Aurangabad meaning "Built by the Throne", named after Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb) is a city in Maharashtra. The city is a tourist hub, surrounded with many historical monuments including Ajanta and Ellora World heritage sites. This district center is the administrative headquarter of Aurangabad Division, or Marathwada region.
There was a village named Kirki (Khadki) where the city stands today. According to some historians, the city was founded in 1610 by Malik Ambar. Malik Ambar was the Prime Minister of Murtaza Nizam Shah II of Ahmednagar, the then ruler of the Deccan (central parts of Southern India). It is widely believed that city took shape between 1604 and 1610 under Malik Ambar's rule. Initially, it was named Fatehpura (city of Victory), probably after Malik's son Fateh Khan.
Textiles, embroidered finery and various kinds of beads made in nearby Paithan were exported to the markets of Greece, Rome and Egypt.
In 1681, the city again became the residence of Aurangzeb, who had now become Mughal Emperor. He used the city as a base for his campaigns to conquer the last remaining Deccan sultanates until his death in 1707 AD. The modern name of the city was probably taken during his period. Aurangzeb's tomb is situated at Khultabad, a small town near the city.
PLACE TO VISIT
Ajanta and Ellora Caves - despite the name, Ajanta and Ellora are not a series of caves, but temples built out cavities carved by Buddhist monks in 200 B.C.. They had fallen into a state of disrepair, but were restored after being discovered in 1819 by the British military. Altogether, there are 30 caves. The works of art displayed in these caves are some of the best examples of Buddhist iconology in India. The caves are open from 9AM to 5:30PM Tues-Sun (closed on national holidays)
Lonar - This is site of a meteor which crashed on earth some 50,000 years ago and formed a large crater (few hundred meters in diameter) in the ground.
Paithan - Paithan is famous for its hand-woven sarees, a masonary dam over serene Godavari river and a huge garden on the lines of Brindavan garden in Mysore.
Daulatabad - is a fort over a hill and views from the top are breathtaking. Give ample time to climb up and coming down so that you could appreciate the views o/w fort is in ruins. You could also hire a guide who would take you around the important corners of the fort
Siddharth Garden - is a beautiful landscaped garden, with good variety of trees and shrubs. There is a small aquarium inside the garden, however the biggest attraction is the Siddharth Garden Zoo, with a large variety of animals, viz. Lions, Tigers (White & Bengal), Leopards, Crocodiles, Snakes (Snake-house), Civet cats, Hyena, Fox, Porcupine, Emu, Deers and a beautiful lawn to sit and have a great picnic.
Bibi ka Maqbara - was built by Aurangzeb's son and is an imitation of Taj Mahal, worth a visit.
Panchakki - is a simple funda of pouring water over blades of a fan like arrangement which has a grinder(chakki) on top used to grind wheat in olden days. There are small tanks with water and lotsss of fish whom you could feed but not feed them to yourself :-) This too is worth a visit but won't take much time.
Ghrishneshwar temple - is seat of one of the jyotirlings of lord Shiva, few
kms away from Ellora caves. No need to stress on its importance.
HOW TO REACH
Aurangabad is well connected by Air, Rail and Road to other parts of country. There are direct flights from Mumbai operated by Indian Airlines, Jet Airways and Air Deccan. It is located on Manmad - Nanded section of South Central Railway.
Important trains to the city are Tapovan express, Devgiri express from Mumbai, the Amritsar-Nanded Sachkhand Express, which connects Aurangabad to Delhi, and Manmad express from Hyderabad.
