Dhoraji

Dhoraji
city
Tan Darvajaa (Three Gates) Dhoraji
Dhoraji Location in Gujarat, India
Coordinates: 21°44′01″N 70°27′00″E / 21.73367°N 70.449915°E / 21.73367; 70.449915Coordinates: 21°44′01″N 70°27′00″E / 21.73367°N 70.449915°E / 21.73367; 70.449915
Country	India
State	Gujarat
District	Rajkot
Elevation	73 m (240 ft)
Population (2014)
• Total	84,545
Languages
• Official	Gujarati, Hindi
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	360410
Telephone code	+912824
Vehicle registration	Gj 03

A very famous monument of Dhoraji. An ancient carving from around 200 years old and a prime identity of Dhoraji and Gondal state.

A very famous monument of Dhoraji. An ancient carving from around 200 years old and a prime identity of Dhoraji and Gondal state.

Dhoraji ( pronunciation ) is a city situated on the banks of the river Safura, a tributary of the river Bhadar. It a municipality in the Rajkot district in the state of Gujarat, India.

History

Dhoraji was acquired by Kumbhaji II of Gondal State from Junagadh State about the middle of the eighteenth century.^[1] Sir Bhagwatsinhji, the noble ruler of Gondal State, was born at Dhoraji Darbargadh. He established a town planning department and in the late 19th century, introduced town planning principals to regularize and monitor the growth of the fortified town of Gondal, Dhoraji and Upleta and Patanvav.

With the arrival of railways, a new part of the Dhoraji town, between the railway station and the old town, was designed using axial planning, having broad avenues, road junctions, parks, bazaars and public buildings. It is a good. example of urban planning of an Indian town during British Raj.^[2]

Galaxy Chowk Dhoraji

Temples

Rushiwadi Bileshwar Mahadev Temple, Since 1959, Ling Meet In, Bill Tree,

Temple in 56 year old

Shri Chetaniya Hanuman, Since 1965, Janmashtami Mela Ground, Near Vegetable Market,

Temple is Very Old

BATKESHWAR MAHADEV TEMPLE IN CHETANIYA GROUND

KALBHERAV TEMPLE IN CHETANIYA GROUND

CHETANDHUNA IN CHETANIYA GROUND

Shri Panchnath Mahadev, Since 1820, Jamnagar Highway, Dhoraji.

Panchnath Mahadev Temple 195 Year Old

Shree Swaminarayan Mandir^[3] is also a very popular spiritual centre in the town

Murli Manohar Temple, Supedi^[4] - Supedi is a village located near Dharoji in the district of Rajkot in the Indian state of Gujarat. Murli Manohar Temple here is a beautiful temple older than 350 years, bearing various architectural styles like Gujarati ornamental, Rajasthani and Indo-mughal styles.

Ghar Ni Dhoraji Fort^[5][6]

The fortification of Dhoraji was completed in 1755 AD. The massive fort wall has several bastions, 4 main gates and 3 smaller gates, known as baris. The four main gates are Kathiawadi Darwaja in the East, Porbandar Gate in the West, Halar Gate in the North and Junagadh Gate in the South. The smaller gates are- Darbari Bari, Bhimji Bari and Sati Bari. Darbargadh in Dhoraji is located at the highest point in the town and is approached by Darbari Bari; a beautiful gate adorned with jharokha, resting on brackets of 4 elephant statues in different poses. A finely carved entrance gate leads to Darbargadh in the middle of a courtyard. Darbargadh is a three a multi-storey structure on a high plinth. The facade is ornamented with sculptures of musicians, complex geometric pattern, images of lions in different postures on long caves, profusely carved pillars, horizontal friezes, decorative kanguras and windows framing the skyline. It is designed like a jewel box - in the same architectural style of Navlakha Places at Gondal.

Situated next to Darbargadh is the exceptionally elegant building of Pani No Kotho. The beautifully structured balconies on all the four sides make the building give an impression of a palace building. In reality, it houses a pumping station and a water tank. It is a perfect specimen of blending utilities and aesthetics to create a delightful architecture ^[7]

Located on the left of Darbargadh is the temple of Goddess Ashapura. Though at present the royal temple needs restoration, but it is still magnificent enough to attract tourist’s interest.

A further walk from the temple leads the tourists to some of the most beautiful houses of rich and prosperous Memon merchants.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census,^[8] Dhoraji had a population of 80,807. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Dhoraji has an average literacy rate of 71%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 78% and, female literacy is 65%. In Dhoraji, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age. Major population ratio is of Memons[Muslim], Patels[Hindu] at dhoraji.

Transport

Air

Rajkot and Porbandar are the nearest airports. Kesod and Jamnagar are also nearby airports.

Road

Dhoraji is on National Highway 8B. It connects Dhoraji with Upleta, Rajkot, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Gondal and Jetpur. State transport corporation and private bus operators provide bus services.

Railway

Dhoraji railway station lies on the Wansjaliya-Jetalsar railway line that connects with Rajkot, the nearest large city. Wansjaliya railway junction is west of Dhoraji and connects with Porbandar, Jamnagar. Dhoraji railway station and Jetalsar railway junction are east of Dhoraji and connect with Rajkot. The railway line is broad gauge.

Environmental Issues

• Major pollution is caused due to Jetpur cotton industries. There are many production units located in Jetpur. Jetpur is located 25 km on upstream of Bhadar river. Polluted water from Jetpur cotton industries is directly thrown in Bhadar river without treatment and it pollutes Bhadar river up to a great extent.
• In Last 5 years, Many of the Jetpur cotton Industries have closed down and business of cotton dyeing has shifted to Pali Town in Rajasthan and the present Cotton units are asked to take pollution control measures and also effluent disposal to avoid pollution of the river hence the pollution is much less now. Water for sanitation and drinking is now better than earlier. People are also more aware about environmental issues as they are educated and know the consequences of pollution.

Major Business

• Edible Oil production industry. There are many oil production units located in Dhoraji because to this, it is called locally, "Telia Raja" meaning King of Oil.
• Agriculture - the main crops are cotton, groundnuts, peanut, sugar cane, corn, vegetables and onion.
• More than 250 plastic production units are located in and near Dhoraji. The first plastic pipe factory was started in 1978 as Jolly Plastic Industries Limited. It has now closed. The factory was the first in the Saurashtra kutch region.^[9]
• Nowadays Dhoraji is developing as a Plastic Hub. Here there are lots of Plastic Industries. Virgin products to Reprocessed products are manufactured here by experienced people using highly skilled employees and the latest technology.
• Back in the old days there were lots of sugar factories (sugar mills) located on the national highway 8B between Dhoraji and Upleta, Dhoraji and Junagadh and Dhoraji and Bhavnagar.
• There are many Mosaic tiles factories located between Dhoraji and Upleta. The tiles were known for their design and quality for many years.
• One of the major business is food manufacture. Foods made here include ganthia, a deep fried snack in the shape of a stick made from gram flour. It is arguably one of the most famous dishes from Dhoraji. Many of the people from Dhoraji start their morning with a plate of Ganthia. Other dishes from the region include pav bhaji, spicy potato (lasaniya batata), dabeli and many farsan and sweets.
• Dhoraji has many boarding schools, which attract students from nearby small villages. These include many private schools as well as government schools.
• Some famous recipe from Dhoraji includes, "Gafar na bateta","Pravinbhai na gathiya(pavalo gathiyavalo)","popat ni dabeli", "fauji no khimo", "azad ni pyali","khodiyar nu panjabi chinese", "kailash ni pavbhaji","Raghuveer purisaak","jamaal no golo", "ambassador na gathiya (nirav)", "Bapani Panipuri".

References