Bhilwara district General information
History
It is not on the record as how the name of Bhilwara was ascribed to the which now forms the district Bhilwara. Tradition has it that it came to be known as Bhilwara because it was mostly inhabited by Bhils in old days. These Bhils were eventually driven away towards the hilly tracts and interior places of less importance by the ancestors of the peasant settlers. Ironically enough ,now very few Bhils live in this area. Another version recounts that the present Bhilwara city had a mint where coins known as 'BHILADI' were minted and from this denomination was derived the name of the district. Over the years it has emerged out as the TEXTILE CITY of Rajasthan. Now a days ,Bhilwara is better known as the textile city in the country.
Location
The district Bhilwara is situated between 25°.00' to 27°.50' North Latitude and 74°.03' to 75°.25' East longitude. It is bounded in the north by Ajmer District, in the north-west, west and south west by Udaipur and Rajasamand district. In the south and south south-east by chittorgarh district. In the east and north east by Bundi and Tonk districts. The total length of the district from west to east is 144 km. while the breadth from North to south is 104 km approximately.
Climate
The District Bhilwara has a hot dry summer and bracing cold winter. The cold season is from December to February and is followed by hot summers from March to the last week of June. The south west Monsoon season which follows, last till about mid September. The period from mid September to about the end of November constitutes the post monsoon season.
General
Bhilwara is the industrial town. It is famous country wide for the textiles industry. It is well connected with roads, rail.
Geographical Location
Bhilwara is situated between 25°.00' to 27°.50' North Latitude and 74°.03' to 75°.25' East Longitude. It is 100 meters above the sea level. It is 260 km. away from Jaipur. Northern Border of the district touches district Ajmer, North-West Border touches district Rajsamand, South & South-East Border touches district Chittorgarh and East & East-North Border touches district Bundi & Tonk.
Major Rivers
Banas is only one main seasonal river in the District it's tributories are Bedach, Kothari & Khari. Other rivers are Mansi, Menali, Chandrabhaga and Nagri.
Banas
It rises in the Arravali hills in the North in the Udaipur district.The river Banas enters Bhilwara near village Doodiya tehsil Bhilwara.It approaches the hills of Mandalgarh and is joined by the river berach on the right bank and Kothari on the left at Nandrai in Kotri tehsil. It then flows towards the North and then North-East direction along the western side of the Jahazpur tehsil and enters Tonk district. Banas is not a perennial river. In summer it usually contains only pools of water. The chief feeders of the river are Mansi, Khari and Menali
BERACH
The Berach river rises in the hills to the North of Udaipur and enters the district near the village Barundani and joins the river Banas near Bigod at Triveni Sangam in Mandalgarh tehsil. It passes through a little portaion of Bhilwara district.
Kothari
The river rises from the Aravali hills near Devgarh in the Rajsamand district. It flows in tehsil Raipur , Mandal , Bhilwara and Kotri and ultimately joins the river Banas at Nandrai in Kotri tehsil.
Khari
It originates near Devgarh in the Rajsamand district and runs from the South to the North-East in the western half of the district and then runs parallel to the districts boundaries in the North. After leaving the district in the North it finally merges with the Banas. It is joined by the Mansi river in the tehsil Shahpura.
Others Rivers
Some small rivers are Mansi, Menali, Chandrabhaga, Nagdi & Mejh.
Minerals
BHILWARA is called "ZOO OF MINERALS". The main categories of minerals found in Bhilwara are as follows:
Mica
District is famous throughout the country as a mica mining centre. It is considerably found Bhilwara, Jahazpur,Mandal and Sahada tehsils. It is the most important major mineral of Rajasthan from the point of view of production, sale value and royalty. Apparently, it looks like a soft coloured glass sheets of different sizes. Chemically, however, it is a hydrated silicate of potassium and aluminum. It possesses some notable physical properties which makes it indispensable for the electrical industry. Mica has high insulating properties ,as such it is a bad conductor of heat. Mica in Rajasthan occurs in the pegmatite's intruding the aravali mica schists.
Soapstone
It is made out of soft and compact talcose rocks having a soapy feel that could be sawn and worked. It is medium of fine grained , greenish-Grey, generally massive variety of talc mineral which is a hydrous silicate of magnesia. It is found at Chainpura,Ghewaria, Bagore and Bhiwara. Soapstone is used commercially in paper, rubber, textile and toilet industries. Besides, it is used as talcum powder, polishing agent and asinsecticide and an insulating material.
Copper
Extensive slag heaps are lying in the district at Dariba, Chenpura. Here, old workings for copper exist along the range of quartzite hills. Generally the copper mineral found at all these places has been chalcopyrite i.e. copper pyrite. It is found disseminated in schist's and phyllites.
FELSPAR AND QUARTZ
Good variety of these minerals are found in the pegmaties , specially at Jahazpur, Paroli and Sangod.
White Clay
A plenty of variety of this material is found at Mangrop (Suwana) in the district . It is used as base component in preparation of Mica bricks and pottery.
Garnet
It had one time much reputation as a gem stone but being common, it has lost its importance. In Bhilwara Garnet crystals occur near Kamalpura, Salaria, Deoria and Banera. Garnets have commercial importance as a cheap abrasive material used in wood working and glass industries.
Beryl
It is silicate of beryllium and alumna. Principally it is found associated with pegmatites and is produced in a large measure as a by product of Mica and Felspar industry. It is found in Jahazpur and collected by all the leases of mica in the area.
Asbestos
Asbestos is a fibrous variety of silicate minerals with are noted for heat resisting properties . The fibers are flexible and easy to separate. It is worked at Sojatgarh, It is first refined and then exported to Mumbai and Kolkata.
Glass Sand
Glass sand or silica is found in tehsil Asind. It is an extra ordinary mineral containing impurities of Alumina and Iron oxide to a small degree. It is exploited for use in various glass and steel industries in the country.
Sand Stone
The Building stone locally now as Balua is considerably worked at Mandalgarh and Bijolyan. It is found in slabs of varying colours. viz.white, red and gray. It is used in roofing of buildings. Bijoliyan stone slabs are considered to be the best in the area.
In addition to above minerals Flourite is available in Asind tehsil .It is used by steel plants and glass factories. Limestone is found near Jahajpur.
Economy
The major industry is textiles, with more than 400 manufacturing units in the town. There is also a huge cloth market. The main textile product is synthetic fabric used in trousers. The city is a market for mica, grains, cotton, and wool. Its manufactures include textiles and metalware. It was the immense effort of Lt. Sh. Jugal Kishore Sharaf and then Lt. Sh. Chetan Sharaf owner of Jugal Kishore Mica corp. that played a crucial role of Bhilwara being a major Mica producing area. Mansinghka family, a well known business family, has had a major impact on the development of the city.
Bhilwara is the one of the major textile centre of the Country. It is prominent in manufacturer of P/V blended yarn and suiting. The turn over of the textile industry is more than Rs. 10,000 crore p.a. It has 9 major spinning mills and 5 small spinning mills. The total spindlage installed at Bhilwara are approx. 4.50 lacs about 40% of the State capacity. It has 18 modern process houses to process polyester/viscose suiting with the capacity of 50-55 crore meters of fabric p.a. In weaving sector it has approx. 13,500 looms out of which about 9000 are modern shuttleless looms. Exports of textiles from the district is of more than Rs. 750 crore p.a.
It is the only center in the country producing insulation bricks. There are about 25 units. In mining sector large scale mining of sand stone, which is also exporting. The other major mining activity is in soap stone mining, the talcum powder manufactured by UMDS is supplied to all major manufacturing units
Tourist Place
Asind
sawai
Sawai Bhoj Temple
This is tehsil and Panchayat samiti. The town is also known for temples situated on the left bank of the Khari, built by Sawai Bhoj. During the princely rule , it was an estate comprising seventy two villages , held by one of the first class nobles of the Mewar State, who had the title of Rawat.
Gangapur
sawai
Ganga Bai Chatri
Gangapur: Headquarter of the Sahara tehsil, this town is situated at a distance of about 46 Km. in the South-West of the district headquarters .It was part of the erstwhile princely state of Gwalior (now in M.P.) prior to independence. It is municipal town.
BADNORE FORT: is 70kms from Bhilwara on the Bhilwara Asind road.
sawai
Mandakini Temple
The town situated in the South East of Bhilwara. It is close to the borders of the District Bundi. The ancient name of Bijoliya was 'VINDHYAVALI'. It is walled with two gates (North and South) and picturesquely situated on a plateau called the UPARMAL. Objects of historical interests are three Saivite temples , probably of the tenth century . A reservoir called the Mandakini Baori with steps, five Jain temples dedicated to PARASWNATH .The remains of a palace and two rock inscriptions deserve mention. The Jain temples, situated about 1.5 Km. of the south east were built by Mahajan Lala in the time of the Chauhan Raja Someshwar of Ajmer in 1170 AD. One of them is considered scared containing a complete small model of a temple inside . The rock inscriptions are both dated 1170 AD.
Shahpura
sawai
Shahpura
Capital of the erstwhile state of Shahpura , the town houses the headuarters of the sub division, tehsil, panchayat samiti of the same name. It is about 58 Kms. from district headquarters.The rulers of the erstwhile chiefship of SHAHPURA belonged to the SISODIA CLAN of RAJPUTS . Shahpura is a place of pilgrimage for the followers of the ' RAM SANEHIS' Sect .Founded by the hindus in 1804 .They have a shrine in the town as 'RAM DWARA' .The chief priest of RAM DWARA is the head of the sect. Pilgrims from all over the world visit the shrine through out the year . Ram Snehi is an Internation hindu sect. An annual fair ,which is called 'PHOOL DOL KA MELA' is held here on PHALGUN SHUKLA '15( march-april) for five days. About one lac people attend the fair. It is also famous for PHAD painitings
MANDALGARH: The place ,situated at a distance of 54 Kms. towards South-East of Bhilwara. It is sub division,tehsil and panchayat samiti of same name.The place is of historical importance because it was the scene of many a fierce battle during the mediaeval times,according to the muslim historians.
The place was taken twice by Mahmud Khilji of Malwa in the middle of the fifteenth century , and subsequently appears to have belonged alternately to the Ranas of Mewar and the Mughal Emperors. In or about 1650 A.D. Shah Jahan granted it in Jagir to Raja Roop Singh of kishanGarh, who partially built a palace here , but Rana Raj Singh retook it in 1660.A.D. . Twenty years later captured the palace and in 1700 A.D. made it over to Jhujar Singh Chief of Pisangan (now in Ajmer district ) from whom it was recovered by Rana Amar Singh in 1706A.D., and it since then remained in the uninterruped possession of his successors.
To the North-West is a fort about half a mile in length with a low rampart wall and bastions encircling