Lucknow is the capital city of the state of Uttar Pradesh. This metro city is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District andLucknow Division. Lucknow has always been known as a multicultural city and flourished as a cultural and artistic capital of North India in the 18th and 19th centuries. Today it continues as an important centre of commerce, aerospace, finance pharmaceuticals, technology, design, culture, tourism, music and poetry. Lucknow ranked 6th among all the cities in India for fastest job-creation. It is the largest city of Uttar Pradesh and second largest metro of North and Central India after Delhi.
Lucknow elevation is 123.45 m above sea level. It is situated on 26.30 and 27.10 North latitude and 80.30 and 81.13 East longitude. Lucknow covers an area of 310.1 km2. It is surrounded on the eastern side by District Barabanki, on the western side by district Unnao, on the southern side by Raebareli and on the northern side by Sitapur and Hardoi districts. The city is on the northwestern shore of Gomti river, which flows through it. Lucknow is accessible from every part of India through air, rail and road. It is directly connected with New Delhi, Patna, Calcutta,Mumbai, Varanasi, Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram and other major cities by Amausi airport. The Union Cabinet approved granting of international airport status to Lucknow. The Lucknow airport is suitable for all-weather operations and can provide parking facility up to 14 aircraft. At present, Air India, Jetlite, GoAir, IndiGo and SpiceJet are operating domestic flights from and to Lucknow.
As the seat of the government of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow is the site of Vidhan Sabha, the High Court and numerous government departments and agencies. Lucknow has several educational and research organizations like IIM Lucknow, Central Drug Research Institute, Industrial Technology Research Centre, Central Food Technological Research Institute, National Botanical Research Institute, Central Glass and Ceramic Research Institute, Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences and King George Medical College. It is the location of many social and cultural institutions of national significance, such as the Kathak, Khayal, Nawabs and Classical music. It is the birthplace of British pop star Sir Cliff Richard and resident city of Subrata Roy, the founder and chairman of the Sahara India Pariwar.
Hindi is the city's official language. However, the most prominent language spoken in Lucknow is the Hindi-Urdu language. The city's design was heavily influenced by the several emperors and incorporates significant areas of natural imperial that have earned Lucknow the title of the "city of nawabs". It is also known as the Golden City of India, Shiraz-i-Hind and the Constantinople of the East. Lucknow's society is very famous for its etiquette and traditions to attain a rare degree of sophistication. Be it the cultural charm or the monumental one, all are well conserved here to make Lucknow "The city of many splendours".
Etymology
The ancient history of Lucknow is mired in mysteries and folk sayings. It is popularly believed that Lucknow (लखनऊ) derives its name from Lakshman (लक्ष्मण) (also known as Lakhan (लखन)), younger brother of Lord Rama, greatest son of Suryawanshi kshatriya clan of India. Rama ordered his younger brother Lakshmana to establish a town near at the present site of Lakshman Tila. The present Lakshman Teela (लक्ष्मण टीला) in Lucknow is believed to be the site of ancient city of Lakhanpur built by Lakshman.
History
Since 1350 AD Lucknow and parts of the Awadh region were ruled by the Delhi Sultanate, Mughal Empire, Nawabs of Awadh, East India Company and the British Raj. Lucknow was one of the major centres of Indian rebellion of 1857, participated actively in India's Independence movement, and emerged as an important city of North India. Until 1719, subah of Awadh was a province of the Mughal Empire administered by a Governor appointed by the Emperor. Saadat Khan also called Burhan-ul-Mulk a Persian adventurer was appointed the Nazim of Awadh in 1722 and he established his court in Faizabad near Lucknow.
Many independent kingdoms, such as Awadh, were established when the Mughal empire disintegrated. Awadh’s capital, Lucknow rose to prominence when Asaf-ud-Daula, the fourth nawab, shifted his court here from Faizabad in 1775. The city was North India’s cultural capital, and its nawabs, best remembered for their refined and extravagnt lifestyles, were patrons of the arts. Under them music and dance flourished, and many monuments were erected.Of the monuments standing today, the Bara Imambara, the Chhota Imambara, and the Rumi Darwaza are notable examples. One of the more lasting contributions by the Nawabs is the syncretic composite culture that has come to be known as the Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb.
Awadh, known as the granary of India, was important strategically for the control of the fertile plain between the Ganges and the Yamunarivers known as the Doab. It was a wealthy kingdom, able to maintain its independence against threats from the Marathas, the British and the Afghans. The third Nawab, Abe Shuja-ud-Daula, fell out with the British after aiding the fugitive Nawab of Bengal Mir Qasim. He was comprehensively defeated in the Battle of Buxar by the East India Company, which forced him to pay heavy penalties and cede parts of his territory. The British appointed a resident in 1773 and over time gained control of more territory and authority in the state. They were, however, disinclined to capture Awadh outright and be brought face to face with the Marathas and the remnants of the Mughal Empire.
In 1798, the fifth Nawab Wazir Ali Khan alienated both his people and the British, and was forced to abdicate. The British then helpedSaadat Ali Khan to the throne. Saadat Ali Khan was a puppet king, who in the treaty of 1801 ceded half of Awadh to the British East India Company and also agreed to disband his troops in favour of a hugely expensive, British-run army. This treaty effectively made the state of Awadh a vassal to the British East India Company, though it nationally continued to be part of the Mughal Empire in name until 1819.
The treaty of 1801 formed an arrangement that was very beneficial to the Company. They were able to use Awadh's vast treasuries, repeatedly digging into them for loans at reduced rates. In addition, the revenues from running Awadh's armed forces brought them useful revenues while it acted as a buffer state. The Nawabs were ceremonial kings, busy with pomp and show but with little influence over matters of state. By the mid-nineteenth century, however, the British had grown impatient with the arrangement and wanted direct control of Awadh.
In 1856 the East India Company first moved its troops to the border, then annexed the state, which was placed under a chief commissioner – Sir Henry Lawrence. Wajid Ali Shah, the then Nawab, was imprisoned, and then exiled by the Company to Calcutta. In the subsequent Revolt of 1857 his 14-year old son Birjis Qadra son of Begum Hazrat Mahal was crowned ruler, and Sir Henry Lawrence killed in the hostilities. Following the rebellion's defeat, Begum Hazrat Mahal and other rebel leaders obtained asylum in Nepal.
The province of Awadh (anglicised to Oudh) was annexed by the East India Company in 1856 under the Doctrine of Lapse and placed under the control of a chief commissioner. In the Indian Rebellion of 1857 (also known as the First War of Indian Independence and the Indian Mutiny), the garrison based at the Residency in Lucknow was besieged by rebel forces. The famous Siege of Lucknow was relieved first by forces under the command of Sir Henry Havelock and Sir James Outram, followed by a stronger force under Sir Colin Campbell. Today, the ruins of the Residency, and the picturesqueShaheed Smarak offer reminiscences of Lucknow's role in the stirring events of 1857.
Those company troops who were recruited from the state, along with some of the nobility of the state, were major players in the events of 1857. The rebels took control of Awadh, and it took the British 18 months to reconquer the region, months which included the famous Siege of Lucknow. Oudhwas placed back under a chief commissioner, and was governed as a British province. In 1877 the offices of lieutenant-governor of the North-Western Provinces and chief commissioner of Oudh were combined in the same person; and in 1902, when the new name of United Provinces of Agra and Oudhwas introduced, the title of chief commissioner was dropped, though Oudh still retained some marks of its former independence.
The Khilafat Movement had an active base of support in Lucknow, creating a united platform against the British rule. In the Khilafat Movement Maulana Abdul Bari of Firangi Mahal, Lucknow actively participated and cooperated with Mahatama Gandhi and Maulana Mohammad Ali. In 1901, after remaining the capital of Oudh since 1775, Lucknow, with a population of 264,049, was merged in the newly formed United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. However, it became the provincial capital in 1920 when the seat of government was moved from Allahabad. Upon Indian independence in 1947, Lucknow became the capital of Uttar Pradesh, the erstwhile United Provinces
Geography and climateLucknow has a warm humid subtropical climate with cool, dry winters from December to February and dry, hot summers from April to June. The rainy season is from mid-June to mid-September, when Lucknow gets an average rainfall of 896.2 millimetres (35.28 in) from the south-west monsoon winds, and occasionally frontal rainfall will occur in January. In winter the maximum temperature is around 25 °C (77 °F) and the minimum is in the 7 to 9 degrees Celsius range. Fog is quite common from late December to late January. Summers are extremely hot with temperatures rising to the 40 to 45 degree Celsius range, the average highs being in the high 30s.
Situated in the heart of the great Gangetic plain, Lucknow city is surrounded by its rural towns and villages like the orchard town of Malihabad, historicKakori, Mohanlal ganj, Gosainganj, Chinhat, Itaunja. On its eastern side lies Barabanki District, on the western side is Unnao District, on the southern sideRaebareli District, and on the northern side the Sitapur and Hardoi districts. The Gomti River, the chief geographical feature, meanders through the city, dividing it into the Trans-Gomti and Cis-Gomti regions. Lucknow city is located in the seismic zone III.
Flora and fauna
Lucknow district reports a very low proportion of area under forest. The total area under forest (4.66 percent) is much less as compared to state average which is barely around 7 percent. The forest area is negligible in the district. Shisham, Dhak, Mahua, Babul, Neem, Peepal, Ashok, Khajur, Mango and Gular trees are grown here. Different varieties of mangoes speciallyDasheri are grown in Malihabad block of the district and exported to other countries too. The main crops are wheat, paddy, sugarcane, Mustard (plant)|mustard, potatoes, and vegetables such ascauliflower, cabbage, tomato, brinjals are grown here. Similarly sunflowers, roses, and marigold are cultivated on quite a large area of the land. Apart from this many medicinal and herbal plants are also grown here. The City Zoological Garden is making efforts to have chinkaras from the Lucknow zoo. The Eastern Himalayas and the Western Ghats have been designated among the world's eighteen 'hotspots' of biodiversity.
Demographics
An official Census 2011 detail of Lucknow, a district of Uttar Pradesh has been released by Directorate of Census Operations in Uttar Pradesh. Enumeration of key persons was also done by census officials in Lucknow District of Uttar Pradesh. As reported in the Census of India 2011Lucknow had population of 4,588,455 of which male and female were 2,407,897 and 2,180,558 respectively. There was change of 25.79 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Lucknow District recorded increase of 32.03 percent to its population compared to 1991. Between 1991 and 2001 the population registered a decadal growth of 32.03 percent which was much less than the 37.14 percent which was registered between 1981 and 1991 decade. The initial provisional data suggest a density of 1,815 in 2011 compared to 1,443 of 2001. Total area under Lucknow district is of about 2,528 km2. However, the density of population was much above that obtained at the state level (690 persons per km2.). The SC population of the state at 21.3 percent to total population is above the state average (21.15 percent). A very high percentage of the total population (36.37 percent) resides in rural areas which means that barely around 63.3 percent is urban in nature. These are very high figure as compared to the state as whole, where urban population constitutes around 21 percent only of the total state population. With regards to Sex Ratio in Lucknow, it stood at 906 per 1000 male compared to 2001 census figure of 888. The average national sex ratio in India is 940 as per latest reports of Census 2011 Directorate.
The another indicator where the district leads ahead of the state is in terms of literacy. Total literacy level is 79.33 percent as compared to 56.3 percent in U.P. as a whole. Average literacy rate of Lucknow in 2011 were 79.33 compared to 68.71 of 2001. If things are looked out at gender wise, male and female literacy were 84.27 and 73.88 respectively. For 2001 census, same figures stood at 75.98 and 60.47 in Lucknow District. Total literate in Lucknow District were 3,226,214 of which male and female were 1,799,177 and 1,427,037 respectively. However, there has been a marked improvement in the literacy rate in the district as compared to 1991. Despite the fact that the overall work participation rate in the district (32.24 percent) is higher than the state average (23.7 percent), the work participation rate among females in Lucknow is very low at 5.6 percent which has registered a decline from 1991 status of 5.9 percent.
Economy
The economy of Lucknow city was earlier based on the tertiary sector with about majority of the workforce being employed as government servants. Large-scale industrial establishments are low compared to other north Indian state capital like New Delhi. Currently the economy is growing with the contributions from more professionals in the fields of IT, Manufacturing and Processing andMedical/Bio-Technology. Business-promoting institutions viz. CII and EDII have a presence in city. On October 2010, Lucknow ranked 6th among cities in India for fastest job-creation. The city has steadily grown into a competitive IT centre.
Lucknow has a great potential in handicraft sector and it accounts for 60% of the total exports from the state. The major export items from are marble products, textiles, handicrafts, art pieces, gems and jewellery, textiles, electronics, software, computer, hardware and software, apparel, brass work, silk, leather and leather goods, glass items, art metal, chemicals. The city has promoted public‐private partnerships in big way in sectors such as power, roads, expressways, and education.
Culture
A small part of Lucknow's society still possesses much etiquette. This sublime cultural richness blends the cultures of two communities living side by side for centuries, sharing similar interests and speaking a common language.
Many of the cultural traits and customs peculiar to Lucknow have become living legends today. The credit for this goes to the secular and syncretic traditions of the Nawabs of Awadh, who took a keen interest in every walk of life, and encouraged the traditions to attain a rare degree of sophistication. The Raja Sahib of Mahmudabad, popularly known as Suleiman Mian, is a living example of all the great traditions of this region and has been written about by authors like V.S. Naipaul, William Dalrymple and many others.
Urdu literature
The City Homed the Great legends of Urdu poetry, especially in Marsiya Nigari like Mir Anees and Mirza Dabeer.
- Marsiya is elegy composed in aspects of the martyrdom of Hazrat Imam Husaain(as) grandson of Prophet Muhammed in Kerbala Iraq in 61ah.
- Mir Anees and Mirza Dabeer composed most of the renowned marsiya in the history of Urdu language and are still being recited during Muharram in various Majalis and other Azadari events.
Lucknow is famous for Azadari because of its history of Shia Kingdom of Nawabs of Oudh who promoted Muharram and its religious events on very high regards. The culture of Urdu poetry is still popular, especially in Muharram and other occasions related with Islamic lunar calendar.
Lucknow hosts the most number of poetic events in India, and poets from various parts of the world come to participate in these events. Some of the famous poets of recent times are
- Kazim Jarwali,
- Sarwar Nawab Sarwar,
- Arif Lucknowi
- Nawab Baqar Ali Khan "Ravish Lakhnavi"
- Nayyar Majidi
- Surror Lucknowi
- Shauq Lucknowi
- Aslam Taaba
- Sharib Kausar Alavi "Sharib Kakorwi"
- People, especially Muslims, of Lucknow are known for their excellent Urdu and their Tehzeeb. Lucknow is famous for its Urdu literature and shayari.
Lucknow is one of the world's great cities for Muslim culture. Two poets, Mir Anis and Mirza Dabeer, became legendary exponents of a unique genre of Muslim elegiacal poetry called Marsia centred on Imam Husain's supreme sacrifice in the Battle of Karbala which is commemorated during the annual observance of Muharram.
In recent years the use of Urdu has reduced significantly. Day-to-day transactions in the city are typically performed in Hindi or English. Nevertheless, Lucknowites are still known for their polite and polished way of speaking which is noticed by visitors to this city. The great revolutionary Ram Prasad Bismil, who was hanged by the British at Gorakhpur jail, was largely influenced by the culture of Lucknow and remembered its name in his poetry. The surrounding towns like Kakori, Daryabad, Tehseel Fatehpur, Barabanki, Rudauli and Malihabad produced many eminent poets and littérateurs of Urdu like Mohsin Kakorvi, Majaz, Khumar Barabankvi and Josh Malihabadi. Recently in 2008 which is the 150th year of 'mutiny' of 1857 a novel has been released which uses 1857 as a backdrop. 'Recalcitrance' is the first English novel by a Lucknowite on the 'mutiny' of 1857.