Giddarbaha

Giddarbaha
—  city  —
Giddarbaha Location in Punjab, India
Coordinates: 30.20°N 74.67°E / 30.20; 74.67
Country	India
State	Punjab
District	Muktsar
Elevation	189 m (620 ft)
Population (2001)
• Total	36,593
Languages
• Official	Punjabi
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	152101
Telephone code	91-1637
Website	{{URL|example.com|optional display text}}

Giddarbaha (Punjabi: ਗਿੱਦੜਬਾਹਾ) is a city and a municipal council in Muktsar district, in the Indian state of Punjab.

History

According to the legend,Giddarbaha in its earliest stage was known as ‘Pepali’, named after the old tree ‘pipal’. Giddarbaha, means Pepali of that time, was a small village. It was very happy and small village with limited number of people. When Shri Guru Gobind Singh ji visited Pepali, they saw ladies of the village disturbed by the ‘giddar’ when they went to fetch water from the well. When Guru ji saw this, he inquired about the problem to which the villagers replied that everybody in this village is married except him (giddar). After knowing the problem, Guruji arranged the marriage of giddar. From there that village was renamed by the locals as ‘Giddar viahia'.

In The British Raj

During that time it took shape of a town from the small village and when Britishers reached here they wrongly pronounced the name as Giddarbaha. They planned a new walled city in 1909 with six gates and carved the name on the gates as Giddarbaha. From there people accepted the name and started pronouncing the same. In 1917, the British government established the Bathinda - Karachi railway line, to transport the goods from this part of India to Karachi. Giddarbaha Railway Station was established on the line in 1918 which divide the old and new city. It is established near the clock house gate and was very close to the bus stand.

Geography

Giddarbaha is located in the southwestern zone of Punjab. The district of Faridkot lies to its North, Firozepur to the West and Bathinda to the East

Climate

There is wide seasonal temperature variation in the Giddarbaha area, with summer temperatures reaching 48-50°C and winter temperatures down to 1-2°C. The western Himalayas in the north and the Thar Desert in the south and southwest mainly determine the climate conditions. The southwestern monsoon brings the rainy season during summer (July to September), with nearly 70% of the region's annual rainfall occurring during those months.

The major part of the district experiences an aridic (tropical) moisture regime. it is 16km away from malout city

Religion

Majority of Giddarbaha follows Sikhism since Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji's visit.

Demographics

As of 2001, according to the Indian census, Giddarbaha had a population of 36,593. Males constituted 53% of the population and females 47%. Gidderbaha had an average literacy rate of 89.5%, which was higher than the national average of 87.5%: male literacy was 92%, and female literacy was 87%. 14% of the population was under 6 years of age.

The Giddarbaha subdivision, which covers an area of 68,028 hectares, had a population of 205,118. There were 44 villages in the subdivision, with Doda being a sub-Tehsil.

Places of interest

• Gurdwara Dasvin Patshahi Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib
• Shree Durga Mandir
• Dera Baba Shree Ganga Ram Ji
• Mandi Wala Gurudwara Sahib
• Shree Gaushalla Mandir
• Samadha Park
• Aggarwal Peerkhana
• Hanuman Mandir Bantabad
• New Park
• Old park
• Clock House
• city club

The gates of the walled city

• Clock house gate
• City gate
• Husnar gate
• Bharu gate
• Theri gate
• Daula gate

Further afield

• The Gurudwara Sri Sahib at Theri Sahib, where Sri Guru Gobind Singh is believed to have rested for the night (5 km from Giddarbaha)
• The old Dera of Baba Ganga Ram ji, near Husnar village (3 km)
• The religious Sarovar of Kulguru, in Husnar village (2 km)
• The old church in Daula village (3 km)
• Mandi Wali Nehar (4 km)
• Dera Baba Lang (9 km)
• Badal village (8 km)

Economy

Giddarbaha is one of the largest producers of snuff in India, with the Photo Snuff factory being its best known producer.

The city also acts as an agricultural market serving surrounding towns and villages.

Notable people from Giddarbaha

• Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister of Punjab
• Sukhbir Singh Badal, Deputy Chief minister of Punjab
• Manpreet Singh Badal, Former Member of Legislative Assembly and former Finance Minister
• Gurdas Mann- Popular Punjabi singer

External links

• Giddarbaha City info website