Gujarat
Gujarat (/ˌɡʊdʒəˈrɑːt/, Gujarati: [ˈɡudʒəɾɑt] (
listen)) is a state on the western coast of India with a coastline of 1,600 km (990 mi) – most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula – and a population of 60.4 million. It is the fifth-largest Indian state by area and the ninth-largest state by population. Gujarat is bordered by Rajasthan to the northeast, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu to the south, Maharashtra to the southeast, Madhya Pradesh to the east, and the Arabian Sea and the Pakistani province of Sindh to the west. Its capital city is Gandhinagar, while its largest city is Ahmedabad.[9] The Gujarati people of India are indigenous to the state, and their language Gujarati, is the state’s official language. The economy of Gujarat is the fifth-largest in India, with a gross state domestic product (GSDP) of ₹16.5 trillion (US$230 billion) and has the country’s 11th-highest GSDP per capita of ₹216,000 (US$3,000).[1] Gujarat ranks 21st among Indian states in human development index.[4] The state traditionally has low unemployment and is widely considered one of the most industrially developed states of India and a manufacturing hub.[10][11][12][13]
The state encompasses some sites of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation, such as Lothal, Dholavira and Gola Dhoro. Lothal is believed to be one of the world’s first seaports. Gujarat’s coastal cities, chiefly Bharuch and Khambhat, served as ports and trading centres in the Maurya and Gupta empires, and during the succession of royal Saka dynasties from the Western Satraps era. Along with Bihar and Nagaland, Gujarat is one of the four Indian states to prohibit the sale of alcohol. The Gir Forest National Park in Gujarat is home to the only wild population of the Asiatic lion in the world.
Governance and administration[edit]
Gujarat has 33 districts and 250 Talukas. They can broadly be defined into 4 regions.[109]
Largest cities or towns in Gujarat As of the 2011 Census | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Name | District | Pop. | Rank | Name | District | Pop. | ||
 Ahmedabad  Surat | 1 | Ahmedabad | Ahmedabad | 6,357,693 | 11 | Morbi | Morbi | 210,451 |  Vadodara  Rajkot |
| 2 | Surat | Surat | 5,935,000 | 12 | Anand | Anand | 209,410 | ||
| 3 | Vadodara | Vadodara | 2,065,771 | 13 | Mehsana | Mehsana | 190,753 | ||
| 4 | Rajkot | Rajkot | 1,390,640 | 14 | Surendranagar Dudhrej | Surendranagar | 177,851 | ||
| 5 | Bhavnagar | Bhavnagar | 605,882 | 15 | Veraval | Gir Somnath | 171,121 | ||
| 6 | Jamnagar | Jamnagar | 479,920 | 16 | Navsari | Navsari | 171,109 | ||
| 7 | Junagadh | Junagadh | 319,462 | 17 | Bharuch | Bharuch | 169,007 | ||
| 8 | Gandhinagar | Gandhinagar | 292,167 | 18 | Vapi | Valsad | 163,630 | ||
| 9 | Gandhidham | Kutch | 248,705 | 19 | Porbandar | Porbandar | 152,760 | ||
| 10 | Nadiad | Kheda | 225,071 | 20 | Bhuj | Kutch | 148,834 | ||
Gujarat is governed by a Legislative Assembly of 182 members. Members of the Legislative Assembly are elected on the basis of adult suffrage from one of 182 constituencies, of which 13 are reserved for scheduled castes and 27 for scheduled tribes. The term of office for a member of the Legislative Assembly is five years. The Legislative Assembly elects a speaker who presides over the meetings of the legislature. A governor is appointed by the President of India, and is to address the state legislature after every general election and the commencement of each year’s first session of the Legislative Assembly. The leader of the majority party or coalition in the legislature (Chief Minister) or his or her designee acts as the Leader of the Legislative Assembly. The administration of the state is led by the Chief Minister.
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Swarnim Sankul 2, Office of Gujarat Government
After the independence of India in 1947, the Indian National Congress (INC) ruled the Bombay State (which included present-day Gujarat and Maharashtra). Congress continued to govern Gujarat after the state’s creation in 1960.
During and after India’s State of Emergency of 1975–1977, public support for the INC eroded, but it continued to hold government until 1995 with the brief rule of nine months by Janata Morcha. In the 1995 Assembly elections, the Congress lost to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by Keshubhai Patel who became the Chief Minister. His government lasted only two years. The fall of that government was provoked by a split in the BJP led by Shankersinh Vaghela. BJP again won election in 1998 with clear majority. In 2001, following the loss of two assembly seats in by-elections, Keshubhai Patel resigned and yielded power to Narendra Modi. BJP retained a majority in the 2002 election, and Narendra Modi remained as Chief Minister. On 1 June 2007, Narendra Modi became the longest serving Chief Minister of Gujarat.[110][111][112] BJP retained the power in subsequent elections in 2007 and 2012 and Narendra Modi continued as the Chief Minister. After Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister of India in 2014, Anandiben Patel became the first female Chief Minister of the state. Vijay Rupani took over as Chief Minister and Nitin Patel as Dy. Chief Minister on 7 August 2016 after Anandiben Patel resigned earlier on 3 August.
Economy[edit]
During the British Raj, Gujarati businesses served to play a major role to enrich the economy of Karachi and Mumbai.[113] Major agricultural produce of the state includes cotton, groundnuts (peanuts), dates, sugar cane, milk and milk products. Industrial products include cement and petrol.[114] Gujarat is ranked number one in the pharmaceutical industry in India, with a 33% share in drug manufacturing and 28% share in drug exports. The state has 130 USFDA certified drug manufacturing facilities. Ahmedabad and Vadodara are considered as pharmaceutical hubs as there are many big and small pharma companies established in these cities.[115]
Gujarat has the longest coastline in India (1600 km), and its ports (both private and public sector) handle around 40% of India’s ocean cargo, with Mundra Port located in Gulf of Kutch being the largest port of India by cargo handled (144 million tons) due to its favorable location on the westernmost part of India and closeness to global shipping lanes. Gujarat also contributes around 20% share in India’s industrial production and merchandise exports. According to a 2009 report on economic freedom by the Cato Institute, Gujarat is the most free state in India (the second one being Tamil Nadu).[116] Reliance Industries operates the oil refinery at Jamnagar, which is the world’s largest grass-roots refinery at a single location. The world’s largest shipbreaking yard is in Gujarat near Bhavnagar at Alang. India’s only Liquid Chemical Port Terminal at Dahej, developed by Gujarat Chemical Port Terminal Co Ltd. Gujarat has two of the three liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals in the country (Dahej and Hazira). Two more LNG terminals are proposed, at Pipavav and Mundra.
Gujarat has 85% village connectivity with all‐weather roads.[117] Nearly 100% of Gujarat’s 18,000 villages have been connected to the electrical grid for 24-hour power to households and eight hours of power to farms, through the Jyotigram Yojana.[118] As of 2015, Gujarat ranks first nationwide in gas-based thermal electricity generation with a national market share of over 8%, and second nationwide in nuclear electricity generation with national market share of over 1%.[119]
The state registered 12.8% agricultural growth in the last five years against the national average of 2%.[120]
Gujarat records highest decadal agricultural growth rate of 10.97%. Over 20% of the S&P CNX 500 conglomerates have corporate offices in Gujarat.[121] As per RBI report, in year 2006–07, 26% out of total bank finance in India was in Gujarat.
As per a recent survey report of the Chandigarh Labour Bureau, Gujarat has the lowest unemployment rate of 1% against the national average of 3.8%.[122]
Legatum Institute’s Global Prosperity Index 2012 has recognised Gujarat as one of the two highest-scoring among all states of India on matters of social capital.[123] The state ranks 15th alongside Germany in a list of 142 nations worldwide: higher than several developed nations.[124]
