Gujarat

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State of west India, formed from north and west Bombay state in 1960; bordered to the north by Pakistan and Rajasthan, with Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra to the east and southeast; area 195,984 sq km/75,670 sq mi; population (2001 est) 50,597,000 (70% Hindu). The capital is Gandhinagar (founded in 1961); other major towns are Ahmadabad and Vadodara; the main port is Kandla. The state is heavily industrialized, with the main industries being petrochemicals, oil (from Kalol, refined at Koyali near Baroda), gas, textiles, coal, limestone, pharmaceuticals, soda ash, electrical engineering, machine tools, cement, fertilizers, and dairy products. Most of the population are dependent on agriculture, which is based on wheat, millet, cotton, rice, maize, tobacco, and groundnuts, but cultivation is limited by the seasonality of rainfall in the south and aridity in the north.

History
Indus Valley civilization settlements dating from the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC have been found at Lothal on the Gulf of Khambhat and at Kuntasi near Morvi. Rock carvings with the edicts of the Emperor Asoka dating from the 3rd century BC have been found in the region. The Gurjaras ruled in the 8th and 9th centuries AD, followed by Muslim rule until the end of the 13th century, the Moguls, and the Marathas from the mid-18th century, until the British took control in 1818. The Portuguese possessed Diu until 1961. The state of Gujarat was set up in 1960 to include the Gujarati-speaking population of the former state of Bombay. In 1968 a small part of Gujarat was allocated to Pakistan following a long border dispute.

Red recalls the banner of Manas who united the Kyrgyz tribes. The emblem shows a bird's-eye view of a yurt, secured by a lattice of ropes. Effective date: 3 March 1992. >>