1.About Kanpur:-
Kanpur spelled as Cawnpore before 1948) is the tenth most populous city in India and the most populous within the state of Uttar Pradesh and in terms of area, Kanpur is the fifth largest city in India. Kanpur is located on the banks of the river Ganga and is an important industrial center. It has an area of over 1600 km² and had a population of 4.13 million in the 2001 census. Owing to the city's industrial importance, one of the Reserve Banks of India was established in the city.
2.Geography and landscape:-
The city's coordinates are 26.4670° North and 80.3500° East, placing it 83 km from Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh. Kanpur, along with Allahabad and Fatehpur, are part of the Lower Doab, which in antiquity was known as the Vats country. It is surrounded by two main rivers of India, the Ganges in the north-east and the Pandu river (Yamuna) in the south. The districts surrounding Kanpur are Hamirpur in the south and Unnao in the north-east.
3.Climate:-
Kanpur features an atypical version of a humid subtropical climate that resembles the climate of Delhi to some degree. Unlike many other cities with a humid subtropical climate, Kanpur features long and very hot summers, mild and relatively short winters, dust storms and a monsoon season. Kanpur lies in northern plains of India, which witness extremes of temperature. It can drop to a minimum of 0.0°C in the winters while it goes up to 48°C in summers. Kanpur experiences severe fog in December and January, resulting in massive traffic and travel delays. In summer excessive dry heat is accompanied by dust storms and Loo, traits more commonly seen in desert climates. Rains appear between July and September almost at the end of regular monsoon season. Some rainfall is recorded during the harvest season of March–April. These extremes however, give the region an advantage of having three crops of versatile range of products. Best time to visit Kanpur is either October–November or February–March.Snowfall has never occurred in the city.There are some times Hailstones accompanied with rain in the winter season during the month of January but sometimes Hailstorms have also occurred in the months of March and April.In January 2002,the city witnessed a heavy hailstorm which left the city streets white with ice pieces and recently in 2009 when the last hailstorm was recorded.Dust storms are frequent during the months of April–June.These dust storms are sometimes accompanied with light drizzles.Such dusty winds raise the level of particulates in the atmosphere resulting in severe air pollution and increasing health hazards.Sometimes the speed of winds exceeds to more than 100 km/hr in the outer areas of the city.Kanpur City lies on left bank of the river Ganges which is elevated very high from the river, which is the reason that the city never floods. Some of the rural outskirts of the city lie on the flood prone areas of the Ganga river and it often floods the villages on its banks during the monsoon season.The Left bank sandy areas on the banks of river Ganga are cultivated to produce summer fruits like Watermelon.The dry and Hot Loo winds help the growth of watermelon which results in its great yield.The average rainfall recorded in the city is 885 mm.
4.Demographics:-
Kanpur is situated on the banks of the river Ganga; the population was 2,551,337 as per the 2001 census. In the last decade, the population rose rapidly. One of the factors for this kind of growth can be a higher number of in-migration to Kanpur City from other areas. It ranked third after Lucknow and Varanasi in 1901, but by 1961 it assumed a position on top of the list. It has registered an increase of over five times in the course of six decades, from 197,170 in 1901 to 883,815 in 1961.[11] Kanpur has an area of about 1640 km² and is 126 meters above sea level. Languages spoken in and around Kanpur include Hindi, English, Urdu, Bengali and Punjabi. Hinduism is the most prominent religion in the city. There is a considerable number of Muslims mostly residing near Kanpur Central station and areas namely Parade, Bekanganj and Idgah colony. The Sikh community consists of immigrants who were displaced due to the Partition of India in 1947. They have since well established business in the city and reside in areas such as Govind Nagar, Gumti No.5, Ashok Nagar and 80 ft road. There are a small number of Christians also in Kanpur. Christ Church College and Methodist High School reflect British architecture.
5.History:-
Nestled on the banks of the eternal Ganga, Kanpur stands as one of North India’s major industrial centres with its own historical, religious and commercial importance. Believed to have been founded by king Hindu Singh of the erstwhile state of Sachendi, Kanpur was originally known as "Kanhpur". Historically, Jajmau on the eastern outskirts of present day Kanpur is regarded as one of the most archaic townships of Kanpur district. Up to the first half of the 18th century, Kanpur continued to survive as an insignificant village. Its fate, however, took a new turn soon after. In May 1765, Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab Wazir of Awadh, was defeated by the British near Jajmau. It was probably at this time that strategic importance of the site of Kanpur was realised by the British. European businessmen had by this time gradually started establishing themselves in Kanpur. In order to ensure protection to their lives and property, the "Awadh local forces" were shifted here in 1778. Kanpur passed into British hands under the treaty of 1801 with Nawab Saadat Ali Khan of Awadh. This forms a turning point in the history of Kanpur. Soon Kanpur became one of the most important military stations of British India. It was declared a district on 24 March 1803. Kanpur was a hotbed of change in the independence and literary movements during the 1900–1950 period. The largest shopping centre is named Navin Market, after the poet Bal Krishna Sharma aka "Navin". Later poets included Gopal Das "Niraj" who wrote songs for Bollywood movies. Kanpur is also the birthplace of Shyamlal Gupta `Parshad’, composer of the famous ditty Vijayee Vishwa Tiranga Pyara. The propagation and popularization of Hindi also owes much to this city, with great Hindu literatteurs such as Acharya Mahavir Parasad Dwivedi, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Pratap Narain Mishra and Acharya Gaya Prasad Shukla `Sanehi’. The Agricultural University is named after the revolutionary Chandrashekhar Azad and the Medical College after Ganesh Shanker Vidyarthi; both men spent much time in Kanpur. While Chandrashekhar 'Azad' shot himself when surrounded by a huge posse of British soldiers at Alfred Park, Allahabad, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi was killed during the Hindu-Muslim riots of 1931 at Machli Bazar in Kanpur. About 25 km from Kanpur is Bithoor. Legend has it that Sita, the wife of Lord Rama came to live at the ashram of sage Valmiki, after Rama expelled her from Ayodhya. It was here that she gave birth to the twins Lava (Ramayana) and Kusha (Ramayana), and disappeared back into the earth (from where she was born) when confronted by a repentant Rama. Bithoor is also the site of the fort to which Nana Sahib escaped following the British retaking of Kanpur. Today, Bithoor is a tourist spot on the banks of the Ganges and Kanpur is expanding very fast with new residential complexes sprouting up everywhere. Among festivals Ganga Mela is a unique festival that is played only in kanpur, 7 days after the festival Holi. The festival is celebrated in the memories of revolutionaries who were released by British government who were held prisoners during 1857 revolution.
