Everything about the ‘City of Oranges’ – Erakina

Nagpur is the winter capital of Maharashtra and also the third-largest city named after the Nag river. Let’s take a little time to know more about this city.

Buddhist stupa in Nagpur

The city got its name from the Nag river and Pur means ‘City’. Nagpur is known as “The City of Oranges” because oranges are wildly cultivated in the Nagpur region. It is the winter capital of the state of Maharashtra. The city is famous for its historical monuments and captivating landscape. The city holds some valuables which never fails to attract people from all around the world.

History of the city

Bhakt Buland, The Gond Raja was the founder of the city Nagpur, in the 18th century. Back then, it was the capital of Bhonsles of the Maratha empire. But it came under British influence in 1817. The Britishers took control over it in 1853 and in 1861 it became the capital of the Central Provinces. For a short time, it was the capital of Madhya Pradesh after Independence. But in 1956 when Bombay was formed, it became part of it, and later in 1960, it became part of Maharashtra state. Cotton production became a strength for the city as it was reflecting the traditional hand-loom industry of Nagpur and also became a reason for the establishment of the large-scale industry which helped the city to grow and become one of the most important industrial centers of the country. As the city was developing in the industrial sector, it was also expanding in its geographical area by covering the neighboring areas such as Kamptee(ferromanganese products, farm, and transport equipment producer). Being located at the junction of the road, rail, and air routes from Chennai to Delhi and Mumbai to Kolkata, it kept continuously growing in the technology sector as well as in population.

Famous places to visit in Nagpur

Dharma chakra stupa which is also known as Deeksha Bhoomi is a fabulous architectured stupa that can accommodate around 5,000 people in it. The marvelous body is 120feet high and carved out of Dhaulpur sandstone, marbles, and granite. Ashoka Vijay Dashmi is a grand festival celebrated with a gathering of the followers of Buddhism and Ambedkar, specifically to pay tribute to dr. Ambedkar for the union of many Dalits to Buddhism.

Ramtek Fort Temple is located at the top of the hill inside a fort which is a divine and peaceful place holding some interesting mythological history. It is said that Lord Ram rested in this temple before going to defeat Ravan, making this temple the deity of Lord Ram.
Ambazari lake is located southwest of Nagpur built in the year 1870 by the Bhonsle’s to facilitate water supply. The lake is surrounded by mango trees, yes, you guessed right, that’s where it got its name from. Amba is a Marathi word for mango. The river Nag also originated from here. All this makes it a worth visiting place.
Lata Mangeshkar Musical Garden is a garden for those who are music lovers. You will see musical fountains everywhere, mesmerizing tunes, music played by the musicians, it’s like healing to the wound.
Waki Woods is 30km away from Nagpur, is an outstanding place for camping where you will receive fully-furnished furniture with an electricity facility. A great place to enjoy the scenic beauty of woods with a touch of modernity.

Beautifully Carved Ramtek Temple in Nagpur

Traditions and Culture of Nagpur

The city is comprised of a variety of religions(Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, and many more) and communities helped it emerge as the symbol of unity and togetherness.
Various festivals and fairs are celebrated in Nagpur throughout the year. They are Pola, Ganesh Chaturthi, Easter, Dussehra, Diwali, Gokul Ashtami, Gauri-pujan, Ramzan Id, Christmas, Hanuman Jayanti, Eid- Ul-Fitr, Muharram, Ram-Navmi, Gudhi padva, etc.
The folk culture of Nagpur is also the strength of this big city which includes folk dances and folk songs that are flowing in the blood of the people of Nagpur and celebrate them joyously to pay respect to their ancestral heritage. Kala dance, Govinda dance, Tamasa, Gondhal, bhajan, Bharud, Lavni dance are the major folk dances.
South Culture Zone Center, Orange City Craft Mela, Folk Dance Festival, Kalidas Festival are other widely celebrated cultural festivals of Nagpur.

Apart from the beautiful places and different cultures, I am very delighted to say that there are a lot of tiger reserves in and around Nagpur that’s why it is also known as the tiger capital of India giving another big reason to the tourists to visit it. To surprise you more I would like to add that Nagpur has a higher literacy rate than Mumbai and Pune. It attracts nature admirers from all over the world by all the wildlife sanctuaries, waterfalls, lakes, and parks. So if you are looking for an enjoyable destination then here is all the information to make you choose Nagpur for that.

By- Vaidehee Bhawsar

13/01/2022