Orai

History

Orai has been named after a saint (Rishi) Uddalak because he worshipped there and has historical value because of its location, which is between Jhansi, Mahoba and Kalpi. Orai was also known as the City of King 'Mahil' who was infamous for his bad habits and back-biting; he betrayed his nephews Alha and Udal. Alha and Udal were Rajput.

There is a small story or belief behind this place. It is said that the King was fond of getting married. First time he got married in his childhood and after getting bored of his first wife, he married again. Like this he did four hundred one marriages. Later on he decided to abandon his childish attitude and adopted shistacharya. After doing this he made one ashram for his wives where they all can enjoy their lives as per their wishes. Aalah of the Banaphar Rajput clan was the famous general of the great Chandel king Parmal, who fought Prithviraj Chauhan in 1182 CE. Alha is one of the heroes of the Alha-Khand poem, popularly recited in the Bundelkhand region of India, a work that is also known as Parmal Raso.

The town of Kalpi on the Yamuna was conquered by the armies of Muhammad of Ghor in 1196. Early in the 14th century the Bundelas occupied the greater part of Jalaun, and even succeeded in holding the fortified post of Kalpi. During 1553-56, the Hindu Prime Minister and Chief of Army of Suri empire, who later became Emperor of north India at Delhi with coronation on 7th Oc.1556 won this area. He established Hindu Raj in north India and acquired title of Vikramaditya. After Hem Chandra Vikramaditya's death at 22nd battle of Panipat, this important possession was soon recovered by Akbar's army, and passed under the way of the Mughal Empire. Akbar's governors at Kalpi maintained a nominal authority over the surrounding district, and the Bundela chiefs were in a state of chronic revolt, which culminated in the war of independence under Maharaja Chhatrasal. On the outbreak of his rebellion in 1671 he occupied a large province to the south of the Yamuna. Setting out from this base, and assisted by the Marathas, he conquered the whole of Bundelkhand. On his death in 1732 he bequeathed one-third of his dominions to his Maratha allies, who before long succeeded in annexing the whole of Bundelkhand. Under Maratha rulethe country was a prey to constant anarchy and strife.In 1806 Kalpi was made over to the British, and in 1840, on the death of Nana Gobind Ras, his possessions lapsed to them also. Various interchanges of territory took place, and in 1856 the boundaries of the British district were substantially settled, with an area of 1477 square miles.

Orai, Jalaun was the scene of much violence during the Revolt of 1857. When the news of the rising at Kanpur reached Kalpi, the men of the 53rd Native Infantry deserted their officers, and in June the Jhansi rebels reached the district, and began their murder of Europeans. It was not until September 1858 that the rebels were finally defeated. In the later 19th century, the district suffered much from the invasive kans grass (Saccharumspontaneum, owing to the spread of which many villages were abandoned and their land thrown out of cultivation. The population of the district was 399,726 in 1901, and the two largest towns are Konch and Kalpi (pop. 10,139 in 1901). The district was traversed by the line of the Indian Midland railway from Jhansi to Kanpur. A small part of it is watered by the Bethwa Canal. Grain, oil-seeds, cotton and ghee were exported.

After 1990

Orai is basicially changed after 1990. Major changes are due to industrial area, HUL (Hindustan Unilever LTD), Sun India Pharmacy and many others. Schools, Colleges, Roads and many more are made after 1990.

Climate

Orai has a composite climate, with temperatures high in summer and low in winter. Relative humidity remains about 40-50%. The climate of Orai district is characterized by a hot summer and general dryness, except for rainfall during the southwest monsoon season. The year has four seasons. The cold season lasts from December to February; January's minimum temperature is 7.1 C. The hot season is from March until the first week of June. May is the hottest month of the year with an average temperature of 42.1 C. The southwest monsoon runs from the middle of June until the end of September. October and middle of November constitute the post-monsoon or retreating monsoon season. The normal annual rainfall of Orai is 793.8 mm. About 90.4% of annual rainfall is received during monsoon season; only 9.6% of annual rainfall takes place between October to May. The humidity is lowest in April and varies between 26% and 83% throughout the year.

Demographics

The literacy rate was 82.35 percent as per Orai City Census 2011 data

Orai City Overview Orai city is governed by Municipal Corporation which comes under Orai Metropolitan Region. The Orai city is located in Uttar Pradesh state of India.The Total Area Of Orai Is 20.86 km².

Orai Population 2016 The population of Orai in 2016 is 217,389; of which male and female are 111,987 and 105,402 respectively.

Orai Sex Ratio 2011 The sex ratio of Orai city is 880 per 1000 males. Child sex ratio of girls is 845 per 1000 boys.

Orai Child Population 2016 Total children (0-6) in Orai city is 31,011 on 2016. There were 17,859 boys and 13,152 girls. Children form 7.01% of the total population of Orai City.

Railway

Orai railway station is the main railway station, sitting exactly between Kanpur-Jhansi section and well connected with east, west & southern part of India via rail.

The existing railway line(North Central Railway) from Jhansi to Kanpur has been electrified and the Jhansi division has decided to post an IRSEE-2010 batch officer (departmental rank-2) sh.Rah hiul Tripathi as ADEE Orai and in charge of this section. Orai railway station comes under the "model railway station" category.

Many trains such as Jhansi-Lukhnow Intercity Express, Lucknow-Mumbai AC Express, Gwalior-Barauni Mail, Kushinagar Express, Sabarmati Express, Pratham Swatantrata Sangram Express and many more trains have departure in Orai.

Road

Inter state bus terminus helps it to connect with the rest of the state and adjacent states as well. The East-West Corridor Passes through Orai connecting it to cities like Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Jhansi, Lucknow, Kota, Udaipur, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, etc. Within the City, "Vikram", e-Rickshaw and Cycle Rickshaw are the major form of City Transport.

Medical College