Kota Rajasthan

Dubbed as the powerhouse of Rajasthan, Kota is an important city in the biggest state of India. Kota is located on the riverbanks of Chambal River. The city is an important commercial hub in Rajasthan and is famous for its agricultural produces such as wheat, millet, pulses, rice, oilseeds, and coriander. At present, Dr. Ratna A. Jain is the mayor of the city.

Where is Kota Located?

The city lies at a distance of 149 miles (240 km) to the south of Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Following Jaipur and Jodhpur, Kota ranks as the third largest city in the state. The city is situated by the side of the eastern riverbanks of the Chambal River. It forms the southern region of the state. The precise coordinates on a map are 25°18' North and 75°83' East. To the north and northwest, the district of the same name is surrounded by the districts of Tonk, Sawai Madhopur, and Bundi. Distances from the prominent cities of India are given below:

• Delhi - 510 km
• Jaipur - 246 km
• Mumbai - 920 km

Geography and Weather

The city encompasses a total area of about 12,436 km², which represents 3.63% of the whole area of the state. The mean altitude of the area is 889 feet or 271 meters. The Chambal River splits the Tonk, Sawai Madhopur, and Bundi districts from the area by creating the natural frontier.

Summer in the area spans from April to end October. Throughout this duration, the mean temperature soars to approximately 42.6°C during the day. The area features moderately pleasant winters and the mean temperatures stay within the range of 7°C (minimum) to 26.7°C (maximum). The mean yearly precipitation in the district amounts to 885.6 mm.

Population and density of population

According to the census update of 2011, the population of the area is 1,076,000. The density of population is 318 /km2 (824/sq mile).

Why is Kota Famous?

The city is famous for a number of reasons. It houses many industries such as fabric weaving, yarn and oilseed milling, dairy industry, refineries, fertilizers, making of metal handcrafts, engineering devices, and chemicals.

The city is full of productive land and foliage. Irrigation services are available via various inland waterways in the city. It is regarded as one of the prominent manufacturing centers in North India. The city is home to various production centers, chemical, and power plants. Prominent corporate houses in the area include:

• Instrumentation Limited
• DCM Sriram Consolidated Limited (DSCL)
• Samtel Glass Limited
• Multimetals Limited
• CFCL (Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals Limited)
• Birla Cement
• Metal India
• Sriram Fertilizers

The city houses the Crosthwaite Institute. There are many historic and new fortresses of the maharajahs, also known as Maharao. The area is also known for its unique pattern of painting.

The city is the origin of sandstone, the Kota stone, kachori, and sarees that are popularly known as Kota sarees.

Prominent Educational Institutes in Kota

The city is one of the leading educational hubs in the state. There are several academic institutes that offer guidance and training for pre-medical, pre-IIT, and pre-engineering. For pre-IIT, some of the famous training institutes include Vibrant Academy, Career Point, Resonance Eduventures Pvt. Ltd. and Bansal Classes. For pre-medical entrance studies, Allen Career Institute has garnered a lot of fame. There are many reputed schools in the city.

The principal universities of the city are as follows:

• University of Kota
• Rajasthan Technical University
• Vardhman Mahaveer Open University

Other than these educational institutes, the city also houses one private dental college, one government medical college, 15 general colleges, six engineering colleges, a medical college, and a few MBA Institutes.

Tourist Attractions in Kota

The city of Kota features a suite of tourist attractions, which includes the following:

Religious places

• Godavari Dham Temple
• Khare Ganesha Temple
• Badoli Temples
• Karneshwar Temple
• Tirupati Balaji Temple
• Agamgarh Saheb Gurudwara
• Gaiparnath Temple

Museums

• The Government Museum
• Maharao Madho Singh Museum

Picnic Spots and Gardens

• Traffic Park
• Chambal Garden
• The Keshar Bagh - Garden known for its regal commemorative plaques.
• Chatra Vilas Udyan
• Gapernath (Picnic Spot)
• Kala Khet (Picnic Spot)
• Darrah National Park
• Bheetariya Kund (Picnic Spot)
• Adharshila - Located close to Bheetariya Kund. Adharshila is a large stone in the water where the entire load of the stone is over a single tip. It is also called as Adhar Shila or slanting rock.
• Bhanvarkunj - Famous for the Chambal falls

Places of Entertainment and Theme Parks

Sawan Phuhar Water Park - The oldest water theme park in the city. Besides recreational activities, the site also houses a fast food bistro named RIPPLES.

Other tourist draws
Other than the abovementioned attractions, the city houses the following places of interest:

• Garh Palace
• Chambal River Alligator (Ghariyal) Reservoir
• Pahadajhar Mahadev Water Fall
• Brijraj Bhavan Palace (Dwelling of Ex-Darbar)
• Jawahar Sagar Dam
• Jag Mandir
• Kota Barrage

Commercial Centers and Shopping Malls
Kotri Road and Gumanpura rank among the biggest shopping areas and they satisfy the needs of a broad customer base. These areas are home to some of the famous One Brand-Retail Outlets such as OCM, Raymonds, Lee, Birla Century, Adidas, Levis, Puma, Nike, Madame, and Reebok.

The oldest mall in the area is the City Mall. It houses big brands such as Dominos, Big Bazar, 4 screen Fun Cinemas, McDonalds, Food Court, Cafe Coffee Day, Crosswords, and other celebrated clothing outlets.

The second oldest mall is the Central Square Mall, which is situated at Kotri Road. Just Inn, Cinemall, and Akash Multiplex close to the Airport are the forthcoming malls to be opened in the city.

Who offers Healthcare Services in Kota?

The city of Kota houses the following hospitals and healthcare centers:

• Fortis Modi Hospital - Srinathpuram
• MBS Hospital - Civil Lines
• Maitri Hospital - Talwandi
• R.K. Puram Medical College Hospital
• Dadabari Cancer Hospital
• Talwandi Sudha Hospital
• PMC American Hospital - Indra Vihar
• Kota Heart Institute - Talwandi
• Vigyan Nagar E.S.I. Hospital
• Bharat Vikas Parishad Hospital - Pratap Nagar
• Ratna Nursing Home - Nayapura

Transportation

Roadways
The city is adequately linked to all the towns and cities in the state of Rajasthan. Kota features an extensive road transportation network and is well connected with cities such as Jaipur (250 Km), Delhi (510 Km), and Ahmedabad (950 Km). NH-12 (Jabalpur-Jaipur) and NH-76 traverses the district. NH-76 forms a portion of the East-West Corridor.

The principal bus stop lies at Nayapura Area. Other major bus stops are as follows:

Rawatbhatta Bus Stand at Ghode Baba Crossing
Interstate Bus Terminus at DCM Road.

Important means of roadway transportation include private buses, the government buses, and vehicles/jeeps for rental.

By Air
There is no airport in the city. The nearest airport is located at Jaipur and the distance is around 240 km. Regular flights are available to Mumbai, Delhi, Indore, Pune, Ahmedabad and other important cities in India.

By Rail
Kota Junction is an important station in the West Central Railway. The city operates three express trains to Kolkata. Major trains that have a stop at Kota include the following:

• Kolkata Express via Chopan - Daltonganj
• Garbha Express,
• Marusagar Express
• Shalimar (Calcutta) Express via Tata Nagar
• Dayodaya Express
• Jaipur - Durg Express
• Rajdhani Express

On the Delhi-Mumbai line, it is one of the major stations. Therefore, majority of the trains move through Kota. A train trip to Delhi takes about 7 hours and to Jaipur 4 hours. The junction is situated at 4.8 km to the north of the city.

Last Updated on 07 December 2011