From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Morbi

Morvi or Morbi is a city and a municipality in Rajkot district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It was a Princely State ruled by Jadeja clan of Rajputs until Indian independence in 1947. It is situated on the Kathiawar peninsula. In 1981, the city's population was determined to be 73,327. Its chief products are cotton and grain. The town is a railroad junction. The town of Morvi is situated on the river Machhu, 22 miles (35 kilometers) from the sea and 60 miles (96 kilometers) from Rajkot.

The city was badly damaged in the floods of 1979, caused by the failure of a dam.

The prosperous city state of Morbi and much of the built heritage and town planning is attributed to the efficient administration of Sir Waghji, who came to the throne in 1879 and ruled till 1948. Sir Waghji acted as a ruler, manager, patron and policemen of the state with great authority, always keeping the citizens' interests in mind. Sir Waghji, like other contemporary rulers of Saurashtra, built roads, Railway Network of seventy miles connecting Wadhvan and Morbi and two small ports of Navlakhi and vavania for exporting the state's production of salt and cloth. The railway station of Morbi is a beautiful example of Railway architecture, combining Indian and European architectural elements.

The most important buildings at Morbi are: Darbargadh, Mani Mandir, Wellingdon Secretariat, Suspension Bridge, Art Deco Palace and Lakhdhirji Engineering College.

Darbargadh, on the bank of Machchu, is an original residence of Morbi rulers. It can be reached by crossing an imposing gate arcaded facade, Now it is the only heritage hotel at Morbi.

Mani Mandir is a temple situated in the courtyard of Wellingdon Secretariat. The images of Laxmi Narayan, Mahakali, Ramchandraji, Radha- Krishna and Shiva are worshiped in this temple. Mani Mandir is made out of Jaipur stone with excellent workmanship and exquisitely carved elements-arches, brackets, jalis, chhatris and shikhara. Wellingdon Secretariat is an excellent example of the application of principles of Rajput architecture by master craftsmen, at the turn of the century.

The Suspension Bridge, an engineering marvel built at the turn of the century, reflects the progressive and scientific nature of the rulers of Morbi. This was built to give a unique identity to Morbi using the latest technology available in those days in Europe. It is 1.25 metres wide and spans 233 metres on the Machchhu River connecting Darbargadh Palace and Lakhdhirji Engineering College.

Green Chowk is a town square approached by series of three gates. European town planning principles inspired the creation of these gates as landmarks in the town. The Nehru Gate is made out of stone using elements of Rajput architecture with central clock tower, while another one uses elements of western architecture and is capped by a three-storey cast iron frame structure with a dome.

Art Deco Palace (1931–1944) is a marvellous example of influence of last phase of art deco movement of Europe. It is poetry in granite, a low two storey in banded horizontal fenestration, curves and bays, which resembles the London underground stations of Charles Holden. The palace has six drawing rooms, six dining rooms, and fourteen bedrooms. The decorated subterranean bedroom, with many erotic murals and a bathroom made from seashells are also noteworthy.

Lakhdhirji Engineering College is housed in Nazarbag Palace, a former residence of Morbi rulers. The other places worth visiting at Morbi are: V C High School, main Railway Station and Nazarbag Railway Station.

Excursions in Morbi Dhrangadhra (royal palaces) 75km, Wadhvan (Royal Palace, bazaar, step wells) 107 km, Halvad (Ek-dandia Mahal-Zalawzad Darshan, wooden palace, Cenotaphs)48 km, Wankaner (Royal Palaces, step wells) 29 km, Maliya (Royal Palace) 32 km, Rajkot (princely architecture, Watson Museum, Rajkumar College, Ramkrishna Mission, Kaba Gandhi no Delo) 67 km

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

Hanging bridge over river machhu is one of the important attraction in Morbi.

Major industry of Morbi is clock manufacturing and tile making. Ajanta clocks, the world's largest clock manufacturer, leads the clock manufacturing industry. Majority of the companies worker consists of females from the neighbourhood villages. Some of the tile manufacturers like Varmora tiles, Croma ceramics, Oreva leads in the tiles industries.

The engineering college which hosts over 3000 engineering students is also a major source of income influx in morbi. Lukhdirji Engineering college (L.E. College) is one of the oldest colleges in Gujarat.