Jagraon

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Jagraon
city
Jagraon is located in Punjab
Jagraon
Jagraon
Location in Punjab, India
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country  India
State Punjab
District Ludhiana
Government
 • MLA (Member Legislative Assembly) SR Kaler SAD
Elevation 234 m (768 ft)
Population (2001)
 • Total 65,240
Languages
 • Official Punjabi
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 142026
Telephone code +91 1624
Vehicle registration PB 10

Jagraon is a city,a municipal council,a rural police district and a sub-division of the Ludhiana district in the Indian state of Punjab. Jagraon is more than three centuries old. It has been thought by some that the city's original name was Jagar aon, meaning A place of great flooding, although this flooding has since ceased. It could also be argued that Jagraon actually derives from a source with a suffix -graon being a development of the Sanskrit Grama, meaning Village as found in the Hindi word Gaon. Jagraon is located at almost the geographical center of Punjab state, only 16 kilometres from the River Satluj. It is situated at a distance of 37 km from its district headquarters Ludhiana, 29 km from Moga, 31 km from Nakodar, 55 km from Barnala.

History and religious significance

Jagraon is an important religious center for Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims as well as Jains. Jagraon (Jagrawan - The place of the Rais) was founded by Rai Kamaluddin father of Rai Kalha III of Raikot in 1680 AD. Gurdwara Nanaksar Sahib is one of the important places of worship for the Sikhs. Gurdwara Mehdiana Sahib is known for its unique depiction of scenes from Sikh history, especially those of atrocities committed on the Sikhs by various Mughal rulers, in the form of life-sized statues. There are also many famousHindu temples including Bhadra kali Mandi and Pracheen Shiv Mandir. Muslim places of worship include the famous Khanqah and the mausoleum of Hazrat Baba Mohkam Din (RA), where a three-day annual fair, called the Roshni Mela is held in the third week of February. Baba Sahib had two wives, one named Sarah Bibi and the other named Mai jeena Bibi. Sara Bibi is buried very next to Baba Sahib and Mai Jeena Bibi is buried about one half a mile away from Baba Sahib's Mazaar and is beautifully built. Thousands of people pay their respect to her when people come all over from India to attend Baba Sahib's Annual Urs Mubarik, which is known as Roshni ka Mela.Before 1947 there was a large Muslim presence in this area. Right next to the Mazaar of Baba Mohkam Din (RA) there is the Maqbara of Syed Hameeray Shah Sahib (RA) who was the adopted son of Baba Sahib because he had no child from either wife. Syed Hameeray Shah Sahib (RA) was also his Great Khalifa and Mutabanna and Mutawalli of the property related to Baba Sahib (RA). Baba Mohkam Din (RA) died in February of 1913 A.D. He was initiated by his Pir o Murshid Hazrat Pir Muhammad Amin Sahib Sirhindi (RA) who was a great saint and Wali of Naqshbandi Silsila (Order) established in India by Hazrat Ahmad Sirhindi Mujaddid Alif Thani (RA).Maulvi Mazhar Hassan Wakeel (RA) advovate was the Sajjada Nishin and Mutawalli of the Mazar Shareef. In 1947 he migrated to Pakistan.

File:Nanaksar.jpg
Gurudwara Nanaksar, a gurdwara built as a memorial for of the Saint, Baba Nand Singh

The Jain temple in Jagraon is considered as one of the most holy places for Jains in the region. Earlier the temple had quite a peaceful ambience and a good garden. However presently its proximity to the bus stand, police station and the bazaar has made it quite a congested place full of the noise of the town life. Nevertheless it attracts thousands of pilgrims from the Jain community all over the world, for the annual Diksha Mahotsav in the third week of March. The old walled city, with its four gates is known locally for its Mughal period architecture. Even the local market within the walled city is known as Anarkali bazaar, after the title of a beauty at Mughal Emperor Akbar's court. This bazaar is very congested. Despite all the congestion the stray cows can be found in the narrow lanes bringing the traffic to a halt.

Jagraon is also the home of Late Lala Lajpat Rai, a well-known figure in the Indian Independence movement, who greatly influenced patriots and great freedom fighters like Shaheed Bhagat Singh. His house is now a municipal library. The Chiefs of Jagraon according to Major Charles Francis Massy's 'Chiefs and Families of Note in the Punjab' were the Chandravanshi Rajputs, the last being Rai Inayat Khan,the custodian of Guru Sahib's Ganga Sagar at the time of the Partition of India in 1947. Rai Aziz Ullah Khan ex-MP (MNA) in Pakistan is the grandson of Rai Inayat Khan.[1]

Geography and connectivity

Jagraon is located at Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found..[2] It has an average elevation of 234 metres (767 ft).

Jagraon is rather hot in the summers and cold in the winters. The smog owing to the burning of Paddy straw after harvesting spoils the charm of the autumn season which is otherwise balmy. Often the shortage of electricity during the summer season poses a challenge to the residents of the town. For this reason the NRI population of the area visit it mainly during winters. For the same reasons marriages are solemnised in the cold weather.

The geographical center of present day Indian state of Punjab lies only around 8 miles north of the city. The tehsil of Jagraon is bound to the North by River Satluj, which separates it from District Jalandhar. To the West lies Moga district. Raikot lies 13 miles to the South and Ludhiana city is 24 miles East.

Jagraon is well connected by Rail and road to Ludhiana, Firozpur and rest of the country. It is located at the junction of National Highways No. 95 and 71. The nearest domestic and defence airports are: Halwara (16 km), Sahnewal (45 km) and Adampur (70 km). The nearest international ports are Guru Ram Das International Airport, Rajasansi (150 km), Wagah Landport (Border with Pakistan) (162 km) and Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi (360 km).

The construction of a four lane express-way on the National Highway 95 which connects the city to major cities like Ludhiana(27 km),Chandigarh(120 km)in the east and Moga,Ferozepur in the west is stuck up now. It includes bypass flyovers over the cities falling on this stretch. This project was meant to give a boom to the real estate of the city as it is one of the nearest city to the Ludhiana Metro. This project which was intended to be completed by 2014 to reduce the 45 mins drive from Ludhiana to Jagraon to approximately 15-20 Mins is unfortunately in a state of Limbo at present. Several accidents occur due to the diversions caused by the construction work that is suspended since several months. And kamal chownk is ta most papular place

Demographics

As of 2001 India census,[3] Jagraon had a population of 60,106. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Jagraon has an average literacy rate of 68%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 71%, and female literacy is 65%. In Jagraon, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age. Besides this, the city has a large seasonal and migrant population which remains unaccounted. There is a distinctive mix of rural and sub-urban population in Jagraon. The city has a good mix of people from many faiths, including Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Jains, Buddhists, s etc. Before the Partition of India in 1947, the city was home to a sizeable Muslim population.

Legislative Executive and Judicial Set up

The city is a sub-division of the Ludhiana District which has five sub-divisions including the Jagraon.It is represented in the State legislative Assembly by the elected Member of Legislative assembly as a constituency No.71 and the current MLA is Mr.SR Kaler. Further the city is divided into a local body known as Municipal Council which constitutes 16 wards division and the elected councillors of the wards elect and appoint the President of the council.Mr Raj Kumar Malhotra and Baldev Dhir are former presidents of council.The areas falling out of the Municipal limits are politically administered by the Panchayats and there are roughly 80 villages under its jurisdiction.

The executive structure is headed by the District Commissioner at the district level and pyramids to Sub-Divisional Magistrate as the highest officer of administration at the Sub-division level and further declines to Executive officer at Municipal Council,Tehsildars and patwaris at revenue department to Block Development Officers at the village level.

The police chief of the city is ranked as the SSP(Senior Superintendent of Police) to Deputy Superintendents,Station House Officers,Assistant Sub Inspector,Constable and Home Guards.The whole sub-division is divided into different police areas.

The city has its own court complex which has been recently reconstructed and hails world class structure and facilities. The Jagraon courts Complex is headed by the Civil Judge and the criminal cases or the high value cases are referred to the Ludhiana District and Sessions court which is also the appellate court of the Jagraon.

Industry

The Jagraon is the third largest grain collection market of Asia after Khanna and Rajpura. The city's major industry, besides agriculture, is rice husking, with more than 100 rice shelling facilities. Jagraon hosts the second-largest animal market in Punjab, the largest being Vallah, near Amritsar. The proposed green field international airport project at Halwara was shelved owing to differences among the Civil Aviation Ministry and the Indian Air Force.

In the recent times,[when?] the city has witnessed industrial units coming up in the area including the Mumbai-based corporate pharmaceutical company Wockhardt Limited, Ludhiana-based soap company Chhokra Soap, an edible oil refinery and a factory of the Adani Group adjoining to the city's jurisdiction.

Due to industrialisation, closeness to largest metro of the state, agriculture and animal husbandry hub, centrally located in Punjab and good connectivity thou rail, road and air, the city is witnessing a boom in the real estate factor with sonic development in the residential and commercial area.[citation needed] However in 2012 the city also witnessed the unauthorised residential colonies which were declared illegal by the state authorities.

The Jagraon industry also includes clay brick factories, interlocking tile factories, agriculture tool manufacturers, cattle feed factories, gold and diamond ornaments manufacturing, commodities trading and electric equipment factories.

Shopping

The old city of Jagraon is more than three centuries old and has magnificent shopping bazaars. The Famous chowk of Jagraon is Atma Ram Chowk, which is in the name of Atma Ram Halwai & One of the oldest and most prominent bazaar is Anarkali Bazaar(kukar bazar) which carters the luxury stores of jewellery and wedding clothes. This bazaar has a high density of jewellers and designer wedding shops. The other famous bazaars are Purani dana mandi,Misserpura Bazaar,Railway Road,Tehsil Road etc.

Education (Schools)

There are several premier schools in the city which are affiliated to different national as well as state education boards. Sanmati Vimal Jain Sr. Sec. public School and Swami Roop Chand Jain Sr. Sec. public School are known for their prestigious history of scoring top positions in the state examinations at the regional and state level. Other famous schools include Sacred Heart Convent School (which is one of the best school in the area) and DAV Public School,Blossoms Convent School,Saint Mahapragya's School,GHG Academy,Spring Dew Public School,anuvrat public school etc.

Colleges

The city has several colleges offering undergraduate and post-graduate degrees including the Government College of Science.

Lala Lajpat Rai D.A.V College is also very popular and disciplined institute and offers curriculum in various fields such as B.C.A, B.B.A, MSC(I.T), FASHION DESIGN etc.

The Khalsa College for Woman at Sidhwan Khurd is a locally well-known Rural Women's Institute of North India offering courses in various technical and non-technical fields in which the College of Law is the latest addition.

Ludhiana Group of Colleges is a groups of private colleges imparting technical education. LGC is affiliated to Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar and is recognized by the Govt. of Punjab and All India Council of Technical Education, New Delhi and offers courses in the field of engineering.

Health Services

The city has the finest and most experienced doctors and Hospitals which includes both Government and private practitioners.The Government Civil Hospital headed by the Chief Medical Officer is situated adjoining to the Main Bus Stand of the city and is equipped with the facilities provided by the state Government which includes the 108 free ambulance service.The list also includes other general practitioners and super-speciality private practitioners.Some of the premiers hospitals are Kalyani Hospital Dr.Hari Singh Hans Maternity Home,Gupta Hospital,Bansal Hospital,Jain Hospital,garg hospital,manni hospital,kokila hospital.

See also

References

  1. "Major Charles Francis Massy, Chiefs and Families of Note in the Punjab, 1890, 1909 and 1940.Ludhiana Dist. Gazetteer 1888-89, 1904 and 1935(Administration and Statistical). Mahan Kosh by Bhai Kahan Singh Nabha p1037, p311. Encyclopaedia Of Sikhism by Prof Harbans Singh vol 11 p416. The Sikh Ref Book by Dr Harjinder Singh Dilgeer p 464, 196."
  2. Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Jagraon
  3. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links