Gwalior

About Gwalior

Gwalior is the fourth largest city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh where it serves as the capital and the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division. It is an important cultural, industrial, sports and political centre. Known as the music city of India, it is home to the oldest musical gharana of the Indian subcontinent and of the earliest known epigraphical inscription that uses the number 0 (zero) as part of the Hindu numeral system. The grand historic city and its fortress have been ruled by several Indian kingdoms from the Alchon Huns to the Gurjara Pratihara and Kachchhapaghata dynasties. Later it fell into the hands of the Delhi Sultanate before passing on to their vassals, the Tomars.

The Mughal Empire conquered the city and its fortress in the 16th century. Following the decline of the empire, the city fell into the hands of Jat rulers, then to the British East India Company in 1730. The Scindia Dynasty of the Maratha Empire took control of the city in the early 18th century.

Gwalior was one of the major locations of the Sepoy Mutiny. Prior to Indian independence, the Kingdom of Gwalior remained a princely state of the British Raj with the Scindia as rulers and the city became the winter capital of the Central India Agency. Gwalior was a premier twenty-one Gun Salute State along with Hyderabad, Mysore, Jammu and Kashmir and Baroda.

Post Independence, the city became the capital of the short-lived state of Madhya Bharat, now part of the larger state of Madhya Pradesh. Located in its northern part, it is one of the counter-magnet cities hosting many administrative offices of the Chambal division including the state and national headquarters of several organisations, commissions and boards and is surrounded by industrial and commercial zones of neighbouring districts, Malanpur, Bhind, Banmore, Morena.

Gwalior occupies a strategic location in the historical Gird region. Surrounded by high rocky hills, the city is situated in the valley in the Ganga-Yamuna Drainage Basin. The city's metropolitan area includes Lashkar, Old City (Fort City), Gwalior West, Gwalior East, Greater Gwalior, and Morar Cantonment.

Gwalior is one of the cities selected under the central government's flagship Smart Cities Mission and startup centre programmes.

One of UNESCO's cities of Music as part of the world creative cities network, Gwalior's identity is strongly associated with its rich musical, artistic traditions and vibrant culture, making it one of India's most touristic cities.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA. Photography via Wikimedia Commons.