Surat/Overview

From World Wikia

Surat may be described as the diamond capital of India, and three-quarters of the world’s diamonds are given brilliance and sparkle by cutting and polishing in the city of Surat. Exports of diamond from Surat exceed US$ 8 billion. Surat is also one of the major centers of textile manufacturing. The city is a port city located on the coast of the Arabian Sea, in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The city covering an area of about 112 sq km and with the population of around 4.5 million (2005) is the second largest city of Gujarat state, and the ninth largest city of India. The city is set in the background of Tapti River, which flows by the side of the city. The old city gives a nostalgic feel of an age gone by, while the newer settlements present an image of a clean and spacious city. These settlements were created with the collective efforts of the people of Surat after an epidemic of plague of 1994. Recently, in 2006 too, the city suffered damages due to widespread flooding of the city areas.

It is interesting to talk a little about the city’s history of about 500 years. During the heyday of the Mughal Empire (16th-18th centuries) in India, Surat emerged as an important trading and commercial hub of maritime activities. During last five hundred years, Surat has seen many rulers. By the end of the 16th century, the Portuguese traders called the shots though some ships of the East India Company had reached the shores of Surat as early as in 1608, and by 1912, Surat came under the control of the East India Company. The city, at that time, had also a little presence of the Dutch. In the year 1664, Raja Shivaji, the great Maratha king, marched into the city and vanquished the might of the foreign rulers of the city. He returned again in 1670 and repeated his feat. However, for all practical purpose, the city remained a part of the Mughal Empire, and with the decline of the Mughal Empire, the city became a part of the British Raj, and passed under the control of the Indians with the independence of India on 15th August 1947. In the meanwhile, decades and centuries had rolled by, and the city has emerged as a significant industrial city of India, and had developed its own distinctive cultural flavour and cuisine. A person living in the city of Surat is called a Surati.