served as the Minister of Public Works Department(pwd) of the Govt. of Maharashtra from 1995 to 1999 and restructured it from top to bottom. He served as the president of Maharashtra BJP when it lost badly in assembly elections.

Support for Privatization

He showed strong support for privatization when he campaigned for investment in the infrastructure areas from private firms. He addressed several meetings between private investors, contractors, builders and various trade organizations and diverted large amounts of budgeted projects towards privatization. He managed to convince the state to allocate Rs. 700 Crores for rural connectivity. In the next 4 years, 98% of the total population of Maharashtra achieved an all-weather road connectivity. It also helped to solve the malnutrition problems prevailing in remote Melghat-Dharni area of Amravati district which previously had no access to medical aid, ration or educational facilities. The project aimed to connect 13,736 remote villages which remained unconnected since independence by road.

Chairman of NRRDC

The Union Government appointed him the Chairman of National Rural Road Development Committee. After a series of meetings and studies, Shri Gadkari submitted his report to the central government and gave the presentation to the Hon. Prime Minister of India. His report was accepted and a new rural road connecting scheme now popularly known as Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana was launched. The ambitious scheme is of Rs. 60,000 crores.

Other works during his Tenure

He appointed a committee to study the accident-prone spots on the roads of Maharashtra and implemented committee suggestions with the budgetary provision of 20 crores.

Gadkari promised and completed the pledge of completing the Sagri Marg which was a long awaited dream of the people of Konkan region in 4 years of his regime.

Gadkari formulated the scientific methodology of BOT projects, initiated traffic surveys, worked out IRR (Internal rate of return) and made the govt. of maharashtra change the concession period of toll policy.

During recession, he channeled 5000 crore into infrastructural projects which strengthened the cement, steel and bitumen industry of India.

Gadkari implemented self-employment scheme for civil Engineers which enabled 18,000 Engineers to work independently.

He organized the great plantation drive in Nagpur which planted 40 lakh trees in 2 years. He aimed to make Nagpur the Greenest City in India.

He has visited countries like Israel, Italy, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, United States, Canada, Brazil and Srilanka as part of the Indian Delegation for MSSIDC, MSRDC, Govt. of Maharashtra and Govt. of India.

Positions Served in the Past and Serving

Ex Minister, Govt Of Maharashtra Chairman, Purti Group Of Companies President, Bharatiya Janata Party, Maharashtra State Ex-Leader of Opposition, Maharashtra Legislative Council Former Minister for Public Works Department, Maharashtra State Member of Legislative Council, Maharashtra State Elected to the Maharashtra Govt. Legislative Council in 1989 from graduates constituency, Nagpur Region. Re-Elected in the year 1990. Re-Elected in the year 1996 and elected unopposed in 2002. Inducted in the Maharashtra State Government Cabinet as the Minister for Public Works on May 27 1995. Ex-Member of the High Power Committee for Privatisation, Government of Maharashtra. Ex-Chairman, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, India. Ex-Guardian Minister for Nagpur District, Govt. of Maharashtra. Ex-Chairman, Mining policy Implementation Committee, Govt. of Maharashtra. Ex-Chairman, Metropolis Beautification Committee, Govt. of Maharashtra. Ex-Leader of Opposition, Maharashtra Legislative Council, Chairman National Rural Road Development Committee Chairman, Review Committee of CPWD, Govt. of India. State President of Bhartiya Janata Party, Maharashtra.

After a successful stint as PWD Minister, Gadkari took over as President of the Maharashtra State Unit of the BJP in 2004. In 2009, when the BJP National President Rajnath Singh's term ended in December, Gadkari succeeded him as the youngest ever President of BJP.

Industrial career

Nitin Gadkari does not consider himself a career politician. He is known to control these establishments in the following way; Poly sack Industrial Society Ltd - Founder and Chairman. Nikhil Furniture and Appliances Pvt. Ltd - Promoter and Director. Antyodaya Trust - Founder and Member. Empress Employees Co-operative Paper Mills Ltd - Founder and Chairman.

Gadkari is also an agriculturist. He has not only promoted but also has major interests in the fields of money, Water Management, Solar Energy Projects and the use of modern tools in agriculture. Recently, he started exporting fruits to various countries under the banner Ketaki overseas Trading Company.

Awards

He has been honored with the Bombay Bhushan Award and has also been felicitated by various organizations in Mumbai.

References

External links

Category:People from Maharashtra Category:People from Nagpur Category:1957 births Category:Living people Category:Bharatiya Janata Party politicians Category:Presidents of Bharatiya Janata Party

Name	Anil Singh
Fullname	Anil Kumar Singh
Nationality	Indian
Birthdate	March 04, 1985
Birthplace	Bhiwani, Haryana, India
Country
Sport	Track and field athletics
Event	Javelin throw
Team	Indian Railways
Pb	outdoor: 80.72 m(18 September 2008, Indian record)
Lastupdate	September 20, 2009

Anil Kumar Singh (born 4 March 1985) is an Indian track and field athlete from Haryana who specializes in javelin throw. He is the first Indian athlete to breach the 80-metre barrier in a competition. Anil Singh holds the current Indian National record of 80.72 metre set at the Asian All Stars athletics championships held in Bhopal on 18 September 2008. He replaced Satbir Singh's decade-old record of 79.68 metres, registered in Kolkata in October 1998.

References

External links

Category:1985 births Category:Indian athletes Category:People from Bhiwani Category:Javelin throwers Category:Living people