Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of
Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of
Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the
Marathwada
Marathwada () is a proposed state and geographical region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It was formed during the Nizam's rule and was part of the then Hyderabad State. The region coincides with the Aurangabad division of Maharashtra. I ...
region. Located on a hilly upland terrain in the
Deccan Traps, Aurangabad is the fifth-most populous urban area in Maharashtra with a population of 1,175,116. The city is known as a major production center of cotton textile and artistic silk fabrics. Several prominent educational institutions, including
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, are located in the city. The city is also a popular tourism hub, with tourist destinations like the
Ajanta and
Ellora caves lying on its outskirts, both of which have been designated as
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
s since 1983.
Other tourist attractions include the
Aurangabad Caves
The Aurangabad caves are twelve rock-cut Buddhist shrines located on a hill running roughly east to west, close to the city of Aurangabad, Maharashtra. The first reference to the Aurangabad Caves is in the great chaitya of Kanheri Caves. The Aur ...
,
Devagiri Fort,
Grishneshwar Temple
Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Temple, sometimes referred to as the Ghrneshwar or Ghushmeshwar Temple, is one of the shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva that is referenced in the Shiva Purana. The word ''Ghrneshwara'' means "lord of compassion". The tem ...
,
Jama Mosque,
Bibi Ka Maqbara,
Himayat Bagh
Himayat Bagh is a 17th-century garden that now houses the Fruit Research Station and Nursery, which is a part of the Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth, Parbhani (Maharashtra). It is located near Delhi Gate in Rauza Bagh area of Aurang ...
,
Panchakki
Panchakki, known as the water mill. This monument is located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Aurangabad, Maharashtra, displays the scientific thought process put in medieval Indian architecture. It was designed to generate energy via water brought do ...
and
Salim Ali Lake
Salim Ali Lake (Marathi - पक्षीमित्र सलीम आली सरोवर) is located near Delhi Gate, one of the many Gates in Aurangabad, opposite Himayat Bagh, Aurangabad. It is located in the northern part of the city. ...
. Historically, there were 52
Gates in Aurangabad
The Gates of Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Aurangabad distinguish it from several other medieval cities in India. Each of the 52 gates have a local history or had individuals linked with it.
Out of the 52, only four main and nine subordinate gates ha ...
, some of them extant, because of which Aurangabad is nicknamed as the "City of Gates". In 2019, the
Aurangabad Industrial City
The Aurangabad Industrial City (abbrev. AURIC or Auric) is a greenfield project, greenfield industrial smart city over an area of 10,000 acres in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. It is a part of the Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor Project (DMIC ...
(AURIC) became the first
greenfield industrial
smart city
A smart city is a technologically modern urban area that uses different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect specific data. Information gained from that data is used to manage assets, resources and services efficiently; in retur ...
of India under the country's flagship
Smart Cities Mission
National Smart Cities Mission is an urban renewal and retrofitting program by the Government of India with the mission to develop smart cities across the country, making them citizen friendly and sustainable. The Union Ministry of Urban Devel ...
.
Paithan
Paithan pəɪ.ʈʰaɳ(), historically Pratiṣṭhāna ɾə'tɪʂʈʰana is a town with municipal council in Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, India. Paithan is located south of present-day Aurangabad on the Godavari River.
It was the cap ...
, the imperial capital of the
Satavahana dynasty
The Satavahanas (''Sādavāhana'' or ''Sātavāhana'', IAST: ), also referred to as the Andhras in the Puranas, were an ancient Indian dynasty based in the Deccan region. Most modern scholars believe that the Satavahana rule began in the la ...
(1st century BCE–2nd century CE), as well as ''Dēvagirī'', the capital of the
Yadava dynasty
The Seuna, Sevuna, or Yadavas of Devagiri ( IAST: Seuṇa, –1317) was a Medieval Indian dynasty, which at its peak ruled a kingdom stretching from the Narmada river in the north to the Tungabhadra river in the south, in the western part of ...
(9th century CE–14th century CE), are located within the limits of modern Aurangabad. In 1308, the region was
annexed by the
Delhi Sultanate during the rule of
Sultan Alauddin Khalji
Alaud-Dīn Khaljī, also called Alauddin Khilji or Alauddin Ghilji (), born Ali Gurshasp, was an emperor of the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate in the Indian subcontinent. Alauddin instituted a number of significant administrativ ...
. In 1327, the capital of the Delhi Sultanate was shifted from
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...
to Daulatabad (in present-day Aurangabad) during the rule of
Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq
Muhammad bin Tughluq (1290 – 20 March 1351) was the eighteenth Sultan of Delhi. He reigned from February 1325 until his death in 1351. The sultan was the eldest son of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, founder of the Tughlaq dynasty. In 1321, the youn ...
, who ordered a mass migration of Delhi's population to Daulatabad. However, Muhammad bin Tughluq reversed his decision in 1334 and the capital was shifted back to Delhi. In 1499, Daulatabad became a part of the
Ahmadnagar Sultanate. In 1610, a new city named ''Khaḍkī'' was established at the location of modern Aurangabad to serve as the capital of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate by the
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
n military leader
Malik Ambar
Malik Ambar (1548 – 13 May 1626) was a Siddi military leader and prime minister who became a kingmaker and de facto ruler of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate in the Deccan region of India.
Born in the Adal Sultunate, in present-day Ethiopia, Mali ...
, who was brought to India as a slave but rose to become a popular Prime Minister of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate. Malik Ambar was succeeded by his son Fateh Khan, who changed the name of the city to ''Fatehnagar''. In 1636,
Aurangzeb, who was then the
Mughal viceroy of the Deccan region, annexed the city into the Mughal Empire. In 1653, Aurangzeb renamed the city as "Aurangabad" and made it the capital of the Deccan region of the Mughal Empire. In 1724, the Mughal governor of the Deccan,
Nizam Asaf Jah I, seceded from the Mughal Empire and founded his own
Asaf Jahi dynasty. The dynasty established the
State of Hyderabad
Hyderabad State () was a princely state located in the south-central Deccan region of India with its capital at the city of Hyderabad. It is now divided into the present-day state of Telangana, the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka, and t ...
with their capital initially at Aurangabad, until they transferred their capital to the city of
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
in 1763. Hyderabad State became a
princely state during the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
*
or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
, and remained so for 150 years (1798–1948). Until 1956, Aurangabad remained part of
Hyderabad State. In 1960, Aurangabad and the larger
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people
*Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece
See also
*
* ...
-speaking Marathwada region became a part of the state of Maharashtra.
History
![Zaibunissa palace](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Zaibunissa_palace.jpg)
''Khaḍkī'' was the original name of the village which was made a capital city by
Malik Ambar
Malik Ambar (1548 – 13 May 1626) was a Siddi military leader and prime minister who became a kingmaker and de facto ruler of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate in the Deccan region of India.
Born in the Adal Sultunate, in present-day Ethiopia, Mali ...
, the Prime Minister of
Murtaza Nizam Shah II
Murtaza Nizam Shah II ( 1580–1610) was the Sultan of Ahmadnagar from 1600 to 1610. His rule was dominated by the powerful regent Malik Ambar, under whom he was an effective puppet ruler.
Life
Born 1580, he was originally given the name Al ...
, Sultan of
Ahmednagar. Within a decade, ''Khaḍkī'' grew into a populous and imposing city. Malik Ambar died in 1626. He was succeeded by his son Fateh Khan, who changed the name of ''Khaḍkī'' to ''Fatehnagar''. With the capture of
Devagiri Fort by the imperial troops in 1633, the Nizam Shahi dominions, including ''Fatehnagar'', came under the possession of the
Mughals
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
.
In 1653, when Mughal prince
Aurangzeb was appointed the Viceroy of the
Deccan
The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by the ...
for the second time, he made Fatehnagar his capital and renamed it Aurangabad. Aurangabad is sometimes referred to as Khujista Bunyad by the chroniclers of Aurangzeb's reign.
In 1667 Muazzam, son of Aurangzeb became governor of this provinence. Before him Mirza Rajah
Jai Singh Jai Singh may refer to:
* Jai Singh I (1611–1667), ruler of Amber kingdom in India and a Rajput general of the Mughal Empire; also known as Mirza Raja Jai Singh
* Jai Singh of Mewar (1653–1698), ruler of the Mewar kingdom in India
* Jai Singh II ...
was in-charge of this provinence for some time.
In 1681, after Aurangzeb's coronation as emperor, he shifted his court from the capital city of Delhi to Aurangabad in order to conduct his military campaigns in the Deccan. The presence of Mughal elites in the city led to urban development, as numerous public and private buildings were constructed. Though Aurangzeb chose not to reside in the city after 1684, the city retained importance as the primary military outpost of the Mughal Deccan, attracting wealth and turning Aurangabad into a centre of trade; the manufacture of embroidered silks emerged during this period and is still practiced in Aurangabad today. Mughal Aurangabad was also a cultural hub, serving as an important centre of
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
and
literature. During the Mughal era, Aurangabad had an estimated population of 200,000 people, living in 54 suburbs.
In 1724,
Asaf Jah
The Asaf Jahi was a Muslim dynasty that ruled the Kingdom of Hyderabad. The family came to India in the late 17th century and became employees of the Mughal Empire. They were great patrons of Persian culture, language, and literature, the fami ...
, a Mughal general and
Nizam al-Mulk in the Deccan region, decided to secede from the crumbling
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
, with the intention of founding his own dynasty in the
Deccan
The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by the ...
. Aurangabad continued to be politically and culturally significant for the next 40 years as capital of Asaf Jah's new dominion, until his son and successor
Nizam Ali Khan Asaf Jah II transferred the capital to
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
in 1763. The loss of Aurangabad's privileged position led to a period of economic decline; by the beginning of the 19th century, the city had become notably underpopulated, leading to the crippling of its administration, and its buildings were in decay. However, Aurangabad would continue to be important as the "second city" of the Nizam's dominions for the remainder of the polity's lifetime.
In 1816, the British established a
cantonment outside Aurangabad (as they did in other parts of the Nizam's dominions), but were discouraged from entering the city proper by the Nizam's officials.
As a
princely state under British suzerainty, the Nizam's
Hyderabad State was quasi-autonomous, meaning that Aurangabad's culture was somewhat free of colonial influence.
Aurangabad began to industrialise in the late 19th century, with the city's first cotton mill being opened in 1889.
The population of the city was 30,000 in 1881, growing to 36,000 over the next two decades. Aurangabad was particularly affected by Deccan famines in
1899-1900, 1918, and 1920, causing surges in crime.
Following Indian independence, Hyderabad State was
annexed into the Indian Union in 1948, and consequently Aurangabad became a part of the
Indian Union's Hyderabad State. In 1956, it passed into the newly formed bilingual
Bombay State, and in 1960 it became a part of
Maharashtra state.
Bal Thackeray
Bal Thackeray (; 23 January 1926 – 17 November 2012), also known as Balasaheb Thackeray, was an Indian politician who founded the Shiv Sena, a right-wing pro- Marathi and Hindu nationalist party active mainly in the state of Maharashtra ...
in 1988 proposed the city to be renamed as Sambhajinagar. The local governing body i.e., City
Corporation
A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and ...
passed a resolution on name change in 1995. On 29 June 2022, the Shiv Sena-led Maharashtra cabinet approved the renaming of Aurangabad to Sambhaji Nagar, after
Sambhaji Bhosale, second Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire.
Geography
The co-ordinates for Aurangabad are N 19° 53' 47" – E 75° 23' 54". The city is surrounded by hills on all directions.
Climate
Aurangabad features a
semiarid climate
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi- ...
under the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
. Annual mean temperatures range from 17 to 33 °C, with the most comfortable time to visit in the winter – October to February. The highest maximum temperature ever recorded was 46 °C (114 °F) on 25 May 1905. The lowest recorded temperature was 2 °C (36 °F) on 2 February 1911. In the cold season, the district is sometimes affected by cold waves in association with the eastward passage of western disturbances across north India, when the minimum temperature may drop down to about 2 °C to 4 °C (35.6 °F to 39.2 °F).
Most of the rainfall occurs in the monsoon season from June to September. Thunderstorms occur between November to April. Average annual rainfall is 710 mm. The city is often cloudy during the monsoon season and the cloud cover may remain together for days. The daily maximum temperature in the city often drops to around 22 °C due to the cloud cover and heavy rains.
Geology
![Ahilyabai Holkar Chowk](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Ahilyabai_Holkar_Chowk.jpg)
The entire area is covered by the
Deccan Traps lava flows of
Upper Cretaceous
The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', th ...
to
Lower Eocene
In the geologic timescale the Ypresian is the oldest age or lowest stratigraphic stage of the Eocene. It spans the time between , is preceded by the Thanetian Age (part of the Paleocene) and is followed by the Eocene Lutetian Age. The Ypresian ...
age. The lava flows are overlain by thin alluvial deposits along the Kham and Sukhana river. The basaltic lava flows belonging to the Deccan Trap is the only major geological formation occurring in Aurangabad. The lava flows are horizontal and each flow has two distinct units. The upper layers consist of
vesiculara and
amygdaloidal zeolitic
Zeolites are microporous, crystalline aluminosilicate materials commonly used as commercial adsorbents and catalysts. They mainly consist of silicon, aluminium, oxygen, and have the general formula ・y where is either a metal ion or H+. These pos ...
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...
while the bottom layer consists of massive basalt. The lava flows are individually different in their ability to receive as well as hold water in storage and to transmit it. The difference in the productivity of groundwater in various flows arises as a result of their inherent physical properties such as porosity and permeability. The groundwater occurs under water table conditions and is mainly controlled by the extent of its secondary porosity i.e. thickness of weathered rocks and spacing of joints and fractures. The highly weathered vesicular trap and underlying weathered jointed and fractured massive trap constitutes the main water-yielding zones. The soil is mostly formed from igneous rocks and is black, medium black, shallow and calcareous types having different depths and profiles.
Demographics
![CIDCO Aerial- Canought Place](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/CIDCO_Aerial-_Canought_Place.jpg)
According to the
2011 Indian Census
The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...
, Aurangabad has a population of 1,175,116, of which 609,206 are males and 565,910 are females. Population in the age range of 0 to 6 years is 158,779. The total number of literates in Aurangabad was 889,224, which constituted 75.67% of the population with male literacy of 79.34% and female literacy of 71.72%. The effective literacy rate of 7+ population of Aurangabad was 87.5%, of which male literacy rate was 92.2% and female literacy rate was 82.5%. The
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
population is 229,223 and 15,240 respectively. There were 236659 households in Aurangabad in 2011.
Religion
The majority of the population in Aurangabad are
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
(51%), followed by 30%
Muslim, 15.2%
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
and 1.6%
Jain
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
. There are a substantial number of adherents of
Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
and
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
in the city.
Buddhists are of
Navayana
Navayana (Devanagari: नवयान, IAST: ''Navayāna'') means "new vehicle" and refers to the re-interpretation of Buddhism by Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar; it is also called Neo-Buddhism and Ambedkarite Buddhism. Ambedkar was a polymath, theol ...
tradition who are mostly scheduled castes.
Language
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people
*Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece
See also
*
* ...
is the official language of the city.
Marathi is also the most commonly spoken language in the city, followed by
and
Hindi
Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
.
Administration and politics
Local administration
Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is the local civic body. It is divided into six zones. The Municipal Council was established in 1936, the Municipal Council area was about 54.5 km
2. It was elevated to the status of Municipal Corporation from 8 December 1982, and simultaneously including eighteen peripheral villages, making the total area under its jurisdiction to 138.5 km
2 extended its limits.
The city is divided in 115 electoral wards called as ''Prabhag'', and each ward is represented by a Corporator elected by the people from each ward. There are two Committees, General Body and Standing Committee headed by the Mayor and the chairman respectively. AMC is responsible for providing basic amenities like drinking water, drainage facility, road, street lights, healthcare facilities, primary schools, etc. AMC collects its revenue from the urban taxes which are imposed on citizens. The administration is headed by the Municipal Commissioner; an
IAS Officer
The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the Indian ...
, assisted by the other officers of different departments.Aurangabad Metropolitan Region Development Authority (AMRDA) is being Formed for the Allover Development of the Regio
State and central administration
Aurangabad division is one of the six administrative
divisions of Maharashtra
Maharashtra is an Indian state that was formed on 1 May 1960 with 26 initial districts. Since then, 10 additional districts have been created, and the state currently has 36 districts. These districts are grouped into six administrative divisions ...
state in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. Aurangabad divisions almost completely coincides with the
Marathwada
Marathwada () is a proposed state and geographical region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It was formed during the Nizam's rule and was part of the then Hyderabad State. The region coincides with the Aurangabad division of Maharashtra. I ...
region of Maharashtra. Aurangabad contributes one seat to the
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-p ...
–
Aurangabad (Lok Sabha constituency). In
2019 general election,
AIMIM
The All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen ( en, All India Council for Unity of Muslims) ( AIMIM) is an Indian political party based primarily in the city of Hyderabad. It is also a significant political party in the Indian States of Telangana ...
candidate
Sayed Imtiyaz Jaleel
Imtiyaz Jaleel Syed (born 10 August 1968), also known as Syed Imtiyaz Jaleel, is an Indian politician and member of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen. In 2019 General Elections, Jaleel was elected as Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha fro ...
was elected as a member of parliament from Aurangabad.
Aurangabad also contributes three
state assembly seats namely Aurangabad East, Aurangabad Central and Aurangabad West which are represented by
Atul Moreshwar Save
Atul Moreshwar Save is an Indian politician and member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Atul Save won the Aurangabad East Assembly Constituency of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in the 2014 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Election.
The ...
(BJP),
Pradeep Jaiswal
Pradeep Jaiswal is Shiv Sena politician from Aurangabad, Maharashtra. He is current Member of Legislative Assembly from Aurangabad Central Vidhan Sabha constituency as a member of Shiv Sena. He had also served as Mayor of Aurangabad Municipal ...
(Shiv-Sena) and
Sanjay Shirsat
Sanjay Pandurang Shirsat is an Indian politician serving as MLA in Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from Aurangabad West Vidhan Sabha constituency as a member of Shiv Sena. He has been elected to Vidhan Sabha for three consecutive terms in ...
(Shiv-Sena) respectively since
2019 Maharashtra Legislation Assembly election.
File:himrooshawl.jpg, Himroo Shawl
File:High-cort-1.jpg, Bombay High Court Aurangabad Bench, ITC Welcomgroup's The Rama International, Ajanta Ambassador & Cidco Town Center – Aerial view
File:Kranti Chowk 01.jpg, Kranti Chowk
Economy
Aurangabad is considered to be a classic example of efforts of state government towards balanced industrialisation of state. The city was a major silk and cotton textile production center. A fine blend of silk with locally grown cotton was developed as
Himroo
''Himroo'' is a fabric made of silk and cotton, which is grown locally in Aurangabad
Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the ...
textile.
Paithani silk
sari
A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various regional languages include:
* as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO
* bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO
* gu, સાડી, sāḍī, translit-std ...
s are also made in Aurangabad. With the opening of the
Hyderabad-Godavari Valley Railways
Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway (NGSR) was a railway company operating in India from 1879 to 1950. It was owned by the Nizams of Hyderabad State, and its full name was ''His Exalted Highness, The Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway''. The company ...
in the year 1900 several ginning factories were started. After 1960,
Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation
Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) is a project of the government of Maharashtra state in India and is the leading corporation of Maharashtra. It provides businesses with infrastructure such as land (open plot or built-up spa ...
(MIDC) began acquiring land and setting up industrial estates. The Maharashtra Center For Entrepreneurship Development's main office is in Aurangabad. Major industries in Auragabad are manufacturing, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and automobiles etc.
In the 1990s, land near Shendra village on the Aurangabad-
Jalna route was purchased. The MIDC created the Waluj and Chikalthana Industrial Areas as part of its efforts, which were quickly purchased.
Aurangabad is surrounded by the industrial areas (
MIDCs) of
Chikhalthana,
Shendra and
Waluj MIDC. A new industrial belt namely
Shendra - Bidkin Industrial Park
The Aurangabad Industrial City (abbrev. AURIC or Auric) is a greenfield project, greenfield industrial smart city over an area of 10,000 acres in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. It is a part of the Delhi–Mumbai Industrial Corridor Project (DMIC ...
is being developed under
DMIC. Major
Siemens and automotive companies such as
BMW,
Audi India
Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. As a subsidiary of its parent company, the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide.
The o ...
,
Skoda Auto
Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to:
Czech brands and enterprises
* Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav
** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...
,
Bajaj Auto
Bajaj Auto Limited () is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturing company based in Pune. It manufactures motorcycles, scooters and auto rickshaws. Bajaj Auto is a part of the Bajaj Group. It was founded by Jamnalal Bajaj (1889–1942) ...
and
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is an American multinational tire manufacturing company founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling and based in Akron, Ohio. Goodyear manufactures tires for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, motorcycles, S ...
have there units in the city.
One of the largest Russian Steel Company
NLMK
Novolipetsk Steel, or NLMK, is one of the four largest steel companies in Russia. NLMK's share of domestic crude steel production is about 21%. It primarily produces flat steel products, semi-finished steel products and electrical steels. NLMK ...
has setup plant in DMIC Shendra phase.
Culture/Cityscape
Culture
![Wali Mohammed Wali New](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Wali_Mohammed_Wali_New.svg)
The culture of Aurangabad city is heavily influenced by the culture of
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
. The old city still retains the cultural flavour and charms of
Muslim culture of Hyderabad
Hyderabadi Muslims, also referred to as Hyderabadis are a community of Deccani people, who are part of a larger ethnic group of Urdu-speaking Muslims, from the area that used to be the princely state of Hyderabad in the regions of Marathwada ...
. Its influence is reflected in the language and cuisine of the locals. Although
is among the principal languages of the city, along with
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people
*Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece
See also
*
* ...
and
Hindi
Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
, it is spoken in the
Dakhni
Deccani (also known as Deccani Urdu and Deccani Hindi). https://knowledgehubadda.blogspot.com/2022/02/blog-post_74.html? m=1 or Dakni, Dakhni, Dakhini, Dakkhani and Dakkani (, ''dekanī'' or , ''dakhanī''), is a variety of Hindustani spoken ...
–
Hyderabadi Urdu
Hyderabadi ( ur, ) is a variety of Dakhini Urdu, spoken in areas of the former Hyderabad State, corresponding to the Indian state of Telangana, the Marathwada region of Maharashtra and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka.
It is nati ...
dialect.
*
Wali Dakhni also known as Wali Aurangabadi (1667–1731 or 1743) was a classical poet of
from Aurangabad. He was the first established poet to have composed in
language. Prominent poets like Shah Hatem, Shah Abro,
Mir Taqi Mir,
Zauq
Sheikh Muhammad Ibrahim Zauq (1790–1854) was an Urdu poet and scholar of literature, poetry and religion. He wrote poetry under the pen name "Zauq", and was appointed poet laureate of the Mughal Court in Delhi just at the age of 19. Later h ...
and
Sauda
Sauda ''()'' is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sauda, where most of the population lives. Other villages in the municipality include Saudasjøen and Amdal. Despite being i ...
were among his admirers.
Other prominent poets from Aurangabad include
Siraj Aurangabadi
Sayyid Sirajuddin, commonly known as Siraj Aurangabadi ( ur, ; 1715 - 1763), was an Indian mystic poet who initially wrote in Persian and later started writing in Urdu.
Work and Life
The anthology of his poems, ''Kulliyat-e-Siraj'', contain ...
,
Azad Bilgrami and
Sikandar Ali Wajd.
*
Abul Ala Maududi
Abul A'la al-Maududi ( ur, , translit=Abū al-Aʿlā al-Mawdūdī; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist and scholar active in British India and later, following the part ...
one of the Muslim scholars (1903–1979) was born in
Aurangabad
Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a hilly upland terrain in the Deccan Traps, Aurangabad is the ...
, India. Syed Abul A'ala Maududi was born to Maulana Ahmad Hasan, a lawyer by profession.
[Sayyid Abul A'la Maududi](_blank)
Official website of the Jamaat-e-Islami. His father was "descended from the
Chishti
The Chishtī Order ( fa, ''chishtī'') is a tariqa, an order or school within the mystic Sufi tradition of Sunni Islam. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. It began with Abu Ishaq Shami in Chisht, a ...
line of saints.
[Adams, p.100-101] He was also the founder of
Jamaat-e-Islami, the Islamic revivalist party.
Tourist attractions
Aurangabad is a historical city along with its surrounding towns and villages.
Indian religions
=Indian rock-cut architecture
=
Aurangabad Caves
The Aurangabad caves are twelve rock-cut Buddhist shrines located on a hill running roughly east to west, close to the city of Aurangabad, Maharashtra. The first reference to the Aurangabad Caves is in the great chaitya of Kanheri Caves. The Aur ...
.
File:Aurangabad Caves, another view.JPG, Various sculptors next to an entrance at Aurangabad Caves.
*
: These are situated at a distance of , nestled amidst the hills are 12 Buddhist caves dating back to 3 A.D. Of particular interest are the
influences evident in the iconography and architectural designs of the caves.
. The idol here is called Chintamani Parshvanath.
built during Mughal era which gives it the name of "City of Gates".
, also known as Rabia-ud-Daurani. It is an imitation of the
at Agra and due to its similar design, it is popularly known as the "Taj of the Deccan".
: Panchakki, which literally means water mill, is a 17th-century watermill situated within the old city is known for its underground water channel, which traverses more than 8 km from nearby hills. The channel culminates into an artificial waterfall that powers the mill.
*
: Popularly known as Salim Ali Talab (lake) is located in the northern part of the city near Delhi Darwaza, opposite
. During the Mughal period, it was known as Khiziri Talab. It has been renamed after the great
. It also has a bird Sanctuary and a garden maintained by the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation.
*Siddharth Garden and Zoo: is a park and zoo situated in near of the central bus station in Aurangabad. This is the only zoo in
region. There are various types of animals, birds, flowers and trees. The name of "Siddhartha" has been kept on the name of
.
: The fabric is said to have originated in Persia, though not conclusively proved, Himroo is associated with the times of Mohammad Tughlaq who ruled in the 14th century. Fabrics and shawls from Aurangabad are much in demand for their unique style and design.
* Kaghzipura: A place situated near Daulatabad made first handmade paper in India after the technology was brought here by Mongol invaders. However, the use of paper was not widespread there until the 12th century.
. Meat cooked in fresh spices and herbs is a speciality, as are the delectable sweets. The local cuisine is a blend of
and Hyderabadi cuisine, with an influence of the spices and herbs of the Marathwada region.
*
is a dish that is associated with Aurangabad in India. It is a concoction of mutton and a variety of spices.
(Hot furnace) while Qalia is a mixture of mutton and various spices.
*Aurangabad/Marathwada/Dakhni cuisine is a blend of the Puneri and the Hyderabadi cuisine (which blends the use of typical South Indian ingredients such as curry leaves, tamarind and coconut into their celebrated culinary practices).
. In 2008, flights were made available to the people travelling to the
pilgrimage.
of the South Central Railway zone. It is located on the Secunderabad-Manmad section and has rail connectivity with major cities such as Delhi, Hyderabad, Latur Road, Manmad, Mumbai, Nagpur, Nanded, Nashik Road, Nizamabad and Pune. The work of DPR preparation is ongoing for metro in Aurangabad from Shendra and Waluj. The work of surveys and DPR is also ongoing for high speed rail line from Mumbai to Nagpur, which will have a halt in Aurangabad.
Central Bus Stand, Aurangabad of MSRTC is the main public transport centre. Buses are available to every major bus depots of Maharashtra.
service is available in city. Major long route Aurangabad buses reach
in 2–3 days. MSRTC buses are also available for all district of
. There are Smart City Bus service in Aurangabad as the part of public transport in Aurangabad.
(BAMU) is located in Aurangabad city. Many colleges in the region are affiliated to it. The university has 101 Colleges affiliated in Aurangabad and 99 Colleges in Beed, 53 & 55 Colleges affiliated in Jalna & Osmanabad.
is an autonomous engineering college. It was affiliated to the
and was established in 1960. The construction of the college was started in 1957 and was completed in 1960.
located in Aurangabad. It was established in 2017 by the
, the third and final university to be installed through the ''Maharashtra National Law University Act, 2014''
to manage the affairs. The college is affiliated to
(NIELIT Aurangabad) is located inside the Dr. B.A.M. University campus. It is a central government engineering institute under the Ministry of Communication & Information Technology Government of India. It offers DEPM, B.TECH (Electronics Engineering), M.tech (Electronics Design Technology), Ph.D., and short-term courses.
Aurangabad has schools run by the
(AMC) and private schools owned and run by trusts and individuals. Government Polytechnic Aurangabad is one of the polytechnic institutions in Marathwada region.
Institute of Hotel Management, Aurangabad, is affiliated to
. Students have internships in the Vivanta, Taj in Aurangabad.
In 1903, a treaty was signed between British and the Nizam to train the
's Army and it was decided to establish a proper cantonment. Today the cantonment is spread across with civil population of 19,274 as per 2001 census.
Garware Stadium is the municipal stadium in the city.
is under construction.
mainly used by college sports event.