Jaipur , the capital of Rajasthan is one of the most beautiful cities of India. Often called a the “Pink City”, Jaipur personifies splendor and vivacity. Founded in the year 1727 by Jai Singh II, Jaipur is India's first planned city. The city was the capital of erstwhile Kachwaha rulers and is a royal place rich in heritage, culture and architecture. With grand fortresses, regal palaces, serene temples and beautiful havelis; Jaipur turns out to be an ideal tourist destination. Besides historical monuments, the city attracts the tourists with the wonderful handicrafts and magnificent jewelry and these elaborate works of art add verve and vividness to the distinctiveness of the city. In addition, serenity of verdant gardens and floral assortment adds to the beauty of the city and magnetizes a horde of tourists from all over the World making is one of the most preferred travel destinations of India. Geography and Climate Jaipur is located in the eastern region of Rajasthan, surrounded on threesides by the rugged Aravali hills. It is situated at 26°55'N 75°49'E (26.92°N 75.82°E). It is surrounded by Alwar and Sikar in the North; by Sikar, Nagaur, and Ajmer in West; by Ajmer, Tonk, and Sawai Madhopur in the South and by Dausa and Bharatpur zones in East. It has an average altitude of 430 metres (1414 ft). Famous rivers like Bandi, Banganga, Moral, Dhund, Sabi, Sakha, Masi and Dai. Person one of the major rivers, Sabi river has its source in Jaipur district which traverses different municipalities of Jaipur. These comprise Mansu, Bahrod, Mandawar, Kishangarh and Tihara. A dam has been constructed over the Bangana River, which supplies drinking water to different residents of Jaipur. The whole length of the Banganga is 380 km. Demography As of 2011, Jaipur had a population of 3,073,350[1] The Population of the Jaipur Metropolitan area is 3,646,590. Jaipur is the 10th largest city of India according to census of 2011. The Hindu population accounts for 74%, Muslim 20%, Jains 4.5%, Christians 0.5%, and Sikhs 1.0%. While 47.49% people lived in rural areas, 52.51% lived in urban areas. The overall literacy rate for the district was 76.44%. 87.27% males and 64.63% females were literate. The sex ratio was 898 females per 1,000 males. Hindi and Rajasthani are the most common language for daily communication. History of Jaipur Forts, palaces, architectural marvels and tales of heroism, bears testimony to the glory that Jaipur, which was established by Sawai Jai Singh in 1727. Situated 262 kilometers from Delhi, jaipur was the first planned city in northern India. Jaipur's history dates back to the 12th century when the Kachchwaha clan o Rajputs arrived at the old fort palace of Amber in the Aravalli Hills. Being one of the most popular Kachhwaha Kings, he reigned from the 1699 to 1744. Ruling from the magnificent Amber Fort which they built, the might of the Kucchwahas encompassed the kingdoms of Mewar (Udaipur) and Marwar (Jodhpur). After Jai Singh came to power, there was moment of disquiet when he supported Aurangzeb’s son Azam Shah’s bid to the throne. Azam Shah lost the battle of succession to his brother Bahadur Shah, who demanded Jai Singh’s removal and the installation of Vijay Singh to the throne of Jaipur. Jai Singh, not one to take setbacks lying down, formed a formidable front against the Mughals by aligning himself with other Rajput states and reinstated himself. Jai Singh built the city around the Amber fort to serve as his capital, and the city was named Jaipur, after himself. Much of the credit for Jaipur goes to Vidhyadhar Bhattacharya, the chief architect from Bengal who, with Jai Singh’s approval, founded the city on strong scientific principles, laid out according to the Shilpa Shastra, the ancient architectural manual. It remains one of India’s best planned cities.However, expansion meant that the limited sources of water proved inadequate for the city. After Jai Singh’s death in 1744, his sons squabbled for power and without a monarch, the kingdom became open to invasion and neighboring Rajput states and the Marathas usurped large areas of kingdom. The core, however, remained part of the kingdom, which lasted during British times. In the year 1876, Maharaja Ram Singh painted the entire city pink, traditionally a color associated with hospitality, to welcome the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) to the city. The tradition has been maintained and today all residents in the old city are compelled by law to preserve the pink colour. Jaipur got the sobriquet of pink city. Maharaja Ram Singh also built the Ramgarh Lake to supply water to the burgeoning city. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the city’s population spread beyond its walls. In 1922, Man Singh II ascended to the throne and it was during his reign that civic buildings like the secretariat, schools, hospitals and other public buildings were built. After independence, Jaipur merged with the states of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner to form the state of Rajasthan. In 1956, Jaipur was declared the capital of Rajasthan. Tourist Places in Jaipur The first planned city of India, the Pink City Jaipur is one of the most coveted tourist destinations of India. This city of Rajputs is well known for its fairs and fests that are held on a grand level. The festivals include kite festival, camel festival, teej, gangaur, elephant festival, etc. The best time to visit Jaipur is between October and March. A perfect blend of heritage, palaces, culture and art and the grandiosity of this city are worth experiencing. The city offers a number of tourist attractions besides the vivid cultural heritage. Some of these include: Jantar Mantar Amber Fort Moti Doongari and Lakshmi Narayan Temple City Palace Observatory Albert Hall (Museum) Hawa Mahal Jaigarh Fort Nahargarh Fort Chokhi Dhani Ram Niwas Bagh & Zoo Dolls Museum Sisodia Rani Garden Vidyadhar Garden Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing Jawahar Kala Kendra Birla Planetarium Birla Auditorium and Convention Centre Fun Kingdom (Amusement Park) Pink-Pearl (Water Park) Accommodation options in Jaipur The city being one of the major tourist destinations of India, there are several accommodation options available. The Hotels in Jaipur offer modern amenities and warm welcome to visitors. The accommodation in Jaipur ranges from luxury hotels to budget hotels. Luxury hotels offer the visitors with the best services and complete lavishness and comfort. The city also houses several heritage hotels, which offers a royal feel to the guests displaying the luxurious and lavish lifestyle of the erstwhile rulers of the place. There are also budget hotels which are not very expensive and at the same time they provide good services to the visitors. Most of the luxury hotels and traditional hotels have been made by refurbishing the old palaces and havelis. The facilities provided by the hotels include standard rooms, swimming pool, doctor on call, high speed internet café and wireless connectivity, restaurant, bar, library, beauty parlour, shopping arcade, health club, laundry, rental car, etc. How to reach Jaipur Being one the most popular and major cities of India, Jaipur is well connected to the rest of India by road, railways as well as air. By Air The Jaipur Airport is situated at Sanganer, 7 km (domestic terminal) and 10 km (international terminal) from the main city. It connects the city to all the major parts of India as well as some of the major overseas countries. It has the facility of daily domestic flights to Delhi, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Aurangabad, Hyderabad, Goa, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Bangalore, Indore and Pune. Also, it has the facility of international flights through which it connects directly to Sharjah, Muscat and Dubai. Flights to Singapore and Bangkok are also available via Delhi. By Road Jaipur is linked with the all the major cities of India through the network of National Highways 8, 11 and 12 to name a few. There's also a very good bus service between Jaipur and Delhi provided by Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation (RSRTC) with the buses at about every half an hour to and from both sides. There are non-AC and AC Volvo buses in which the fare of the AC bus is more. From Jaipur you can board the bus from Narayan Singh Circle or the main Sindhi Camp bus stand whereas in Delhi you can take the bus from Bikaner House on Pandara Road which is next to India Gate. Also, there are some private buses which are available from Dhaula Kuan in Delhi. There are some express buses which connect various cities and towns of Rajasthan such as Bundi, Kota, etc. to Jaipur. This city is also connected to Mumbai via Ajmer, Ahmedabad, Udaipur and Vadodara and is also well linked to Agra via bus. By Train Jaipur is well connected to almost every part of India through the means of Indian Railways. There are several trains which connect this city to Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Agra, Kota, Alwar, Jodhpur, Alwar, Ajmer, Kota, Chittorgarh, Bikaner, Udaipur, Barmer, Jammu, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Kolkata, Ludhiana, Pathankot, Haridwar, Indore, Gwalior, Bhopal, Jabalpur, Roorkee, and Kanpur. In addition to this, long-distance trains arrives from several other cities including Patna, Ranchi, Lucknow, Allahabad, Vadodara, Banaras, Surat, Bilaspur, Nagpur, Raipur, Puri, Bhubaneswar, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mysore, Mangalore, Goa, Kochi, and Kozhikode. There are three main railway junctions including Jaipur, the main station; Gandhinagar and Durgapara. Every train stops at Jaipur junction and a few of the trains stop at Gandhinagar and Durgapara.
