Najibabad

Najibabad is a town in the Bijnor district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, located near the city of Bijnor. It is a major industrial city and is well connected to all major cities of India by roadways via NH 119 and NH 74 respectively and also by various trains.

History

Nawab Najib-ud-Daula, also known as Najib Khan was a noted Rohilla Muslim warrior and serviceman of both the Mughal Empire and the Durrani empire, Nawab Najib-ud-Daula was a noted Rohilla tribal chief in 18th century Rohilkhand. In the 1740s, he founded the city of Najibabad in Bijnor district, India where he established the present-day city of Najibabad, a state of Najibabad independent from Rohilla tribes, and received the title, "Nawab Najib-ud-Daulla". From 1757 to 1770 he was governor of Saharanpur, ruling over Dehradun.Many architectural relics of the period of Rohilla he oversaw remain in Najibabad, which he founded at the height of his career as a Mughal minister.He succeed Safdarjung as Grand Wazir of the Mughal Empire and was a devoted serviceman of the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II; later in his career he was known as Nawab Najib-ud-Doula.

According to George Foster ("A Journey from Bengal to England", 1790): After the death of Najib-u-Daula, he was succeeded by his son Zabita Khan. His cemetery is still in present-day Najibabad.In Najibabad, there was a fort of great Sultana Daku or "The Sultan Bandit". The fort is still situated in Najibabad.Najibabad city also known as "GATEWAY OF HIMALAYAS" and "shehro ka shehar".

Najibabad is also the native place of the illustrious Sahu Jain family - brothers Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain and Shreyans Prasad Jain and their nephew Sahu Ramesh Chandra Jain were born here. The descendants of the Sahu Jain family own the Times Group and its parent company, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. That runs the world's largest selling newspaper. Trimohan Pan Bhandar is one of the oldest shop of the city.

In Najibabad, at Kotdwar road there is a place known as Mordhwaj. where a Buddhist stupa (mound) has been discovered made in Ashoka period and renovated in Kushana's period. which gives Najbabad a historical value and place to the rich and great culture and heritage of India. The stupa probably the one of the 84000 stupas made by Ashoka in his reign.Its condition is not well now but many of the old artifacts has been discovered from the place which are in preservation of ASI.

Geography

Najibabad is located at . It has an average elevation of 295.5 metres (1014 feet).

Climate

People's representative

The current Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Najibabad is Tasleem ( Samajwadi Party). The current Municipal board(Nagar Palika) chairman is Sabiha Nishat W/O Mohammad Mozzam Khan ( Samajwadi Party). Najibabad is part of Nagina parliamentary constituency and current Member of Parliament is Girish Chandra( Bahujan Samaj Party).

Forts and monuments

Najibabad has four sites protected by the Archaeological Survey of India :

*Tomb of Nawab Najib-ud-Daula
*Pathargarh Fort built by Najib-ud-Daula (Famous by name of 'Sultana Daku ka Qila')
*Portion of the old Rohilla Palace (called Thanna)

Other historical sites include:

* Jama Masjid Najibabad
* Eidgah Husainpur
* Purana Shiv Mandir, Adarsh Nagar, Najibabad
* Jama Masjid Husainpur
* Baba Nanhe Miya Mazar, Paibagh
* Gurudwara Najibabad
* Char minar Mehdibagh
*Mordhaj also known as Munawar Jar with lofty mound Called chaar minar

Industries

Najibabad has an All India Radio centre. The town is an important trade centre for timber, sugar and grain. There are manufacturing units which deal with metal, shoes, blankets, shawls and cotton.

Handicrafts

Najibabad has many craftsmen, the most remarkable being the rafoogars or the darners. Traditionally from the muslim community, they specialize in restoring old pashmina shawls and creating new ones from bits and pieces of old embroideries. They stitch strips and patches of old embroideries to new cloth to make new shawls, scarves, mufflers even sarees. If the old embroidered garment is not in complete tatters, they fill up holes, tears and cuts with invisible stitches, taking the thread from the garment itself so that it matches completely and back it with a fine lining to give support to the old garment. For the restoration, the drape of the garment is also taken into account and the restored garment is completely wearable with no sagging or untidy patches. The rafoogars are usually men, women may support their work by specializing in stitches that camouflage the patchwork, so there is an hierarchy and discipline is practicing this handicraft. Like many other traditional arts and handicrafts this art too is dying, as not many people appreciate old restored embroideries and craftsmen are encouraging their children to take up other professions.

Demographics

As of 2011 Indian census Najibabad had a total population of 88,535 of which 46,372 are males while 42,163 are females. Population within the age group of 0 – 6 years was 12,697.

Notable people

* Najib ad-Dawlah
*Mohammad Ali Jauhar
* Akbar Shah Khan Najibabadi
*Akhtar ul Iman
*Sahu Jain family
* Tasleem
* Rais Anis Sabri - traditional singer

References

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External links

Numistatics
{{Bijnor district

Cities and towns in Bijnor district
Rohilla
Embroidery in India