Pali is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

and capital division in

Pali district Pali district is a district in Rajasthan, India. The city of Pali is its administrative headquarters. Pali is also known as the Industrial/Textile City and has been a hub for merchant activities for centuries. It has a rich heritage and culture ...

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 districts and smaller administrative divisions by the respe ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

. It is the administrative headquarters of

. It is on the banks of the river Bandi and is south east of

Jodhpur Jodhpur () is the second-largest city of the north-western Indian state of Rajasthan, after its capital Jaipur. As of 2023, the city has a population of 1.83 million. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Jodhpur district and ...

History

Pali (formerly known as Pallika and Palli) was a trade centre. In the 11th century AD, Pali was ruled by the Guhilas of Mewar. In the 12th century it became a part of the Nadol kingdom and was ruled by the

Chauhans Chauhan may refer to: * Chauhan (surname), an Indian surname * Chaguanas, a town in Trinidad and Tobago called Chauhan by the early Indian indentured immigrant Clans * Chauhan Dynasty, a medieval Indian dynasty * Chauhan (caste), Chauhan of Lonia ...

. In 1153 AD it was ruled by Kumarapala and his feudatory Vahadadeva. Then it came under possession of the Songara Chauhans of

Jalore Jalore () (ISO 15919 : ''Jālora'' ), also known as Granite City, is a city in the western Indian state of Rajasthan. It is the administrative headquarters of Jalore District. It has a river known as Jawai Nadi. Jalore lies to south of Sukri ...

. The

Rathore dynasty The Rathore dynasty is an Indian dynasty belonging to the Rathore (Rajput clan), Rathore clan of Rajput, Rajputs that has historically ruled over parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The Rathores trace their ancestry from the Solar dy ...

chronicles relate that Siyaji or Sheoji, grandson of

Chandra Chandra (), also known as Soma (), is the Hindu god of the Moon, and is associated with the night, plants and vegetation. He is one of the Navagraha (nine planets of Hinduism) and Dikpala (guardians of the directions). Etymology and other ...

, the last Gahadvala Rathore king of Kannauj, came to Marwar on a pilgrimage to

Dwarka Dwarka () is a town and municipality of Devbhumi Dwarka district in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Gujarat. It is located on the western shore of the Okhamandal Peninsula on the right bank of the Gomti river at ...

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

, and on halting at the town of Pali he and his followers settled there to fight alongside the

rajpurohit Rajpurohit is a martial race of Brahmin origin residing in South Asia natively in western Rajasthan of India. Their ancestors belonged to the family line of Saptarshi, SaptRishis. They maintain traditions that are similar to both Brahmins and Raj ...

community against the raids of marauding bands and foreign invaders. Rajputs and Paliwal brahmins fought bravely against Feroz Shah in the 13th century but couldn't resist his large army. His devali with the inscription of 1273 AD was discovered 21 km north west of Pali. Rao Chunda, tenth in succession from Siyaji Rathore, finally wrested control of

Marwar Marwar (also called Jodhpur region) is a region of western Rajasthan state in North Western India. It lies partly in the Thar Desert. 'Maru' is a Sanskrit word for desert. The word 'wad' literally means fence in Rajasthani languages. Engl ...

from the Pratiharas. His brother's son and successor,

Rao Jodha Rao Jodha Rathore (28 March 1416 – 6 April 1489) was the 15th Rajput chief of Rathore clan who ruled the Kingdom of Marwar in the present-day state of Rajasthan. He was the eldest son of Rao Ranmal (Rao Ridmal). He is known for his illustri ...

, moved the capital to the city of

, which he founded in 1459. Pali remained a part of the Marwar kingdom until 1949, when the last ruling Maharaja acceded to newly independent India. The oldest temple in Pali is the temple of Somanatha.

Maharana Pratap Pratap Singh I (9 May 1540 – 19 January 1597), popularly known as Maharana Pratap (), was king of the Kingdom of Mewar, in north-western India in the present-day state of Rajasthan, from 1572 until his death in 1597. He is notable for leadi ...

mother, Rani Jayawanta Bai, was the daughter of Maharawal Akheraj Sonigara, the ruler of Pali. This established a strong maternal connection for Maharana Pratap with the Pali region, making it his 'Nanihal' (maternal home). Maharan Pratap's Statue inaugurated on 4 June 2011 by District Collector Neeraj Kumar Pawan.

Geography

Pali is located at . It has an average elevation of 214 metres (702 feet).

Demographics

Indian

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, Pali had a population of 229,956. Males constitute 52.2% of the population and females 47.8%. Pali has an average literacy rate of 68.2%, lower than the national average of 74.04%: male literacy is 77.24%, and female literacy is 59%. In Pali, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Industries

Pali has been famous for its textile industries. Cotton, synthetic clothes, and yarn are exported to other states of India at a very cheap price. Some new industries have also been developed such as those of bangles, marble cutting, marble finishing, etc. One of the largest composite

textile mill Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...

s in India is the 'Maharaja Shri Umaid Mill' located in Pali. The main products of the mill include cotton and yarn, which are used to prepare different clothes. There are three industrial areas in Pali, namely the Mandia Road Industrial Area, the Industrial Area phase 1 & 2, and the Punayata Industrial Area. Mandia Road Industrial Area is the largest and the oldest of all. Besides this, many more industries are situated in different areas of Pali district i.e. leather-based industries, agriculture instruments, chemical industries, cement industries, and mineral-based units. Among these, granite industries have recently flourished due to the easy availability of raw material and favorable geographical location. Pali has seen the emergence of the fintech sector, exemplified by AeronPay, headquartered in the city. Founded in 2018 and part of the Aeronfly Group, AeronPay is an Indian fintech company. Outlook India reported the launch of their unified open API platform for financial technology. AeronPay's contact page confirms their Pali location. This indicates a diversification in Pali's economy. However, the problem of pollution is imminent. Common effluent treatment plants have been established in the last few years to treat the discharged water from various industries.

References

External links