Hardoi

Geography

Hardoi is located at 27.42°N 80.12°E / 27.42; 80.12. It has an average elevation of 134 metres (440 ft). Hardoi is located at 110 km from Lucknow (capital of Uttar Pradesh) and 394 from New Delhi (capital of India). The Ganges and several of its tributaries are crossing the south of Hardoi district. Its area is 5947 km2. The record height is 500 ft. In 1995, Hardoi district had 5 km2 of dense forest and 13 km2 of open forest. The length of this district from northwest to southeast is 125.529 km and width from east to west is 74.83 km. District Hardoi comprises five tehsils (Hardoi, Shahabad, Bilgram, Sandila, and Sawayajpur), 19 blocks, 191 Nyay Panchayat, 1101 Gram Sabha, and 1901 inhabited revenue villages. Sandi Bird Sanctuary created in 1990, previously, "Dahar Jheel", is an important ecotourism bird habitat.

It also has 7 Nagar Palika Parishads & 6 Nagar Panchayats . Geographical area is 5947 km². As per census 2011 population of the district is 4091380, out of which Female are 1887116 & Male are 2204264.[4]

Demographics

As of 2011 India census, Hardoi city had a population of 197,029. Males constitute 52.59% of the population and females 47.41%. In 2011 Average literacy rate of Hardoi city was 81.67% higher than the national average of 74.9%: male literacy was 86.59%, and female literacy was 76.22%. In Hardoi, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Note :Famous 2012 Bollywood movie Ishaqzaade was shot in many locations of Hardoi district.

Name origin

People believe that the name Hardoi comes from distorted version of its earlier name Haridrohi, which is a Hindi word that means "anti to the God". According to Hindu theology, in the past it was ruled by a King Hiranyakashipu, who didn’t have faith in God, but instead declared himself as God. He wanted the people to pray to him, but later his own son Prahlada rebelled. He tried to kill his own son by various means, but was unsuccessful. Later, to save Prahlad, God Vishnu as Narasimha himself came in disguise, such that he was neither human nor animal, and killed Hiranyakashipu. According to some scholars, the term "Hardoi" originated from the term "Haridwaya" which means two gods. Since there were two gods, Vamana Bhagavan (in the regime of King Bali) and Narasimha Bhagavan (in the regime of King Hiranyakashipu), who had been incarnated there and hence the place was called Haridwaya and later was called Hardoi.

History

According to general conventions Hardoi district is related with "HIRNAKASHYAP" its present name Hardoi is a distorted version of its earlier name "HARIDROHI ". In view of some people this district was colonized by Hardevbaksh and just because of this reason there is an old locality Hardevganj which exists in the city. Mallawa, Bilgram, Pihani, Shahabad, Sandila & Ruiyaa are the places of historical significance. According to some historians Mallawa was colonized by Buddhists while some believed that Sayyed Salar Masood Gazi came here. Earlier this area Mallawa was district headquarter. The ancient name of Bilgram is "SRINAGAR" its present name Bilgram was given by some associates of Mahmood Gajnavi. Pihani is derived by Persian word Pinhani (place of shelter), it is believed that king of Moughal dynasty Humayun took shelter in the forest of Pihani when he was defeated by Shershah Suri. Pihani is also related with the minister Sadarejahan of Emperor Akbar. His tomb and paintings are still here. According to the view of some people, Sandila was colonized by Rishi Sandilya. Sandila is also famous for old buildings, mosque & Barakhamba.

Rulers

Hardoi is first mentioned during the Muslim rule. In 1028, Bawan was invaded by Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Masud. However, Muslims didn’t occupy the region until 1217. After long struggle Sayyad Shakir established first Muslim site at GOPAMAU. Many battles between the Mogul and Afghan empires took place in Hardoi region due to the location of the district. Humayun was defeated by Sher Shah Suri between the cities of Bilgram and Sandi, and he escaped by crossing the river Ganges with the help of a bhisti to whom he had made the king for one day after regaining the throne.

Later, in February 1856, Hardoi, as a part of Oudh, became part of the British territory after Lord Dalhousie's proclamation. The headquarters of the district were at first Mallawan, but then became Hardoi after the Sepoy Mutiny.

Economy

In 1901, the main activities were wood-carving industry, saltpetre works and grain trade. The district exports grain, sugar, hides, tobacco and saltpetre.

Agriculture

Agriculture is the main activity in the district and many people depend on it. Of the total area, 3980.45 km² is devoted to agriculture. The main crops are paddy, sugarcane, wheat, vegetables, pulses and oilseeds. A small proportion of the total cultivated is used for horticulture: guava, mangoes, some herbs, etc. Irrigation is made possible by the presence of the Hardoi and Lucknow branches of the Sarda Canal.

technical college

Degree colleges

Schools

Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Itara-Pihani, Hardoi

DIET

List of Winning MP and Runner up from 1957 to till date from Hardoi Lok Sabha Constituency