Gujarat gets its name from "Gujjar Rashtra", the land
of the Gujjars, a migrant tribe who came to India in the wake of
the invading Huns in the 5th century. The history of Gujarat
dates back to 2000 BC. It is also believed that Lord Krishna
left Mathura to settle on the west coast of Saurashtra at
Dwarka.
The state saw various kingdoms
like Mauryas, Guptas, Pratiharas etc, but it was under the
regime of Chalukyas (Solanki) Gujarat witnesses progress and
prosperity. Inspite of the plundering of Mahmud of Ghazni, the
Chalukyan kings were able to maintain general prosperity and
well being of the state. After this glorious respite, Gujarat
faced troubled times under the Muslims, Marathas and the British
rules.
The Present state of Gujarat was
formed in 1st May 1960, as a result of Bombay Reorganization
act, 1960. The state is bounded by the Arabian Sea on the west,
Pakistan and Rajasthan in the north and north-east respectively,
Madhya Pradesh in the south east and Maharashtra in south.
The state has witnessed all-round
progress in every field. It has been recognized as one of the
leading industrialized states in the country. There are 1500
large and medium, 1,84,119 small scale industrial units
registered as on March 1996. The principal industries are
textiles, chemicals, and petro-chemicals complex of IPCL and
Gujarat Oil refinery located near Vadodara. Gujarat is also the
main producer of tobacco, cotton and groundnut in the country.
Gujarat with its immense tourism
has unending list of tourist destinations, right from Ahmedabad
- the Manchester of India, Gandhiji's sabarmati Ashram,
spectacular peninsula of Saurashtra, the historic Jain
temple of Palitana, Sasangiri the last natural habitat of
majestic Asiatic lions, the coastal towns of Porbandat and Dwarka
the semi-inland of Kutch etc, the list is unending.
Gujarat Panorama : Handicrafts,
Textiles, Jewellery,
Lacquer work, Wood
carving, Temple curtain.
