Hyderabad is a city, district and division in the Sind province. The city is an administrative headquarters lying on the most northern hill of the Ganjo Takkar ridge just east of the River Indus. Being the third largest city of Pakistan, Hyderabad is a communication center, connected by rail with Peshawar and Karachi.
Founded in 1768 on the site of the ancient town of Nirun Kot by Ghulam Shah Kalhora, the saintly ruler of Sind, it was named after the prophet Mohammed’s son in law, Ali, also known as Haidar. It remained the capital of Sind under the Talpur rulers who succeeded the Kalhoras till 1843 when, after the nearby battles of Miani and Dabo, it surrendered to the British, the capital was then transferred to Karachi.
Incorporated as a municipality in 1853, it is an important commercial and industrial center. Its economic activities include textile, sugar, cement, and hosiery mills, manufacturing of glass, soap, ice, paper, and plastics. There are hide tanneries and sawmills. Ornamented silks, silver-work, gold-work and lacquer ware are also some of its exclusive products. Noteworthy antiquities include the tombs of the Kalhora and Talpur ruler, palaces of the former amirs of Sind. Newly developed settlements and industrial estates surround the congested old city area.
An noteworthy characteristic of this city is, badgirs (wind-catchers) fixed to housetops to catch sea breezes during the hot summer season. A hospital, municipal gardens, zoo, sports stadium, and several literary societies are in the city. The University of Sind with 32 affiliated colleges was founded in 1947 in Karachi and moved to Hyderabad in 1951, where it lies across the Indus. Other education needs are served by numerous government colleges, the Liaquat Medical College and specialized vocational institutions.
Its remained the capital of the emirate of sind until the British general Sir Charles James Napier conquered Sindh in 1843. From 1947 to 1955 Hyderabad was the capital of Sindh Province, the new capital was shifted to Hyderabad. In 1766 the Kalhora ruler constructed a fort half a square km in area and still stands today. In 1843 the British arrived and defeate the Talpurs, Completing their Conquest of Sindh.
It’s also a second largest city of Sindh Province. It has over 6 Millions population. The city has one of the most interesting bazaar of the country, which is known to be the longest bazaar in Asia. There are two very well arranged ethnological museums in the city One The Sindh Museum and the other the Institute of Sindhology Museum. Both museums present an excellent portrait of cultural and tribal life of Sindh. The city is transit point for the tours from Karachi to the Interior of Sindh A visit to Kalhora Monuments close to the city gate is worth a visit, Mausoleums are beautifully decorated with glazed tiles and frescos. There are also two forts from 18th & 19th Century to see here.
Famous for its cool breeze and balmy nights, and known for its Bombay Bakery Cakes, Its dellcate bangles and the paagalkhana called Giddu Bandar, Hyderabad is Sindh’s Second largest city, a city its inhabitants claim is the most beautiful in the world, Its spacious houses are known for their manghan, roshandans or ventillators and it is also known as “mangham jo shahar.”
A nerve center of Sindhi nationalist and literary movements, the city is now divided along on Sindhi Mohajir lines to the extent that the warning ethnic groups even have different hospitals and in many cases, even their places of worship and graveyards are divided. The original old city, now dominated by the mohajirs, seems besieged by the surrounding Sindhi suburbs. At one time a hub of economic, educational and cultural activities, a breeding ground of academicians, philanthropists, writers, lawyers, politicians, journalists, actors and actresses, Hyderabad also had its industrialists, trade unionists, political activists, bureaucrats, bankers and diplomats who made a significant contribution to sub continental society. But this gracious city now seems to be slowly dying, although it still produces over a couple of dozen major and minor newspapers in both Sindhi and Urdu.
Hyderabad, once the capital of Sindh and now the third largest city of Pakistan, is one of the oldest cities of the sub continent. Its history dates back to pre Islamic times, when Ganjo Taken (barren hill), a nearby hilly trract, was used as a place of worship.
