Brief details about Origin of Jamnagar, Physical Characteristic, Climate, Location etc.

|  Origin  |  Geography  |  Physical Features  |  Climate  |  Languages  |  Marriage Ceremonies  |
|  Dress & Ornaments  |

The Jamnagar district, originally constituted as Halar district, is not only recent in its origin but also in its modern set up. But the region comprised therein is of great antiquity and dates back to ancient periods of Jamnagar. According to Pauranik literature, Lord Krishna established his kingdom at Dwarka, now in Jamnagar district, after his migration from Mathura and it is to this great Yadava race that the Jams of Nawanagar trace their descent.

The foundation of Nawanagar State is credited to Jam Raval. In AD 1540 after winning conquests Jam Raval founded the city of Nawanagar.

During the rule of His Highness Jam Ranjitsinhji, between 1920 - 1930, he developed the city according to western architecture and built Power House, Vibha Vilas Palace, Jam Bunglow (Bhavendra Vilas Palace), Pratap Vilas Palace, Mann Vilas, Amar Vilas, Arch Vilas, Badminton House, Filtzer House, Coach House, Irwin Hospital, Solarium, Vegetable Market, Grain Market, Nana-Ashapura's Temple, Sajuba Girls' High School, Wellington Crescent, Bedi Bunder, Rajput Boarding, Infantry Lines, Jam Raval's Statue, Jam Ranjit's Statue, Nursing School, Dayaram Library, Port Office, Central Bank, Summair Club, Railway Station, Parsi Agiyari, Anandabava Ashram, extention of Lal Bunglow, Ranjit Road, Central Bank Road, Rajendra Road, Khambhalia Gate Road, Jam Bunglow Road, Talav-ni-Pal Road, being the main ones.

After His Highness Jam Ranjitsinhji, His Highness Digvijaysinhji was bethroned (1933 - 1948) and he built Digvijay Woollen Mills, Aerodrome, Dhanvantri Mandir, Digvijay Plot, Gulabnagar, Valsura, Ranjit Swimming Pool.

The present district takes its name from the city and capital of Jamnagar so named after the rulers who styled themselves as Jams.

The Halar district which was constituted for the first time in the year 1949 after the merger of princely states into the state of Saurashtra, constituted of the former Indian states of Nawanagar and Dhrol, Dhrafa Thana and part of Jalia Dewani. After re-organization several territorial changes were effected in practically all the districts of Saurashtra. On June 19th 1959, the boundaries of the district got enlarged by the inclusion of the adjoining Okhamandal, when Halar district was renamed Jamnagar. This district became part of the newly born State of Gujarat on the bifurcation of the composite State of Bombay on May 1st 1960.In the year 1961 the district consisted of 720 villages and 15 towns.

Jamnagar district lies between 21º 47' and 22º 57' north latitude and 68º 57' and 70º 37' west longitude in the peninsular region in the north west, in the state of Gujarat India , known as Kathiawar or Saurashtra. This district is bounded on the North by the Rann and Gulf of Kutch, on the East by Rajkot district, on the South by Junagadh district and on the West by the Arabian Sea.

Jamnagar district measures about 128.75 km. from North to South and about 167.37 km. from East to West. The area of the district is 10,921 sq. km.

The population of the district according to the 1961 census was 828,419 of which 4,24,300 were males and 4,04,119 females. The rural population of the district was 5,34,761 persons living in 701 villages as against the urban population of 2,93,658 spread over 15 towns of different sizes. According to 1991 census the population of Jamnagar city was 3,26,000.

Kathiawar peninsula of which Jamnagar district forms part was originally an island, quite unconnected with Gujarat India, and its present peninsular form is attributable to volcanic action. The physical features of the district also suggest that it forms part of what might once have been an island or group of islands of volcanic origin.

The topography of the district is uneven, broken at places by hill ranges and ranges of sand dunes. The plain terrain has an average height of 250 feet and the Dwarka cliffs rise sheer off the sea to a height of 100 feet. The highest peaks are the Barda hills in the South-west where they reach up to a height of 2,000 feet. . The hills being scattered in the several talukas, the plain area is not continuous or uniform in height. The South-west and the Central-north are higher while the land gradually sinks to the North-east and West. Mount Venu the highest summit of Barda hills is 2,057 feet.

The district can be divided into three physical regions, the Coastal Plain including the Island offshore, the Plains, and the Hills.

This district is devoid of any large perennial streams. Most of the rivers are small and flow lazily through the low lying lands, into the marsh and sand of the seaboard. The streams flow towards the Gulf of Kutch in the North and North-west. None of them have any large tributaries and most of them are dry channels till the advent of the monsoon. The district is drained from South to North and from the South-east to the North-west to the Gulf of Kutch or the Arabian Sea. The principal rivers are the Aji, Und, Vartu, Venu, Ghee, Rangmati, Nagmati, Fuljar, Sasoi, Sihan, Ruparel and Demi.

Important minerals worked in the district are Bauxite, Calcite , Calcareous sand, Sea sand Gypsum, gemstones like Agate, Amethyst, Onyx etc.

The forest areas in the district measure about 647.49 sq. kms. The forest areas are classified into three different types: Mangrove forests, Open scrub forest and Grasslands. Forests in the district are poor and there are many blanks in the forest areas. Under the second and third five year plans 3,325 acres of land have been afforested.

Meagre rainfall in the district is not conducive to abundant growth of orchards and plantations in the district. Yet in certain areas and tracts where conditions permit, fruit cultivation has been undertaken. The fruits commonly grown are mango, coconut, chikoo, papaya and banana .

This district like all other districts of Saurashtra has seen a rapid decline in the number of wild animals. This is due to killing by shooting and snaring of animals and the destruction of natural vegetation by overgrazing. Some of the wild animals are panthers, hyena, wolf, jackal, fox, wild cat, wild pig, mongoose, porcupine, sambhar, spotted deer, blue bull, black buck, etc.

The district has a rich and varied avifauna. Especially in winter bird life is rich, when many species come down from the North to pass the winter in the countryside and along its extensive coastline. On fresh water lakes during winter a variety of species arrive in September to leave in February or March. The show birds are also a spectacular sight amassed on salt pans during winter months.

The climate of Jamnagar district is generally pleasant. The summer season extends from March to June, with day time temperature reaching to 42ºC.The monsoons are from July to September. Winter season sets in during October and extends till February. In association with cyclonic storms or depressions in the Arabian Sea in the post monsoon months and to a lesser extent in May and June, the district experiences strong winds and widespread rain. Thunder storms occur in June and July. In the cold season occasional fog occurs. The summer temperature ranges from 24ºC to 42ºC and winter temperature ranges from 10ºC to 24ºC.

Gujarati is the mother tongue of 95.48% of the population of Jamnagar district. The number of speakers of other languages is insignificant. The Gujarati script used universally by the speakers of that tongue is very much akin to Devnagari, but unlike Devnagari it is written without the line overhead. "Kachchhi" the next important language of the district is spoken slightly differently but written in Gujarati script.

Religion & Social Evils Jamnagar district has a predominant Hindu population. Those following other religions are Muslims, Jains, Christians, Sikhs and Buddhists. The population of scheduled castes in the district forms 6.7% of the total population of the district. There is very little tribal or Adivasi population in this district.

The district is free from social evils such as drinking, prostitution etc. thanks to the enforcement of laws prohibiting them. The evil of gambling exists on a very small scale but is mostly confined to urban areas.

Marriage ceremonies are elaborate, usually taking place at the bride's house. The rites and ceremonies to be performed at the wedding are generally the same though they may vary in some minor details according to caste and region. The practice of child marriage which was commonly prevalent in former times has been declared unlawful by a central law. Civil marriages which were unknown in the past are now-a-days on the increase. Inter-caste marriages have also started taking place among the younger generations especially in towns. Widowhood is still considered a mark of social superiority and universally practiced by the advanced classes. Though divorce is now permitted under the law and freely practiced by some of the lower castes which permit them by tradition and custom, its extent among the higher castes is comparatively much less.

The commonest type of dress worn by males in rural areas consists of cotton drawers called (chorno) and a short kediyu or angarakhu covering the upper part of the body. Most of the people especially agriculturists still continue to put on the typical head dress, thickly folded phento or turban. Women in villages put on coloured petticoat (chaniyo) often embroidered with abhala or glass pieces, a similarly embroidered blouse or bodice (choli or polku) along with odhani, a coloured piece of coarse cloth covering the body and the head. Elderly males of higher classes put on dhoti (waist cloth) and Kafani or peharan (shirt).

Ornaments are used by both males and females since ancient times. In the past, certain ornaments were commonly used. These included kanthi worn round the neck , a silver kandora worn round the waist and a Vinti (ring) worn on one or more of the fingers. Women in rural areas generally put on heavy silver ornaments.

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