Monday, January 21, 2008

Haryana

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?हरियाणा
ਹਰਿਆਣਾ

Haryana
India
Map indicating the location of Haryana
Coordinates: 30°44′N 76°47′E / 30.73, 76.78
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
Area 44,212 km² (17,070 sq mi)
Capital Chandigarh
Largest city Faridabad
District(s) 20
Population
Density
21,082,989 (16th)
• 477/km² (1,235/sq mi)
Language(s) Hindi and Punjabi
Governor A.R. Kidwai
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda
Established 1966-11-01
Legislature (seats) Unicameral (90)
ISO abbreviation IN-HR
Website: haryana.gov.in
Seal of Haryana
Seal of Haryana

Coordinates: 30°44′N 76°47′E / 30.73, 76.78

Haryana (Hindi: हरियाणा, Punjabi: ਹਰਿਆਣਾ, IPA: [hərɪjaːɳaː]) is a state in north India. It was carved out of the state of Punjab in 1966. It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and Rajasthan to the west and south. Eastern border to Uttarakhand & Uttar Pradesh is defined by river Yamuna. Haryana also surrounds Delhi on three sides, forming the northern, western and southern borders of Delhi. Consequently, a large area of Haryana is included in the National Capital Region. The capital of Haryana is Chandigarh which is administered as a union territory and is also the capital of Punjab.

Haryana is one of India's most industrialized states. The city of Gurgaon is emerging as a major hub for the information technology and automobile industry. It is a leading manufacturing hub as it is also home to Maruti Udyog Limited, India's largest automobile manufacturer, and Hero Honda Limited, the world's largest manufacturer of two-wheelers. Panipat, Panchkula and Faridabad are also industrial hubs, with the Panipat Refinery being the second largest refinery in South Asia. There is also an established steel and textile industry in the state of Haryana. The name Haryana itself means “The Abode of God” from Hari (the Hindu god Vishnu) and ayana ].


History

See also: Punjab region and History of the Punjab

Although Haryana is no longer a part of the state of Punjab, it was for a long time part of the Punjab province of British India and played a vital role in the history of the Punjab region.

Vedic period

river bed to be that of the Saraswati. Many settlements dating back to the Indus Valley Civilization have been found along this river bed, at Naurangabad and Mittathal in Bhiwani District, Kunal, in Fatehabad District, Agroha and Rakhigarhi in Hisar District, Rukhi in Rohtak District and Banawali in Sirsa District. The ancient Vedic civilization also flourished on the banks of the Saraswati, and the hymns of Rigveda were composed here.

In some ancient Hindu texts, the boundaries of Kurukshetra correspond roughly to the state of Haryana. Thus according to the Taittiriya Aranyaka 5.1.1., the Kurukshetra region is south of Turghna (Srughna/Sugh in Sirhind, Punjab), north of Khandava (Delhi and Mewat region), east of Maru (desert) and west of Parin.[2]

The epic battle of Mahabharata at Kurukshetra
The epic battle of Mahabharata at Kurukshetra

Mahabharata, the great epic of India mentions Haryana as Bahudhhanyaka, 'land of plentiful grains' and Bahudhana, 'land of immense riches'. Several places mentioned in Mahabharata correspond to modern day cities in Haryana: Prithudaka (Pehowa), Tilprastha (Tilput), Panprastha (Panipat) and Sonprastha (Sonipat).Gurgaon refers to the village of the Guru Dronacharya . The great battle between the Kauravas and the Pandavas took place near the city of Kurukshetra. Krishna preached the Bhagvad Gita to the reluctant Arjuna there. .For eighteen days following that, armies from all over India battled in the plains of Kurukshetra to decide who sits on the throne of Hastinapur. Maharaja Agrasen is said to have established a flourishing city of merchants at Agroha near modern Hisar. Legend has it that anyone wishing to settle in the city was given a brick and a rupee by each of the city's lakh residents. Thus, they would have enough bricks to build a house and enough money to start a business of their own.

Medieval period

After ousting the Huns, king Harshavardhana established his capital at Thanesar near Kurukshetra in the 7th century AD. After his death, the kingdom disintegrated. The region, however, remained strategically important for the rulers of Delhi, as it lay in the path of invaders from the northwest. Prithviraj Chauhan established a fort at Hansi in the 12th century. Muhammad Ghori conquered this area in the Second Battle of Tarain. Following his death, the Delhi Sultanate was established that ruled much of India for several centuries. The earliest reference to 'Hariana' occurs in a Sanskrit inscription dated 1328 AD kept in Delhi Museum which refers to this region as The heaven on earth, indicating that it was fertile and relatively peaceful at that time. Firoz Shah Tughlaq established a fort at Hisar in 1354 to further fortify the region.

The three famous battles of Panipat took place near the modern town of Panipat. The first battle took place in 1526, where Babur, the ruler of Kabul defeated Ibrahim Lodi of the Delhi Sultanate, through the use of field artillery. This battle marked the beginning of the Mughal empire in India. In the second battle of Panipat (November 5, 1556), Akbar's general Bairam Khan defeated Hemu, and paved the way for Akbar's reign. The Third Battle of Panipat was fought in 1761 between the Afghan warlord Ahmad Shah Abdali and the Marathas under Sadashivrao Bhau of Pune. Ahmad Shah won decisively, on January 13, 1761.

British Raj

During the British Raj, most of Haryana formed part of the Punjab province. Some parts were ruled by the princely states of Loharu, Nabha, Jind and Patiala. During the Indian rebellion of 1857, several leaders from this region, including Rao Tula Ram, participated actively. Later,during the Indian Freedom fight people from Haryana took part actively and fought a lot of battles with them. A lot of battles were fought by not only the Kings of territories but by the farmers also. British army was defeated at a lot of places. Some most important fights were from Sonipat , Rohtak , Sirsa and Hissar. In Sirsa the famous battle of Chormar was fought.Later, leaders like Sir Chhotu Ram played an important role in the politics of the Punjab province.

Independent India

On 1 November 1966, Haryana was carved out of the mostly Hindi-speaking eastern portion of Punjab, while the mostly Punjabi-speaking western portion remained as current day Punjab. The city of Chandigarh, on the linguistic and physical border, was made a union territory to serve as capital of both these states. Chandigarh was due to transfer to state of Punjab in 1986, according to the Rajiv-Longowal Accord, but the transfer has been delayed pending an agreement on which parts of the Hindi speaking areas of Abohar and Fazilka, currently part of Firozpur District of Punjab, that should be transferred to Haryana in exchange. In the 1970s, Haryana contributed significantly to the Green Revolution and White Revolution in India.

Geography

Haryana is a landlocked state in northern India. It is located between 27°37' to 30°35' N latitude and between 74°28' and 77°36' E longitude. The altitude of Haryana varies between 700 to 3600 ft (200 metres to 2 kilometres) above sea level. An area of 1,553 km² is covered by forest. Haryana has four main geographical features.

The majority of the state is an agricultural plain, with the southern and western edge being more dry and arid. the plain of Haryana is also known for water divider of the himalayan rivers.

Demographics

Residential complexes in Gurgaon.
Residential complexes in Gurgaon.

The population of Haryana, according to the 2001 census, is 21,144,000, with 11,364,000 males and 9,781,000 females. The population density is 477 people/sq km. Haryana, along with neighboring Punjab, has a skewed sex ratio, with many more men than women. Selective abortion of female fetuses is known to occur, reflecting a widespread favor for the male child.

Hindus make up about 88.2% of the population (Jats being more than a third of the population), Muslims 5.8%, Sikhs 5.5%, Jains 0.3% and Buddhist .01% [3] Muslims are mainly in the Mahendragarh district, while Sikh's are mostly in the districts adjoining Punjab.

Haryana's social architecture is primarily caste-oriented and is dominated by the Jats. Agriculture and related industry has been the backbone of the local economy. Today there is an influx of immigrants from across the nation, primarily from Bihar, Bengal and Nepal. Punjabi refugees displaced from Pakistan were rehabilitated in the state.

Economy

Manufacturing

Gurgaon is the main hub of Haryana's manufacturing and services industry.
Gurgaon is the main hub of Haryana's manufacturing and services industry.

More than a thousand medium and large industries with a capital investment of Rs. 2000 billion or $ 40.4 billion have been established in the state in mainly Gurgaon, Panchkula, Faridabad and Bahadurgarh. These include Hindustan National Glass, Maruti Udyog Limited, Escorts, Hero Honda, Alcatel, Sony, Whirlpool India, Bharti Telecom, Liberty Shoes and Hindustan Machine Tools. In addition there are more than 80,000 small-scale industrial units in the state which cumulatively bring in a substantial income for the state and its people. Yamunanagar district has a paper mill BILT, Haryana has a large production of cars, motorcycles, tractors, sanitary ware, glass container industry, gas stoves and scientific instruments.

Service Industry

Gurgaon, has seen emergence of an active information technology industry in the recent years. With organisations like IBM, Hewitt Associates, Dell, Convergys, United Healthcare and NIIT setting up back offices or contact centers in Gurgaon.

Agriculture

Despite recent industrial development, Haryana is primarily an agricultural state. About 70% of residents are engaged in agriculture. Wheat and rice are the major crops. Haryana is self-sufficient in food production and the second largest contributor to India's central pool of food grains. Other crops include sugarcane, cotton, maize, bajra, and oilseeds. About 86% of the area is arable, and of that 96% is cultivated. About 75% of the area is irrigated, through tubewells and an extensive system of canals. Haryana contributed significantly to the Green Revolution in India in the 1970s that made the country self-sufficient in food production.

Dairy farming is also an essential part of the rural economy. Milk and milk products form an essential part of the local diet. There is the saying Desaan main des Haryana, jit doodh dahi ka khaana, which means "Among places is Haryana, where the staple food is milk and yoghurt". There is a vast network of milk societies that support the dairy industry. The National Dairy Research Institute at Karnal, and the Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes at Hisar are instrumental in development of new breeds of cattle and propagation of these breeds through embryo transfer technology. The Murrah breed of water buffalo from Haryana is world-famous for its milk production.

Macro-economic trend

This is a chart of trend of gross state domestic product of Haryana at market prices estimated by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.

Year Gross State Domestic Product
1980 33,860
1985 65,520
1990 136,360
1995 297,890
2000 550,050

Haryana's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $25 billion at current prices.

Over 3% of the S&P CNX 500 conglomerates have corporate offices in Haryana.

See also: List of conglomerates in Haryana

Divisions

Haryana is divided into 20 districts.
Haryana is divided into 20 districts.

The state is divided into four divisions for administrative purpose - Ambala, Rohtak, Gurgaon and Hisar Division. There are 20 districts, 47 sub-divisions, 67 tehsils, 45 sub-tehsils and 116 blocks. Haryana has a total of 81 cities and towns. It has 6,759 villages.

Districts

Ambala Division

Gurgaon Division

Hisar Division

Rohtak Division

Education

During 2001-02, there were 11,013 primary schools, 1,918 middle schools, 3,023 high schools and 1,301 senior secondary schools in the state.[4] Haryana Board of School Education, established in September 1969 and shifted to Bhiwani in 1981, conducts public examinations at middle, matriculation, and senior secondary levels twice a year. Over seven lakh candidates attend annual examinations in February and March, and 150,000 attend supplementary examinations each November. The Board also conducts examinations for Haryana Open School at senior and senior secondary levels twice a year.[5] The Haryana government provides free education to women up to graduation level.

Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Medical Research & Education, Agroha (Hisar district)
Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Medical Research & Education, Agroha (Hisar district)

There are five universities in the state. Technical education and management studies are provided by Maharishi Dayanand University at Rohtak, Kurukshetra University at Kurukshetra, Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology at Hisar and Chaudhary Devi Lal University at Sirsa. Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University at Hisar is one of the biggest agricultural universities in Asia. It is engaged in education, research and development related to agriculture. The National Dairy Research Institute at Karnal provides education in the field of dairy science. It has been upgraded to the level of a Deemed University. There are medical colleges in Rohtak,Mullana and Agroha.

Also, there is Management Development Institute at Gurgaon which is amongst the premier management insitutes of India.

References

  1. ^ http://www.britannica.com/ebc/article-9111200
  2. ^ Agarwal, Vishal: Is There Vedic Evidence for the Indo-Aryan Immigration to India? (PDF)
  3. ^ http://www.censusindia.net/religiondata/ 2001 Indian Census Data
  4. ^ http://www.haryana-online.com/education.htm
  5. ^ http://hbse.nic.in/history.htm

External links