A military cantonment was established in 1824 and a municipal government in 1858. In 1864, a railway link between Ahmedabad and Mumbai (then Bombay) was established by the Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway (BB&CI), enabling traffic and trade between northern and southern India via the city.
According to legend, Sultan Ahmed Shah saw a hare chasing a dog while camping on the banks of the Sabarmati near the town. The Sultan was impressed by this act of bravery and decided to locate his capital here and named it as “Ahmedabad”. The foundation of his capital was laid on 7 March 1411 A.D.
According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report of 2003, Ahmedabad has the lowest crime rate of the 35 Indian cities with a population of more than one million. In December 2011 market research firm IMRB declared Ahmedabad the best mega-city to live in, when compared to India’s other mega-cities.
After independence, modern buildings appeared in Ahmedabad. Notable architects given commissions in the city included Louis Kahn, who designed the IIM-A; Le Corbusier, who designed the Shodhan and Sarabhai Villas, the Sanskar Kendra and the Mill Owner’s Association Building, and Frank Lloyd Wright, who designed the administrative building of Calico Mills and the Calico Dome. B. V. Doshi came to the city from Paris to supervise Le Corbusier’s works and later set up the School of Architecture. His local works include Sangath, Amdavad ni Gufa and the School of Architecture. Charles Correa, who became a partner of Doshi’s, designed the Gandhi Ashram and Achyut Kanvinde, and the Indian Textile Industries Research Association. Christopher Charles Benninger’s first work, the Alliance Francaise, is located in the Ellis Bridge area. Anant Raje designed major additions to Louis Kahn’s IIM-A campus, namely the Ravi Mathai Auditorium and KLMD.
Ahmedabad (also Amdavad) i/’??m?d?b??d/ i/’?md??v??d/ is the largest city and former capital of the Indian state of Gujarat.
Ahmedabad city is an administrative headquarters of Ahmedabad district, administered by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). The AMC was established in July 1950 under the Bombay Provincial Corporation Act of 1949. The AMC commissioner is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer appointed by the state government who reserves the administrative executive powers, whereas the corporation is headed by the Mayor. The city residents elect the 192 municipal councillors through a popular vote, and the elected councillors select the deputy Mayor and Mayor of the city. The administrative responsibilities of the AMC are: water and sewerage services, primary education, health services, fire services, public transport and city’s infrastructure.
Ahmedabad has a Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS), maintained by the Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL). Ahmedabad BRTS was given the Sustainable Transport Award in 2010 by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy for reducing carbon emissions and improving residents’ access. The first phase connecting RTO to Pirana was inaugurated by Chief Minister Narendra Modi on 14 October 2009 and the second half of the first phase connecting Chandranagar to Pushpa Kunj gate at Kankaria was inaugurated on 25 December 2009. It is extended from Shivranjani to Iskcon Temple on 15 September 2012. On 28 September 2012 it also include the sketch from Soni ni Chali to Odhav.
Ahmedabad has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification ‘BSh’), with marginally less rain than required for a tropical savanna climate. There are three main seasons: summer, monsoon and winter. Aside from the monsoon season, the climate is extremely dry. The weather is hot through the months of March to June; the average summer maximum is 41 °C (106 °F), and the average minimum is 27 °C (81 °F). From November to February, the average maximum temperature is 30 °C (86 °F), the average minimum is 15 °C (59 °F), and the climate is extremely dry. Cold northerly winds are responsible for a mild chill in January. The southwest monsoon brings a humid climate from mid-June to mid-September. The average annual rainfall is about 800 millimetres (31 in), but infrequent heavy torrential rains cause local rivers to flood and it is not uncommon for droughts to occur when the monsoon does not extend as far west as usual. The highest temperature recorded is 48.5 °C (119.3 °F)
Ahmedabad houses other major Indian corporates such as: Rasna, Wagh Bakri, Nirma, Cadila Pharmaceuticals, Intas Pharmaceuticals, Paras Pharmaceuticals.
Ahmedabad is currently among India’s top producer of cotton garments, cotton products. Many cotton manufacturing units are presently running in and around Ahmedabad. Textiles is one of the major industries of the city.
Ahmedabad is one of the six operating divisions of the Western Railway. Railway lines connect the city to all towns in Gujarat and other major Indian cities. The Ahmedabad Railway Station, locally known as Kalupur Station is the city’s main terminus; Ahmedabad’s other stations are Maninagar, Vatva, Gandhigram, Asarva, Chandlodia, Kali gam, Vastrapur, Sabarmati, Sarkhej, Naroda and Aamli.
Ahmedabad is the fifth largest city and seventh largest metropolitan area in India. The area under Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation had a population of 3,520,085 according to the 2001 census, and the urban population (including the region governed by AUDA) was 4,525,013. Ahmedabad has a literacy rate of 79.89%, which is the second highest in Gujarat (after Gandhinagar with 87.11%); 87.81% of the men and 71.12% of the women are literate. According to the census for the Ninth Plan, there are 30,737 rural families living in Ahmedabad. Of those, 5.41% (1663 families) live below the poverty line. Approximately 440,000 people live in slums within the city. Ahmedabad is home to a large population of Vanias (i.e., traders), belonging to the Vaishnava sect of Hinduism and various sects of Jainism. Most of the residents of Ahmedabad are native Gujaratis. Over 12% of the population is Muslim, numbering over 600,000 in the 2001 census. In addition, the city is home to some 2000 Parsis and some 125 members of the Bene Israel Jewish community. There is also one synagogue in the city. In 2008, there were 2273 registered non-resident Indians living in Ahmedabad.
Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (also known as AMTS), maintained by Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, runs the public bus service in the city of Ahmedabad. At present, AMTS has 750 buses servicing the city.
Ahmedabad observes a wide range of festivals. Popular celebrations and observances include Uttarayan, an annual kite-flying day on 14 and 15 January. Nine nights of Navratri are celebrated with people performing Garba, the most popular folk dance of Gujarat, at venues across the city. The festival of lights, Deepavali, is celebrated with the lighting of lamps in every house, decorating the floors with rangoli, and the lighting of firecrackers. Other religious festivals such as Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi, Gudi Padwa, Eid ul-Fitr and Christmas are also celebrated. The annual Rath Yatra procession on the Ashadh-sud-bij date of the Hindu calendar and the procession of Tajia during the Muslim holy month of Muharram are important events.
Ahmedabad Railway Station (ADI) is a major station on Western Railway and one of the busiest stations in the country.
AMC has initiated the Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project with an objective of environmental improvement with provision of slum rehabilitation for poor living on the river banks.
Archaeological evidence suggests that the area around Ahmedabad has been inhabited since the 11th century, when it was known as Ashaval (or Ashapalli). At that time, Karandev I, the Solanki ruler of Anhilwara (modern Patan), waged a successful war against the Bhil king of Ashaval, and established a city called Karnavati on the banks of the Sabarmati. Solanki rule lasted until the 13th century, when Gujarat came under the control of the Vaghela dynasty of Dholka. Gujarat subsequently came under the control of the Delhi Sultanate in the 14th century. However, by the earlier 15th century, the local governor Zafar Khan Muzaffar established his independence from the Delhi Sultanate and crowned himself Sultan of Gujarat as Muzaffar Shah I, thereby founding the Muzaffarid dynasty. Karnavati finally came under the control of his grandson Sultan Ahmed Shah in 1411 A.D. who renamed the city as Ahmedabad after himself.
Broadcasting tower of the Ahmedabad Doordarshan, one of the prominent landmarks in Ahmedabad
By 1960, Ahmedabad had become a metropolis, with classical and colonial European styled buildings lining the city’s thoroughfares. It was chosen as the capital of Gujarat state after the bifurcation of the State of Bombay on 1 May 1960. During this period, a large number of educational and research institutions were founded in the city, making it a center of higher education, science and technology. Ahmedabad’s economic base became more diverse with the establishment of heavy and chemical industry during the same period. In 1974 the Nav Nirman agitation — a protest against a 20% hike in the hostel food fees at the L.D. College of Engineering in Ahmedabad — snowballed into a movement to remove Chimanbhai Patel, then chief minister of Gujarat. In the 1980s, a reservation policy was introduced in the country, which led to anti-reservation protests in 1981 and 1985. The protests witnessed violent clashes between people belonging to various castes. On 26 January 2001 a devastating earthquake struck the city, centred near Bhuj, measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale. As many as 50 multistorey buildings collapsed, killing 752 people and devastating the city’s infrastructure. The following year, Gujarat violence between Hindus and Muslims spread to Ahmedabad, paralysing the city for more than two months. The crisis resulted in the deaths of an estimated 2,000 people across the state. The displacement of thousands of Muslims led to the erection of refugee camps around the city.
Cricket is one of the popular sports in the city. Sardar Patel Stadium (also known as Motera Stadium), built in 1982, hosts both one day internationals and test matches. It has a seating capacity of 54,000. It hosted the 1987, 1996 and 2011 Cricket World Cups. Ahmedabad also has a second cricket stadium at the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s Sports Club of Gujarat which is the home ground of the Gujarat cricket team that plays in the Ranji Trophy tournament. The city is represented by the Ahmedabad Rockets in the Indian Cricket League.