Anand is the administrative centre of Anand District in the state of Gujarat, India. It is administered by Anand Municipal Corporation. It is part of the region known as Charotar, consisting of Anand and Kheda districts. Anand is Former Part Of Kaira District (now Kheda) in British Raj.

Anand
The Milk City
Charotar Region Of Gujarat
Amul Plant at Anand
Amul Plant at Anand
Nickname: 
The Milk City
Anand is located in Gujarat
Anand
Anand
Location in Gujarat, India
Anand is located in India
Anand
Anand
Anand (India)
Anand is located in Asia
Anand
Anand
Anand (Asia)
Coordinates: 22°33′22″N 72°57′04″E / 22.556°N 72.951°E / 22.556; 72.951
Country India
StateGujarat
DistrictAnand
RegionCharotar Region Of Gujarat
Government
 • TypeAnand Municipal Corporation
Area
 • Total47.89 km2 (18.49 sq mi)
 • Rank11
Elevation
39 m (128 ft)
Population
 (2023)
 • Total27,900 (metro−410,016
 • Rank8
 • Density6,562.25/km2 (16,996.1/sq mi)
DemonymCharotar-ites
Languages
 • OfficialGujarati, Hindi, English
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
388001
Area code2692
Vehicle registrationGJ-23
Websitegujaratindia.com

Anand is known as the "Milk Capital of India". It became famous for Amul dairy and its milk revolution by the Amul trinity: Tribhuvandas Patel, Verghese Kurien and H. M. Dalaya.[1] This city hosts the Head Office of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (GCMMF), the NDDB of India,the Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA), Vidya Dairy and the Anand Agricultural University. Another famous educational hub is Vallabh Vidhyanagar, an educational suburb of Anand which has institutes like BVM (Birla Vishvkarma Mahavidhyalaya), which is the first engineering college of Gujarat, GCET (G. H. Patel College of Engineering and Technology), ADIT(A.D Patel Institute Of Technology)and MBIT (M B Patel Institute of Technology). Other than these, Vallabh Vidhyanagar is also home to two major universities, those being SPU and CVM. Hence Anand is often referred to as the educational hub of Gujarat.

Ahmedabad Mumbai bullet train station is located in Anand, and Anand lies between Ahmedabad and Vadodara on the Western Railways, 101 km (63 mi) from the state capital Gandhinagar. It is a railway Junction and a broad gauge line from here runs to Godhra, covering Dakor, a major Hindu pilgrimage en route. MEMUs and one or two regular passenger trains ply on this route. It also has a branch line to Khambhat. DMUs Diesel Multiple Units ply on this route as it is not electrified yet. Anand Railway Station has 5 platforms, numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 are on the main line and number 5 is on the branch line to Godhra. A new platform is in construction on the branch to Ahmedabad from the Godhra line forming a triangle. The Ahmedabad Vadodara Expressway from Ahmedabad to Vadodara also passes through Anand.

Geography

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Anand is located at 22°34′N 72°56′E / 22.57°N 72.93°E / 22.57; 72.93.[2] It has an average elevation of 39 m (128 ft). The city has an area of 47.89 km2 (18.49 sq mi).

Demographics

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As of 2011 India census,[3] Anand had a population of 634,987. Males constitute 51.77% of the population and females 48.23%. Anand has an average literacy rate of 78.45%, higher than the national average of 59.5% (55% of the males and 45% of females literate). 11% of the population is under 6 years of age. Average literacy rate of Anand in 2011 were 84.37 compared to 74.51 of 2001. Gender wise, male and female literacy were 91.82 and 76.36 respectively. For 2001 census, same figures stood at 86.09 and 61.94 in Anand District.[4]

Religions in Anand city
Religion Percent
Hinduism
72.30%
Islam
21.93%
Christianity
4.05%
Jainism
1.03%
Sikhism
0.41%
Buddhism
0.02%

Economy

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Anand Junction

Economy of the Anand is very vibrant which ranges from farming to big scale industries. Major crops includes Tobacco and Banana. Anand is home to the famous Amul Dairy,[5] Vidya Dairy,[6] Amul Chocolate Plant, Mogar and Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation. Anand is home to famous educational institute named Institute of Rural Management Anand.[7] Vitthal Udhyog Nagar, a very big industrial belt is located on the outskirts of the city. Many famous industries including HLE Glascoat Ltd.Elecon Engineering, Vulcan Industrial Engineering Co. Ltd, Warm Steam, The Charotar Iron Factory (est.1938), Milcent, Atlanta Electrics, Worldwide Overseas Travels and Alian Software are situated in this industrial belt. Also there are three vegetable markets which have developed in this city. The well known Shri Krishna Hospital, Karamsad is located near Anand.[citation needed] The first Aerospace company in Gujarat BC Instruments India Pvt Ltd, started operating in year 2004 and has prestigious AS9100 and NADCAP approvals.

Notable people

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The city has produced many notable individuals, including H M Patel, former Finance Minister of India;[8] Verghese Kurien, the man who made the milk revolution possible;[9] Harish Dave, a renowned Gujarati poet; Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, a prominent freedom fighter and the first home minister of India, was also born in the Karamsad suburb of Anand.Vishvesh Parmar, a Bollywood singer was also born in Anand. USA National Cricket Team Captain Monank Patel was born and brought up in the city of Anand before moving to the US in 2010.

References

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  1. ^ DAMODARAN, HARISH (13 September 2012). "The Amul trinity". thehindubusinessline.com. Retrieved 12 January 2021. The original credit goes to Dalaya — something that Kurien always acknowledged, and reiterated when the former passed away on September 12, 2004. While Patel dealt with the farmers, and Dalaya took charge of the technical and internal affairs of the dairy, "my role was only in marketing, external affairs and handling politicians, bureaucrats and other establishment people," the ever-frank Kurien admitted at the time. In Anand, it was said that if Patel was the Father of Amul, Kurien was the Son, and Dalaya the Holy Ghost.
  2. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Anand
  3. ^ "Census of India 2011: Data from the 2011 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census of India. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  4. ^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008. http://www.census2011.co.in/census/district/196-anand.html
  5. ^ "How Amul Went On To Become The Largest Dairy In The Country". News18.
  6. ^ "Vidya Dairy". India Science And Technology.
  7. ^ "IRMA's 42nd batch registers 100% placement". The Times of India. 2 April 2023.
  8. ^ ARFA, JAVAID. "Who delivered the shortest Budget speech in India?". Jagran Josh.
  9. ^ "National Milk Day: Who was Dr Verghese Kurien, the father of the White Revolution?". CNBC TV 18. 25 November 2022.
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