Rupnagar

Rupnagar ਰੂਪਨਗਰ Ropar
Archeological Site and Historical City
view of Rupnagar,from Indus Valley Civilization site's mound
Nickname(s): Ropar
Rupnagar Show map of Punjab Rupnagar Show map of India
Coordinates: 30°57′59″N 76°31′59″E / 30.9664°N 76.5331°E / 30.9664; 76.5331Coordinates: 30°57′59″N 76°31′59″E / 30.9664°N 76.5331°E / 30.9664; 76.5331
Country	India
State	Punjab
District	Rupnagar
Government
• Type	municipal council
• Body	Ropar MC
Elevation	262 m (860 ft)
Population (2001)
• Total	48,165
Languages
• Official	Punjabi
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	140 001
Telephone code	91-1881
Vehicle registration	PB 12
Website	rupnagar.nic.in

Rupnagar (Punjabi: ਰੂਪਨਗਰ), also spelled Ropar or Rupar, is a city and a municipal council in Rupnagar district in the Indian state of Punjab. Ropar is a newly created fifth "Divisional Headquarters" of Punjab comprising Ropar, Mohali, and its adjoining districts. The ancient town of Rupnagar is said to have been named by a Raja called Rokeshar, who ruled during the 11th century and named it after his son Rup Sen. It is also one of the bigger sites belonging to the Indus Valley Civilization.

Geography

Rupnagar is located at 30°58′N 76°32′E / 30.97°N 76.53°E / 30.97; 76.53.^[1] It has an average elevation of 260 metres (853 ft). The town lies on bank of Satluj River and Shivalik hill range spreads along the opposite bank of the river.

Location

Rupnagar is nearly 50 km to the northwest of Chandigarh (the nearest airport). It is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the north and Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar district (formerly known as Nawanshahr district) to its west. The major cities in Ropar District are Morinda, Kurali, Nangal, Anandpur Sahib and Chamkaur Sahib and Haveli kalan. The town of Mohali was once part of Ropar District before it became a separate district in 2006. The Bhakra Dam in Nangal lies on the boundary with the neighbouring state of Himachal Pradesh. Dadhi is one of the most important villages of the district, particularly because of Gurudwara Sri Hargobindsar Sahib.

There are many historical places in Ropar and religious places including gurdwaras such as: Bhhatha Sahib, Tibbi Sahib, AnandPur Sahib and Sadabarat Sahib.

Climate

The climate of Rupnagar District is characterized by general dryness (except in the south west monsoon season), a hot summer and a cold winter. The year may be divided into four seasons. The period from about middle of November to February is the cold season. This is followed by the summer season from March to about the end of June. The south-west monsoon season commences late in June and continues up to about middle of September. The period from mid September to the middle of November constitute the post-monsoon or transition season. The temperature ranges from minimum of 4 °C in winter to 45 °C in summer. May and June are generally hottest months and December and January are the coldest months. Relative humidity is high, averaging about 70% during monsoon. The average annual rainfall in district is 775.6 mm. About 78% of the annual rainfall is received during June - September. Evening in Ropar is a special one as it have very cool, breezy and cloudy kind of scenario which makes the natives rush towards the ropar lake to enjoy the landscape and its natural beauty.

Demographics

As per 2001 India census,^[2] Rupnagar had a population of 48,165. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Rupnagar has an average literacy rate of 75%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 78%, and female literacy is 82%. In Rupnagar, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.

District Administration

• The Divisional Commissioner,an officer belonging to the Indian Administrative Service, is the over all in charge of the newly created Divisional Headquarters Ropar, comprising Ropar, Mohali. and Nawashahr districts.
• The Deputy Commissioner, an officer belonging to the Indian Administrative Service, is the overall in-charge of the General Administration in the district.
• The Senior Superintendent of Police, an officer belonging to the Indian Police Service is entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining law and order and related issues of the district and he is assisted by the officers of the Punjab Police Service.
• The Divisional Forest Officer, an officer belonging to the Indian Forest Service is responsible for managing the Forests, environment and wild-life related issues of the district and he is assisted by the officers of the Punjab Forest Service and Punjab Wild-Life Division.
• Sectoral development is looked after by the district head of each development department such as PWD, Agriculture, Health, Education and Animal husbandry.

Archaeological Museum of ASI

Indus Civilization site, Rupnagar (Rupar), Punjab ,India

Archaeological Museum , Rupnagar, Punjab, India

There is an Archaeological Museum in the city which is about 40 km north east of Chandigarh. It was opened in the year 1998 for general public. The museum exhibits the archaeological remains of excavated site in the city, the first Harappan site of Independent India.^[3]

Ropar Wetland

Ropar wetland (side outlet),Punjab

The city has one of the three important wetlands of the Punjab State known as Ropar Wetland. The area has a large number of birds ,mammals and vegetation cover. It has at least 9 mammal, 154 bird, 35 fish, 9 arthropod, 11 rotifer, and 10 protozoan species. This important ecological zone is located in the Shivalik foothills of the Lower Himalayas and was created in 1952 on the Sutlej River, in the Punjab state of India, by building a head regulat The total area of the Wetland is 1365 ha. The wetland is surrounded by Shivalik hills in the North West and by plain area in the South and South East

Education

Rupnagar city houses one of the prestigious technological institutes of the country, the IIT Ropar. The area surrounding the institute has developed well due to the establishment of the Institute during 2009.There are large no of govt, public and private schools in the city .

Schools

• Wingz Academy Of Performing Arts
• DAV Public School.
• Rayat International School.
• Shiwalik Public School.
• Netaji Model School.
• Holy Family Convent School.
• Sahibzada Ajit Singh Academy.
• Sant Karam Singh Academy.
• New Model High School.
• Model Middle School.
• Gurukul Public High School.
• Khalsa Senior Secondary School.
• Government Girls' School.
• Government Boys' School.
• GMN Senior Secondary School.
• RTP Model School.
• Saint Carmel Public School.
• DaffoDil.....Z Playway School.
• Sri Dasmesh Academy, Anandpur Sahib.
• Shri Guru Ram Rai Public School.

Colleges and institutions

Famous people from the city

• Kanshi Ram founder of Bahujan Samaj Party hails from a village near Ropar.
• Dr. Rattan Chand, Senior Bureaucrat, Government of India.
• Surjit Bindrakhia a famous Punjabi singer hails from Bindrakh village of Rupnagar district
• Prof. Brij Lal Shastri, Punjabi poet, play writer and academician lived and died in Ropar and his old house was later named as Shastri Bhawan in his memory.
• Bhushan Dhianpuri, well-known Punjabi satirist and writer lived most of his life in Rupnagar and taught at Govt College Ropar.
• Jasbir Mand, Punjabi novelist hails from Hirdapur village of district Rupnagar

See also

• Indus Valley Civilization
• List of Indus Valley Civilization sites
• List of inventions and discoveries of the Indus Valley Civilization
• Hydraulic engineering of the Indus Valley Civilization

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rupnagar.

•  Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Rupar". Encyclopædia Britannica. 23 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 855. 
• Govt. Website on Rupnagar
• Rupnagar BSNL telephone directory search
• Archaeological Museum in Rupnagar (Archaeological Survey of India)
• Location of Ropar in IVC map