Surat

Related Topics:
Surat :: Surat_Thani :: Suratakal :: Surat_Shabd

Surat (Gujarati: સુરત) is a port city in the Indian state of Gujarat and administrative headquarters of the Surat District. It is located at 20.58° N latitude and 72.54° E longitude and as of 2005, Surat and its metropolitan area had a population of approximately 3.6 million.

The city is situated on the left bank of the Tapti River, 14 miles from its mouth. A moat indicates the dividing-line between the old city, with its narrow streets and handsome houses, and the newer suburbs, but the city wall has almost disappeared. The city is largely recognized for its textile and diamond businesses. Three-quarters of the world's diamonds are cut and polished in Surat.

History

Local traditions fix the establishment of the modern city in the last year of the fifteenth century, and in 1514 the Portuguese traveller Duarte Barbosa described it as an important seaport, frequented by many ships from Malabar and all parts. There still is an irregular picturesque fortress on the banks of the river built in 1540. One particular village in the suburbs of Surat is Barbodhan Village, possibly named after the explorer Duarte Barbosa. The British entered India through Surat.

Surat eclipsed Cambay as the major port of western India, as Cambay's harbor had began to silt up. During the reigns of Mughal emperors Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan it rose to be the chief commercial city of India. At the end of the 16th century the Portuguese were undisputed masters of the Surat sea trade. In 1608, ships from the British East India Company started docking in Surat, which was established as a trade transit point. In 1612, the British Captain Best, and after him Captain Downton, destroyed the Portuguese naval supremacy and obtained an imperial firman establishing a British factory at Surat, and making the city the seat of a presidency under the British East India Company, while the Dutch also founded a factory. In 1664 the Maratha leader Shivaji sacked and looted Surat.

When Shivaji arrived at Surat he demanded tribute from the Mughal commander and a small army stationed for port security, which was refused. So after Shivaji took the city in 1664 he put it to the sack. Surat was under sack for nearly 3 weeks, in which the Maratha army looted all possible wealth from Mughal & Portuguese trading centers. All this loot was successfully transported to Maharashtra before the Mughal Empire at Delhi was alerted. This wealth later was used for development & strengthening the Maratha Empire.

The exception of the British factory, a fortified warehouse-counting house-hostel, which was successfully defended by Sir George Oxenden. The prosperity of the factory at Surat received a fatal blow when Bombay was ceded to the Company (1668) and shortly afterwards made the capital of the Company's possessions and the chief seat of their trade. From that date also the city began to decline, and the city was sacked again by Shivaji in 1670. At one time its population was estimated at 800,000, by the middle of the 19th century the number had fallen to 80,000; but in 1901 it had risen again to 119,306. Surat was taken by the British in 1759, and the conquerors assumed the undivided government of the city in 1800. Since the introduction of British rule the district has remained comparatively tranquil; and even during the Revolt of 1857 peace was not disturbed, owing in great measure to the loyalty of the leading Muslim families.

A fire and a flood in 1837 destroyed a great number of buildings, but there remain several of interest, such as the mosque of Nay Saiyid Sabib, with its nine tombs, the Saiyid Edroos mosque (1634) and the ornate Mirza Sami mosque and tomb (1540). Among the interesting monuments are the tombs of English and Dutch merchants of the 17th century, especially that of the Oxenden brothers.

By the early 20th century, Surat was still a centre of trade and manufacture, though some of its former industries, such as ship-building, were extinct. There were cotton mills, factories for ginning and pressing cotton, rice-cleaning mills and paper mills. Fine cotton goods were woven in hand-looms, and there were special manufactures of silk brocade and embroidery. The chief trades were organized in guilds. The trading brought an eclectic mix of ethnicities which make Surat's culture unique even in modern times.

In 1992, violent riots took place between Hindus and Muslims, and in 1994, a plague epidemic spread in the city. The municipal commissioner Rao and the people of Surat worked hard in the late 1990s to clean the city up after which it was recognized in many circles as the 'second-cleanest city in India'.

Geography

Surat is a port city situated on the banks of the Tapti river. The Surat district is surrounded by Bharuch, Narmada (North), Navsari and Dang (South) districts. To the west is the Gulf of Cambay. The climate is tropical and the monsoon is abundant (about 2500 mm a year).

Latitude: 22° 17’ 59’’ North
Longitude: 73° 15’ 18’’ East
Area: 112.27 km²

Climate

Winter Temperature: Max 31 °C, Min 12 °C
Summer Temperature: Max 40 °C, Min 22 °C
Rainfall (mid-June to mid-September): 931.9 mm
Lowest Recorded Temperature: 7 °C
Highest Recorded Temperature: 45 °C

Economy

Surat is the heart of India's thriving diamond-polishing industry, which in 2003 cut 92% of the world's diamond pieces and earned India $8 billion in exports. Gujarati diamond cutters emigrating from East Africa established the industry in 1901 and by the 70's Surat-based diamond cutters began exporting stones to the US for the first time. Though a majority of polishing work takes place on small weight stones, Surat's workshops have set their eyes on the lucrative market for finishing larger, pricier stones in the future. Furthermore, Surat is an industrial hub for the production of synthetic fibers and man made fabrics-contributing almost 28% of India's total synthetic fiber output and 40% of the nation's total man made fabric production. In addition it is home to several major processing facilities/manufacturing centers for Reliance Petrochemicals, Essar Steel, Larsen & Toubro, KRIBHCO, ONGC, and many others.

Government and Politics

The Surat Municipal Corporation is responsible for the city's civic infrastructure as well as carrying out associated administrative duties.

Transport

While the city has a local city bus system, the public transport needs of the city are met by privately operated auto rickshaws. The city has recently seen the completion of a large number of road engineering projects, particularly the elevated roads, or flyovers in the diamond and textile districts of the city. This has significantly cut down on the commuting time for many commuters travelling to the diamond and textile districts. The Golden Quadrilateral highway system will also pass through Surat after completion in December of 2006.

Demographics

The population of Surat totals well over 3 million residents at a density of 21,673 persons per square kilometer. The sex ratio of 773 females for every 1000 males can be explained by influx of working males who leave their families behind in rural areas for better opportunities available in the city. The total literacy rate is 83% compared to the national average of 65%.

Culture

Surat is known throughout India for its unique Surti cuisine. Many of the popular types of food of the state of Gujarat originated in this region.

Most major Indian festivals such as Diwali and Ganesh Chaturthi are celebrated here with enthusiasm. The kite-flying festival of Makar Sankranti is especially popular in the city.

Education

Most of the schools in the area have Gujarati as the medium of instruction and are part of the Gujarat State Education Board, though the Seventh Day Adventist school in Athva Lines is part of the national ICSE board.

Surat has a large concentration of colleges under the Veer Narmad South Gujarat University in the Athwa Lines area on the banks of the Tapti river. It has a medical college and three engineering colleges, including the prestigious Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology, Surat and some private colleges like Sarvajanik College of Engineering and Technology (SCET) and the C K Pithavala College for Engineering and Technology. SCET is one of the few institutions in the country to offer engineering degrees in Surat's main industry, Textiles. The MTB Arts and PT Science colleges are among the oldest in the state of Gujarat. V.T. Choksi Sarvajanik College of Education is also well known educational institution.

Media

Gujarat Samachar, Divya Bhasker, Sandesh and Gujarat Mitra are the most read Surat dailies. Local editions of these newspapers are published in Gujarati. The national dailies Indian Express and The Times of India are the most popular English newspapers. Most cable service providers have local television channels as well.

Surat was likely selected by the Volvo automobile manufacturer in 2006 as the secret location for a buried Volvo XC90 Sport Utility Vehicle. This exclusive limited edition XC90 V8 was built with a pirate's theme for a joint promotion with Disney's movie " Dead Man's Chest," released in the US on July 7, 2006. The corporation allegedly secured a 10.2 acre area on the outskirts of the city of Surat in order to bury the SUV. A massive commercial campaign resulted in a global multi-media treasure hunt as millions worldwide competed with one another to be the first to reach the treasure. Thousands of treasure seekers participating in The Hunt discovered this secret location of the treasure, and Volvo selected from these people seven finalists; 3 winners from the US, and one each from Japan, Great Britain and Australia. These finalists competed in a man-on-the-ground search for the treasure at the location in August 2006. It is believed that Surat was chosen as the location for this treasure because of its historical significance as the primary hub of the influential East India Trading Company, established as early as 1608. The East India Company was an ardent foe of the pirate, as the company's merchant ships were often targeted in the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, and other oceans by zealous pirates and privateers in search of their own treasures. Volvo spokesperson Helen Gore stated that the corporation actually considered burying the SUV near the The Pirates of the Caribbean Ride at Disneyland. "It is just a few miles up the 405 from Volvo’s North American headquarters, but this one fell under the category of 'way too obvious'."

Sports

Surat has many sports facilities, majority of them dedicated to cricket. The Lalbhai Contractor Stadium and the Pithawala Cricket stadium have facilities for hosting cricket matches. In addition, Surat has an indoor stadium, which is used to host events like badminton and table tennis.

External links

TIME Asia Magazine-How did India come to dominate the vastly lucrative global market for cutting and polishing diamonds?
Cleaning Up The Plague City Suryadevara Ramachandra Rao gives Surat a new look, making it India’s second cleanest city]
A Brief summary of Barbosa's account of this region from the 15th Century
Map of City of Surat

References

Coastal cities | Cities and towns in Gujarat | Diamond

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