Mahemdavad

Mahemdavad is a town with municipality in the Kheda district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Mahemdavad is situated on the Vatrak River bank. The nearest city is Kheda.

For other places with similar names, see Mahmudabad.

Mahemdabad

Mahemdabad, Mahmudabad
City
Mahemdabad
Location in Gujarat, India
Mahemdabad
Mahemdabad (India)
Coordinates: 22.83°N 72.77°E / 22.83; 72.77
Country India
StateGujarat
DistrictKheda
Founded byMahmud Begada
Government
 • TypeMunicipality
Elevation
33 m (108 ft)
Population
 (2001)
 • Total30,769
Demonym(s)Mahemdavadi
Languages
 • OfficialGujarati, Hindi
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
387130
Telephone code02694 or 912694
Vehicle registrationGJ
Nearest cityNadiad
Websitegujaratindia.com

Etymology

Mahemdavad was established by the king Mahmud Begada, the grandson of Ahmed Shah, and it was initially named as Mahmudabad after king Mahmud.

Geography

Mahemdavad is located at 22.83°N 72.77°E / 22.83; 72.77.[1] It has an average elevation of 33 metres (108 ft).

Demographics

As of 2001 India census,[2] Mahemdavad has a population of 30,769. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Mahemdavad has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 77%, and female literacy is 63%. In Mahemdavad, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Places of interest

Mahemdabad has some historical places such as the Bhammariyo Kuvo (Kuvo meaning well), Chanda-Suraj No Mehal (Chanda meaning moon, Suraj meaning sun and Mehal meaning palace) as well as Roza Rozi. It is believed that there are some underground secret routes connecting from Bhammariyo Kuvo to Ahmedabad, Pavagadh and Junagadh. The site is currently being restored and developed as a place of cultural heritage. Roza Rozi is a popular picnic spot for the local residents, and during the auspicious events of Eid, a fun fair is set up in there. Chanda-Suraj No Mehal is believed to be built by the emperor as a resting place after he went hunting.

Roza Rozi

Roza Rozi is a Maqbara (Drgah Sarif of Mubarak Said, R.A.) located near Ghodali village with a distance of 3 km from Mahemdavad. Roza Rozi is a holy place for Muslims, so there is a fair on Uras (Muslim festival). The Uras is celebrated annually after the 10th day of Eid-ul-Fitra.

The myth about Roza Rozi is that one cannot count the pillars of the building. Every time one counts, one gets a different figure. People get confused while counting because of its architectural design.

Chanda-Suraj Mahel

Chanda-Suraj Mahel was a palace but now it is worn out.
Chanda-Suraj Mahel is located on the Vatrak River bank near the Cremation Ground.

Bhammariyo Kuvo
Bhammariyo Kuvo

This is an ancient well with seven floors (storeys) below the ground. Each floor has a different architecture. Currently floors four to seven of the well are filled so visitors are only able to view the top three floors. It was built during the Gujarat Sultanate.[3]

A popular myth about the well is that Mahmud Begada built a swing in this well with the water level up to his neck, to reduce the heat he continuously felt because of side effects of a daily dose of toxin, which his mother gave him in small amounts to immunize him from any attempts to poison him by enemies.

Education

Educational institutes of Mahemdabad include: Shanti Niketan English School, Seth J. H. Sonawala High School, St. Xavier's High School, Vedanta High School and the local municipal school. A PTC (Primary Teachers' Certificate) college has come up recently in the town. Most of the schools instruct their students in Gujarati.

Schools
  • Shanti Niketan English School runs nursery to 6th in English medium. International methodology applied keeping Indian values as high priority.
  • Sheth J. H. Sonawala High School runs 5th std. to 12th std. in science, commerce and arts stream in Gujarati medium.
  • Gyanjyot High School runs 1st std. to 12th std. in commerce and arts stream in Gujarati medium.
  • St. Xavier's School runs KG TO 12th std with science and commerce streams. Also English medium from KG to 5th std.
  • Trinity School runs 1st std to 7th std. in English medium.
  • Santram primary school runs 1st std. to 7th std.
  • Shree Nyalkaran English Medium School runs from 1st std.
  • Shree Sarvoday Vidhya Mandir Modaj, Mahemdavad runs 9th std to 12th std.

Colleges

Government Polytechnic Kheda (Govt of Gujarat) is situated near Raska Wier in Mahemdabad Taluka (tahesil) under Gujarat Technological University.

These colleges all run under Gujarat University:[4]

Economy

The market place is situated at the heart of the town. The market area is marked by the Virol Darwaja (gate). The market remains open on all days except for Saturday. A variety of small scale cottage industries are found in Mahemdabad. The most popular is the leather bag cottage industry. People from surrounding cities come specially to Mahemdabad to buy purses, hand bags and school bags. In addition, the cobbler is also very famous for his ever-lasting shoes. Apart from these, there are a number of cloth merchants, pharmacies, one or two gold merchants, a few utensils merchants et cetera. On the whole trade and commerce are developed to a good extent here.

Surrounding the market area, a number of residential societies have developed. The oldest of these are: Navjeevan-1,2 and Bapukaka society. These are situated right beside the railway station. There is a Shiv temple in Navjeevan-1. During the festival of Navaratri, people celebrate and play Garba in the yard of this Shiv temple. New society areas like Ashutosh, Sarvoday Society, Mrudul Park, Shroff Nagar, Jyoti Park etc. have developed on the road opposite to the Viral Darwaja. Radhe Kishan Park Residency is on Mahemdawad Khatraj Crossing Road.

Entertainment is very limited in this town. There are two run-down theatres which screen some local Gujarati movies. One or two cyber-cafes have come up recently.

As well as a municipal hospital, there are private hospitals, the main one being Lucky Hospital just outside of the main market. It was established in 1985 by Dr. Vijay Ajmera father of Dr. Akash Ajmera, provides very good care for its patients. Dr. Ajmera is very well known and the only MD gynecologist in the taluka of Mahemdavad which includes some 80 surrounding villages.

During the summer season, a number of gola walas (vendors) fill the road between Viral Darwaja and railway station. People are seen loitering till late nights on these roads and eating golas (gola is made by pressing small ice cubes on a wooden stick and then a flavored liquid like rose, kala khatta etc. is poured on it). In addition, one or two dabeli walas, pav bhaji walas and sugar-cane vendors make good business during the cool summer nights.

Near the railway station, there is a samadhi of Eknathji – a local saint.

Geography

It is located at 22°49′0″N 72°46′0″E.[5] In the 1990s Mahemdabad was famous for its "Dhebri", a delicious crunchy item at Mahemdabad station.

Transport

Railways

Mahemdavad has Mahemadavad Kheda Road as a train station for halting express and superfast trains.[6]

Bus transport

National Highway 59 passes through Mahemdabad. Mahemdavad links to Ahmedabad, Surat and Ratlam.
Mahemdavad has a bus station for local buses which link to Nadiad, Anand, Ahmedabad, Dakor, and Kheda.
Khatraj Chokdi (The five junction road) near Mahemdavad is connected to major cities by

  • Ahmedabad road
  • Modaj, Ghodasar, Haldarvas Road
  • Mankava, Kathalal road
  • Mahudha, Dakor, Godhra road
  • Nadiad, Anand, Vadodara road
  • Kheda, Limbasi, Khmbhat road

All the express buses stop at Khatraj Chokdi.

Airport

The nearest international airport is Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at Ahmedabad. The airport code is AMD. It is only 33 km from Mahemdavad connected by road. There are direct domestic flights to Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, and Kolkata. Also there are direct international flights to Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Kuwait, London, Chicago and Frankfurt.

References
  1. Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Mahemdavad
  2. "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
  3. Shukla, Rakesh (24 June 2014). "ક્યારેક લોકોની તરસ છિપાવતા હતા ગુજરાતના આ જળ મંદિરો-ભમરિયો કૂવો". gujarati.oneindia.com (in Gujarati). Retrieved 20 November 2016.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  4. Gujarat University Affiliated Colleges Archived 2010-03-31 at the Wayback Machine
  5. http://wikimapia.org/country/India/Gujarat/Mahemdavad/ Wikimapia
  6. India Rail Info
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