152-618: Firozabad is a city near Agra in Firozabad district in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the centre of India's glassmaking industry and is known for the quality of the bangles and glassware produced here. During the reign of Akbar , revenue was brought through the city, which was looted by the Afghans. Akbar sent his army led by the Mansab Dar, Firoz Shah, to make the city
304-633: A fleet of eight ships under Jacob van Neck had been the first Dutch fleet to reach the 'Spice Islands' of Maluku (also known as the Moluccas), cutting out the Javanese middlemen. The ships returned to Europe in 1599 and 1600 and the expedition made a 400 percent profit. In 1600, the Dutch joined forces with the Muslim Hituese on Ambon Island in an anti-Portuguese alliance, in return for which
456-549: A monsoon season, and is famous for its Mughlai cuisine. Agra is included on the Golden Triangle tourist circuit, along with Delhi and Jaipur ; and the Uttar Pradesh Heritage Arc , a tourist circuit of Uttar Pradesh, along with Lucknow and Varanasi . The name Agra is explained by different derivations, all of which have low verifiability. The most accepted one is that it had its origin from
608-474: A monsoon season. The Agra district, from its proximity to the sandy Thar Desert to the west, is relatively dry, and has greater extremes of temperature than districts further east. The hot west wind, Loo blows mainly during April, May, and June with great force and can cause fatal heatstrokes. The highest temperature ever registered in Agra was 48.6 °C, on 28 May 2024. The monsoon rains usually begin in
760-416: A 130 km long pipeline laid to bring Ganga water from Bulandshahr's Upper Ganga canal to Agra. The project has been launched, but has faced criticism due to frequent pipeline leakages. Though most of the city uses cylinders for cooking gas, piped natural gas is also available in many localities, including Kamla Nagar , Sikandra and others. The service is provided by Green Gas Limited. Due to
912-653: A Dutch ship. The Cambodians defeated the VOC in the Cambodian–Dutch War from 1643 to 1644 on the Mekong River. In 1640, the VOC obtained the port of Galle , Ceylon , from the Portuguese and broke the latter's monopoly of the cinnamon trade. In 1658, Gerard Pietersz Hulft laid siege to Colombo , which was captured with the help of King Rajasinghe II of Kandy . By 1659, the Portuguese had been expelled from
1064-517: A GDP of 40.21 billions / 40,210 crores as per the data released by UP Government for the year 2018–19, thus the 3rd rank in the state. In the Swachh Survekshan 2020, Agra ranked 16th nation-wide, and 2nd in the state after Lucknow , which was a big jump after 86th in 2019, 102nd in 2018, and 263rd in 2017. In the Smart city Rankings , which are pan-India rankings for 100 cities which
1216-505: A Lieutenant-Governor. Agra was one of the centres of the Indian rebellion of 1857 . During the Indian rebellion of 1857, when East India Company rule across many parts of India was threatened, the news of the mutiny at Meerut reached Agra on 14 May. On 30 May some companies of the 44th and 67th Native Infantry sent to Mathura to bring in the treasury mutinied and carried off the treasury to
1368-653: A cantonment to collect taxes and the city of Chandrawar was renamed as Firozabad after him. The tomb of Firoz Shah is located in the city. From early times, it had glass and bangle works, and small scale industry. The landowners of Firozabad hail from the Siddiqui, Sayed, Manihar, Pathan and the Hindu Rajput castes. Firozabad is located in north central India, in Uttar Pradesh, 37 km (23 mi) from Agra and around 230 km (140 mi) from Delhi , at
1520-469: A capital of 6,440,200 guilders , the new company's charter empowered it to build forts, maintain armies, and conclude treaties with Asian rulers. It provided for a venture that would continue for 21 years, with a financial accounting only at the end of each decade. In February 1603, the company seized the Santa Catarina , a 1500-ton Portuguese merchant carrack , off the coast of Singapore. She
1672-454: A fort near old tehsil , known at present as garie . General Lek and General Vellajally attacked Firozabad in 1802. In the beginning of British regime Firozabad was in Etawah district but after some time it was attached to Aligarh district . When Sadabad was created as a new district in 1832, Firozabad was attached to it. Later on, in 1833 Firozabad was attached to Agra district . In 1847,
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#17327648747881824-433: A large capital 'V' with an O on the left and a C on the right half and was possibly the first globally recognised corporate logo . It appeared on various corporate items, such as cannons and coins. The first letter of the hometown of the chamber conducting the operation was placed on top. The monogram, versatility, flexibility, clarity, simplicity, symmetry, timelessness, and symbolism are considered notable characteristics of
1976-560: A large portion of the water demand is fulfilled from the Yamuna river, which is a highly polluted river, water quality in Agra is usually poor, with unhealthy levels of chlorine required for purification. The city's groundwater is also unfit for drinking, and is saline and high in fluoride content. Both sources breach CPCB standards. To provide the city with adequate water supply, the Gangajal pipeline project has been initiated. It includes
2128-549: A large share of its profits to this end in the period up to 1630. The VOC traded throughout Asia, benefiting mainly from Bengal . Ships coming into Batavia from the Netherlands carried supplies for VOC settlements in Asia. Silver and copper from Japan were used to trade with the world's wealthiest empires, Mughal India and Qing China , for silk, cotton, porcelain, and textiles. These products were either traded within Asia for
2280-477: A level plain, with hills in the extreme southwest. The rivers in the region include Yamuna and Chambal . The region is also watered by the Agra Canal . Millet, barley, wheat and cotton are among the crops grown in the surrounding countryside. Both Rabi and Kharif crops are cultivated. The deserted city of Fatehpur Sikri is about 40 km southwest of Agra. The sandstone hills near Fatehpur Sikri and on
2432-429: A man were in a market. These impressions of Fitch are corroborated by another European traveller, William Finch , who remarked about Agra: It is spacious, large, populous beyond measure, that you can hardly pass the street . . . . Agra continued to expand and flourish during Akbar's successor Jahangir's reign as he wrote in his autobiography Tuzuk-e-Jahangiri : The habitable part of Agra extends on both sides of
2584-702: A monopoly on East Indies trade. In 1620, diplomatic agreements in Europe ushered in a period of collaboration between the Dutch and English spice trades. This ended with the notorious Amboyna massacre , where ten Englishmen were arrested, tried and beheaded for conspiracy against the Dutch government. Although this caused outrage in Europe and a diplomatic crisis, the English quietly withdrew from most of their Indonesian activities (except trading in Banten) and focused on other Asian interests. In 1619, Jan Pieterszoon Coen
2736-530: A more important attraction for the rebels. Despite an uprising by a mob and extreme disorder in the city, the British managed to restore partial order by 8 July. Delhi, in turn, fell to the British in September, following which an infantry brigade led by Brigadier Edward Greathed arrived in Agra on 11 October without any opposition from rebels. But shortly after their arrival another force of mutineers attacked
2888-400: A new capital city of Fatehpur Sikri , around 35 km from Agra. The new capital city was later abandoned. Before his death, Agra had become probably one of the biggest cities in the east, with huge amounts of trade and commerce happening through its bazaars . The English traveller Ralph Fitch who visited Agra in September 1585 in the life-time of Akbar, writes about the town: Agra is
3040-463: A new era of an abundant supply of capital at low interest rates suddenly opened around this time. The second factor enabled the company easily to finance its expansion in the new areas of commerce. Between the 1680s and 1720s, the VOC was therefore able to equip and man an appreciable expansion of its fleet, and acquire a large amount of precious metals to finance the purchase of large amounts of Asian commodities, for shipment to Europe. The overall effect
3192-407: A population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the fourth-most populous city in Uttar Pradesh and twenty-third most populous city in India. As per the 2011 Census of India, Agra city has a population of 1,585,704; its metropolitan population is 1,760,285. The sex ratio of Agra city is 875 females per 1000 males, while the child sex ratio is 857 girls per 1000 boys. The average literacy rate of Agra city
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#17327648747883344-542: A quantity of jewels and precious stones as a token of homage. Among these was the famous diamond Koh-i-nur . Babur went on to lay out the first formal Mughal garden in India, the Aram Bagh (or Garden of Relaxation) on the banks of the river Yamuna. Babur was determined to establish the seat of his government at Agra, but was almost dissuaded by the desolate appearance of the region, as clear from this quote from his memoir Baburnama : It always appears to me, that one of
3496-421: A quarter of the initial shareholders were Zuid-Nederlanders (people from an area that includes modern Belgium and Luxembourg ), and there were also a few dozen Germans. The VOC had two types of shareholders: the participanten , who could be seen as non-managing members, and the 76 bewindhebbers (later reduced to 60) who acted as managing directors. This was the usual set-up for Dutch joint-stock companies at
3648-477: A severe water pollution problem. The water has been polluted by the indiscriminate discharge of wastes by the industries. The water has been rendered practically unusable. Citizens have no option but to install water purifiers at home and use packaged drinking water for consumption. In Suhag Nagari, holy center of "Jain Nagar" was established by Lt. Seth Chhadamilal. The temple has a 45-foot granite idol of Bahubali ,
3800-456: A single voyage and to be liquidated upon the return of the fleet. Investment in these expeditions was a very high-risk venture, not only because of the usual dangers of piracy, disease and shipwreck, but also because the interplay of inelastic demand and relatively elastic supply of spices could make prices tumble, thereby ruining prospects of profitability. To manage such risk, the forming of a cartel to control supply would seem logical. In 1600,
3952-602: A state owned entity of UPPCL. The control of power distribution in Agra was handed over to Torrent Power from the state-owned UP Power Corporation Ltd in 2010, in an effort to move towards power reforms and cutting the massive distribution losses in the state. This was the first time power distribution was privatised in Uttar Pradesh, except for Noida-Greater Noida falling under the NCR . Agra has three primary sources for municipal water supply: water treatment plants at Sikandra and Jeoni Mandi, and groundwater using tubewells. Since
4104-532: A stronghold of the Chauhan Rajputs from an early date, was founded by a ruler named Chandrasen according to tradition. Chandwar was conquered several times by the Delhi Sultanate , but its Chauhan rulers seem to have repeatedly asserted their independence over a period of several centuries. One tradition holds that the final defeat of the king Jayachandra by Muhammad of Ghor took place here, at
4256-452: A trade surplus with other European countries. Coen discovered the obvious solution for the problem: to start an intra-Asiatic trade system, whose profits could be used to finance the spice trade with Europe. In the long run this obviated the need for exports of precious metals from Europe, though at first it required the formation of a large trading-capital fund in the Indies. The VOC reinvested
4408-414: A trading post in the area and eventually to monopolise the trade there, especially the gold trade. By 1669, the VOC was the richest private company the world had ever seen, with over 150 merchant ships, 40 warships, 50,000 employees, a private army of 10,000 soldiers, and a dividend payment of 40% on the original investment. Many of the VOC employees inter-mixed with the indigenous peoples and expanded
4560-729: A treaty of 1684 with the Sultan. Also, on the Coromandel Coast , it moved its chief stronghold from Pulicat to Nagapattinam , so as to secure a monopoly on the pepper trade to the detriment of the French and the Danes. However, the importance of these traditional commodities in the Asian-European trade was diminishing rapidly at the time. The military outlays that the VOC needed to make to enhance its monopoly were not justified by
4712-464: A two time member of Parliament - said to be the father of Hindi Journalism and the recipient of Padma Bushan. Firozabad district was finally established on 5 February 1989. In 2015 it became a Nagar Nigam. Firozabad is located at 27°09′N 78°25′E / 27.15°N 78.42°E / 27.15; 78.42 . The lowest recorded temperature in Firozabad was −1 °C (30 °F) and
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4864-421: A very great city, and populous, built with stone, having fair and large streets with a fair river running by it . . . . Agra and Fatehpur Sikri are two very great cities, either of them much greater than London, and very populous. Between Agra and Fatehpur are twelve miles ( kos in reality) and all the way is a market of victuals and other things as full as though a man were still in a town, and so many people as if
5016-439: Is SP Singh Baghel , from Bharatiya Janata Party . Ahead of the election the for 2022 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, it was announced that two more districts, including Agra, could become a police commissionerate before the elections. The electricity power distribution and bill collection in Agra is the responsibility of Torrent Power , a private sector company as well as DVVNL (Dakshinanchal Vidhyut Vitran Nigam Limited),
5168-484: Is 73.11% of which male and female literacy rates are 77.81% and 67.74% respectively. Hinduism is the most followed religion in Agra city with 80.68% of its population adhering to it. Islam is second most followed religion in the city of Agra with 15.37% of the population following it. These are followed by Jainism, Sikhism, Christianity and Buddhism at 1.04%, 0.62%, 0.42% and 0.19% respectively. Approximately 1.66% stated 'No Particular Religion'. Agra district comes under
5320-412: Is 85.32%, and female literacy is 63%. In Firozabad, 16% of the population is under 6 years of age. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 16.55% and 0.39% of the population respectively. Languages in Firozabad (2011) The city lies in the cultural region of Braj and the local language is Brajbhasha . Firozabad is the largest glass manufacturing centre in India, accounting for about 70% of
5472-582: Is develops new housing, infrastructure and colonies in the city. Vote share of Parties in 2019 Agra Lok Sabha. Incumbent MP Satyapal Singh Baghel of BJP won the Agra Lok Sabha constituency with a margin of 2,11,546 votes by defeating Manoj Kumar Soni of BSP. Satyapal Singh Baghel secured 6,46,875 votes. Agra district has two Lok Sabha constituencies, Agra and Fatehpur Sikri , and nine Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha ( Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly ) constituencies. The MP for Agra constituency
5624-596: Is named after S.K.D Paliwal , who brought out the Hindi daily Sainik . Post India's independence, Agra has been a part of Uttar Pradesh and has gradually developed into an industrial city, with a significant contribution to Uttar Pradesh's economy. The city is now a popular tourist destination and hosts tourists from across the world. The Taj Mahal and Agra Fort received UNESCO World Heritage Sites status in 1983. The Taj Mahal witnesses tourists, photographers, historians and archaeologists in massive numbers all around
5776-627: Is released by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs based on the progress/completion rate of Smart City projects, Agra ranked 1st, based on the rankings released based on work done by department concerned under the Smart City project from 1 October 2019, to 1 March 2020. Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( Dutch : Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie [vərˈeːnɪɣdə ʔoːstˈɪndisə kɔmpɑˈɲi] ; abbreviated as VOC [veː(j)oːˈseː] ), commonly known as
5928-588: Is the birthplace of the now extinct religion known as Din-i-Ilahi , which was founded by Akbar and also of the Radhaswami Faith , which has around two million followers worldwide. Agra is included on the Golden Triangle tourist circuit, along with Delhi and Jaipur ; and the Uttar Pradesh Heritage Arc, a tourist circuit of Uttar Pradesh, along with Lucknow and Varanasi . The region around Agra consists almost entirely of
6080-577: Is the trade centre of Agra. There are about 12 major and medium scale industries, producing electrical goods, pipes, leather goods etc. There are about 7,200 small scale industrial units. Above 1.5 lakh pairs of shoes per day are manufactured in Agra by the various footwear units. Agra city is also known for its leather goods, the oldest and famous leather firm Taj Leather World is in Sadar bazar . The carpets, handicrafts, zari and zardozi (embroidery work), marble and stone carving and inlay work. Agra amassed
6232-575: Is used to make a distinction from the [British] East India Company (EIC) and other East Indian companies (such as the Danish East India Company , French East India Company , Portuguese East India Company , and the Swedish East India Company ). The company's alternative names that have been used include the 'Dutch East Indies Company', 'United East India Company', 'Jan Company', or 'Jan Compagnie'. Before
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6384-603: The Amsterdam Stock Exchange ). The company possessed quasi-governmental powers, including the ability to wage war, imprison and execute convicts, negotiate treaties, strike its own coins , and establish colonies. Also, because it traded across multiple colonies and countries from both the East and the West, the VOC is sometimes considered to have been the world's first multinational corporation . Statistically,
6536-745: The Battle of Chandwar . According to family traditions of the Bhadaurias , another conquest of Chandwar happened in 1246, which may be corroborated by the records kept by the Sultanate, which mention the capture of an unnamed Hindu stronghold in that same year. Then, after the Delhi Sultan Khizr Khan came to power in 1414, his general Taj ul-Mulk received submission from "the infidels of Chandwar" and then, in 1420, he sacked and looted Chandwar as punishment of some sort. In 1452, Chandwar
6688-680: The Diwan-i-Am , the Diwan-i-Khas , the Moti Masjid , etc., inside the fort were planned and executed under his orders. Shah Jahan later shifted the capital to Shahjahanabad (now known as Delhi ) in the year 1648, followed by his son Aurangzeb (reigned 1658–1707 ) moving the entire court to Delhi in 1658. With this Agra began rapidly declining. Nevertheless, the cultural and strategic importance of Agra remained unaffected and in official correspondence it continued to be referred to as
6840-703: The Dutch East India Company , was a chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies , it was granted a 21-year monopoly to carry out trade activities in Asia. Shares in the company could be purchased by any citizen of the United Provinces (Dutch Republic) and subsequently bought and sold in open-air secondary markets (one of which became
6992-556: The Dutch Republic was at war. The Portuguese Empire thus became an appropriate target for Dutch military incursions. These factors motivated Dutch merchants to enter the intercontinental spice trade themselves. Further, a number of Dutch merchants and explorers, such as Jan Huyghen van Linschoten and Cornelis de Houtman , went on to obtain firsthand knowledge of the "secret" Portuguese trade routes and practices that were already in place, thereby providing further opportunity for
7144-599: The Dutch Revolt , which began in 1566/68, the Flemish city of Antwerp had played an important role as a distribution center in northern Europe. After 1591, the Portuguese used an international syndicate of the German Fugger family and Welser family , as well as Spanish and Italian firms, which operated out of Hamburg as the northern staple port to distribute their goods, thereby cutting Dutch merchants out of
7296-624: The Heeren XVII (the Lords Seventeen). They were selected from the bewindhebber -class of shareholders. Of the Heeren XVII , eight delegates were from the Chamber of Amsterdam (one short of a majority on its own), four from the Chamber of Zeeland, and one from each of the smaller Chambers, while the seventeenth seat was alternatively from the Chamber of Middelburg-Zeeland or rotated among the five small Chambers. Amsterdam had thereby
7448-604: The Indian subcontinent and the capital of the Mughal Empire under Mughal emperors Babur , Humayun , Akbar , Jahangir and Shah Jahan . Under Mughal rule, Agra became a centre for learning, arts, commerce, and religion, and saw the construction of the Agra Fort , Sikandra and Agra's most prized monument, the Taj Mahal , constructed between 1632 and 1648 by Shah Jahan in remembrance of his wife Mumtaz Mahal . With
7600-610: The Lodhis and the Tomaras of Gwalior in the First Battle of Panipat in 1526. Babur's connection with Agra began immediately after the battle of Panipat. He sent forward his son Humayun , who occupied the town without opposition. The Raja of Gwalior, slain at Panipat, had left his family and the heads of his clan at Agra. In gratitude to Humayun, who treated them magnanimously, and protected them from plunder, they presented to him
7752-627: The Malabar and Coromandel coasts in India. Direct access to mainland China came in 1729 when a factory was established in Canton . In 1662, however, Koxinga expelled the Dutch from Taiwan ( see History of Taiwan ). In 1663, the VOC signed the "Painan Treaty" with several local lords in the Painan area that were revolting against the Aceh Sultanate . The treaty allowed the VOC to build
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#17327648747887904-493: The North Western Provinces was shifted from Agra to Allahabad in 1858. Gradually, Agra declined to the position of a mere provincial town, and its prosperity declined: But in the economy of the administration of British India Agra is nothing more than a district town; its size, proportions and manifold activities have come down to its present requirements, and continued life in this city does not come above
8056-652: The Tundla town (20 km west of Firozabad city on National Highway 2 ) of the Firozabad District is a major railway station of North Central Railways . Due to its proximity to Agra several trains on the Delhi Howrah route which don't stop at Firozabad station make a stop at Tundla Junction hence serving Firozabad as well as Agra cities. The city is 45 km (28 mi) east from Agra on National Highway 19 which makes it an important stopover for
8208-590: The Afghan ruler of the Delhi Sultanate , rebuilt Agra and made it the seat of government. Sikandar Lodhi appointed a commission which inspected and surveyed both sides of the Yamuna from Delhi to Etawah and finally chose a place on the left bank, or the east side of the Yamuna, as the site for the city. Agra on the left bank of the Yamuna grew into a large flourishing town with royal presence, officials, merchants, scholars, theologians and artists. The city became one of
8360-624: The Agra Police Zone and Agra Police Range, Agra Zone is headed by an additional director general (ADG)-ranked Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, and the Agra Range is headed by a deputy inspector general (DIG)-ranked IPS officer. The district police is headed by a senior superintendent of police (SSP), who is an IPS officer, and is assisted by six superintendents of police or additional superintendents of police for city, east, west, crime, traffic, and protocol, either from
8512-643: The Dutch East Indies for the first time in its history. After the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War , the VOC's financial issues worsened considerably. After vain attempts at reorganisation by the provincial States of Holland and Zeeland , the board of directors in the VOC were sacked in 1796 and the company's management was handed over to a Committee for Affairs relating to East India Trade and Possessions (Dutch: Comité tot de zaken van de Oost-Indische handel en bezittingen ). The VOC charter
8664-488: The Dutch captain's life on condition that he joined his army and trained his soldiers on modern lines. This defeat in the Travancore–Dutch War is considered the earliest example of an organised Asian power overcoming European military technology and tactics; and it signalled the decline of Dutch power in India. The attempt to continue as before as a low volume-high profit business enterprise with its core business in
8816-553: The Dutch to enter the trade. The stage was thus set for Dutch expeditions to the Indonesian islands , beginning with James Lancaster in 1591, Cornelis de Houtman in 1595 and again in 1598, Jacob Van Neck in 1598, Lancaster again in 1601, among others. During the four-ship exploratory expedition by Frederick de Houtman in 1595 to Banten , the main pepper port of West Java, the crew clashed with both Portuguese and indigenous Javanese. Houtman's expedition then sailed east along
8968-539: The Dutch were given the sole right to purchase spices from Hitu. Dutch control of Ambon was achieved when the Portuguese surrendered their fort in Ambon to the Dutch-Hituese alliance. In 1613, the Dutch expelled the Portuguese from their Solor fort, but a subsequent Portuguese attack led to a second change of hands; following this second reoccupation, the Dutch once again captured Solor in 1636. East of Solor , on
9120-711: The East Indies, but implementation of this policy never materialised, mainly because very few Dutch were willing to emigrate to Asia. Another of Coen's ventures was more successful. A major problem in the European trade with Asia at the time was that the Europeans could offer few goods that Asian consumers wanted, except silver and gold. European traders therefore had to pay for spices with the precious metals, which were in short supply in Europe, except for Spain and Portugal. The Dutch and English had to obtain it by creating
9272-403: The English were the first to adopt this approach by bundling their resources into a monopoly enterprise, the English East India Company , thereby threatening their Dutch competitors with ruin. In 1602, the Dutch government followed suit, sponsoring the creation of a single "United East Indies Company" that was also granted monopoly over the Asian trade. For a time in the seventeenth century, it
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#17327648747889424-423: The Hindi word agar meaning salt-pan, a name which was given to it because the soil in the region is brackish and salt used to be made here once by evaporation. Others derive it from Hindu History claiming that the Sanskrit word agra ( अग्र ) which means the first of the many groves and little forests where Krishna frolicked with the gopis of Vrindavan . The term Agravana hence means grove forest. Agra
9576-707: The IPS or the Provincial Police Service . Each of the several police circles is headed by a circle officer in the rank of deputy superintendent of police . Agra Municipal Corporation or Agra Nagar Nigam (AMC or ANN) is the Municipal Corporation responsible for the civic infrastructure and administration of the city of Agra. This civic administrative body administers the city's public services. The mayor and municipal councillors are elected to five-year terms. The Agra Municipal Corporation oversees four zones (Hariparvat, Lohamandi, Tajganj and Chhata) which are further subdivided into 100 wards. The AMC boundary encompasses an area of 121 square km. The Agra Development Authority (ADA),
9728-484: The National Sample Survey Organization, in 1999–2000, 431 of every 1,000 employed males were self-employed in the city, which grew to 603 per 1,000 in 2004–05. Tourism has a significant role in the economy of Agra, with upwards of 9.5 million tourists visiting Agra and surrounding monuments in 2019. The city is home to Asia's largest spa called Kaya Kalp – The Royal Spa, at the ITC Hotel Mughal in Agra. Other hotels include Taj Hotel and Convention Centre. Sanjay Place
9880-648: The Sur Sarovar Bird Sanctuary is the Agra Bear Rescue Facility , which is India's first sanctuary for 'dancing' bears . Operated by Wildlife SOS , Free the Bears Fund and others, the facility has rehabilitate over 620 sloth bears , which were exploited by a nomadic tribe known as the Kalandars as 'dancing bears', despite the practice being illegal since 1972. Agra has been ranked 3rd best “National Clean Air City” (under Category 1 >10L Population cities) in India according to 'Swachh Vayu Survekshan 2024 Results' https://prana.cpcb.gov.in/ncapServices/robust/fetchFilesFromDrive/Swachh_Vayu_Survekshan_2024_Result.pdf With
10032-409: The Taj Mahal such as 'Attacks by Bugs and their Green Slime', foul stench and corrosion of Taj Mahal's foundation. The river has as many as 90 nalas or drains opening into it. Though the municipality has claimed to stop 40 of these drains, the bigger ones, Bhairon , Mantola , Balkeshwar nalas continue to discharge huge quantities of untreated waste water without any check. Activists say that
10184-404: The VOC by 1685. Even more importantly, the Third Anglo-Dutch War temporarily interrupted VOC trade with Europe. This caused a spike in the price of pepper, which enticed the English East India Company (EIC) to enter this market aggressively in the years after 1672. Previously, one of the tenets of the VOC pricing policy was to slightly over-supply the pepper market, so as to depress prices below
10336-428: The VOC eclipsed all of its rivals in the Asian trade. Between 1602 and 1796 the VOC sent nearly a million Europeans to work in the Asia trade on 4,785 ships and netted for their efforts more than 2.5 million tons of Asian trade goods and slaves. By contrast, the rest of Europe combined sent only 882,412 people from 1500 to 1795, and the fleet of the English (later British) East India Company , the VOC's nearest competitor,
10488-493: The VOC in the Dutch Republic , the VOC made extensive use of local Asian labour markets. As a result, the personnel of the various VOC offices in Asia consisted of European and Asian employees. Asian or Eurasian workers could be employed as sailors, soldiers, writers, carpenters, smiths, or as simple unskilled workers. At the height of its existence, the VOC had 25,000 employees who worked in Asia and 11,000 who were en route. Also, while most of its shareholders were Dutch, about
10640-453: The VOC mainly operated in what later became the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia), the company also had important operations elsewhere. It employed people from different continents and origins in the same functions and working environments. Although it was a Dutch company, its employees included not only people from the Netherlands, but also many from Germany and other countries. Besides the diverse north-west European workforce recruited by
10792-408: The VOC tried to use military force to make Ming dynasty China open up to Dutch trade, the Chinese defeated the Dutch in a war over the Penghu islands from 1623 to 1624, forcing the VOC to abandon Penghu for Taiwan . The Chinese defeated the VOC again at the Battle of Liaoluo Bay in 1633. The Vietnamese Nguyen lords defeated the VOC in a 1643 battle during the Trịnh–Nguyễn War , blowing up
10944-515: The VOC's professionally designed logo. Those elements ensured its success at a time when the concept of the corporate identity was virtually unknown. An Australian vintner has used the VOC logo since the late 20th century, having re-registered the company's name for the purpose. Around the world, and especially in English-speaking countries, the VOC is widely known as the 'Dutch East India Company'. The name 'Dutch East India Company'
11096-470: The VOC's trade started in the early 1680s, after the temporary collapse of the EIC around 1683 offered an excellent opportunity to enter these markets. The actual cause for the change lies, however, in two structural features of this new era. In the first place, there was a revolutionary change in the tastes affecting European demand for Asian textiles, coffee and tea, around the turn of the 18th century. Secondly,
11248-474: The Yamuna river bed between Itmad-ud-Daula and the Taj Mahal has become a dumping ground for pollutants. Polythene, plastic waste, leather cuttings from shoe factories, construction material, are all thrown into the river. Less than 7% of the Agra district is under forest cover. The only major wildlife sanctuary near Agra is Keetham Lake , also known as Sur Sarovar Bird Sanctuary. The lake has nearly two dozen varieties of migratory and resident birds. Within
11400-563: The Zamorin was made to sign a treaty with the VOC undertaking to trade exclusively with the VOC and expel other European traders. For a brief time, this appeared to improve the company's prospects. However, in 1715, with EIC encouragement, the Zamorin renounced the treaty. Though a Dutch army managed to suppress this insurrection temporarily, the Zamorin continued to trade with the English and the French, which led to an appreciable upsurge in English and French traffic. The VOC decided in 1721 that it
11552-663: The age of 14 were working in glass production in Firozabad as of 1986. Firozabad railway station served by the Delhi-Howrah trunk route of the Indian Railways . Several trains serve the city connecting it to long and short distanced destinations including New Delhi , Howrah , Mumbai , Kanpur , Lucknow , Jaipur , Jammu Tawi , Amritsar , Jamshedpur , Patna , Aligarh , Agra , Hathras , Puri , Ajmer , Ambala , Bareilly , Mathura , Etawah , Basti , Gorakhpur and Tundla . Tundla Junction railway station in
11704-550: The average of that monotonous muffasil life in India which has been so often and so vividly described by many gifted Anglo-Indian writers. Agra has become of late years a large railway centre, and its commercial prosperity seems to be reviving. Agra's role in the Indian Independence movement is not well documented. However, in the years between the mutiny and independence Agra was a major centre of Hindi and Urdu journalism. Paliwal park (formerly Hewitt park) in Agra
11856-472: The brigade by surprise, but was defeated and routed. This minor victory for the British was named the Battle of Agra . It is to be said that, the uprising in Agra was relatively minor compared to Delhi , Jhansi , Meerut and other major rebellious cities and regions. After this British rule was again secured, and the British Raj ruled the city till the independence of India in 1947. The capital of
12008-658: The business of lac was flourishing at Firozabad. In 1857, Zamindar of Firozabad with local public took active parts in freedom struggle. Urdu poet Munir Shikohabadi was sentenced to Kala pani by the British East India Company. People of this city took part in "Khilafat Movement", "Quit India Movement", and "Namak Satyagrah" and went to the jail during these national movements. In 1929, Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi , in 1935 Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan , in 1937 Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and in 1940 Subhas Chandra Bose visited Pandit Banarasi Das Chaturvedi,
12160-489: The chief defects of Hindustan is the want of artificial watercourses. I had intended, wherever I might fix my residence, to construct water-wheels, to produce an artificial stream, and to lay out an elegant and regularly planned pleasure ground. Shortly after coming to Agra I passed the Jumna with this object in view, and examined the country to pitch upon a fit spot for a garden. The whole was so ugly and detestable that I repassed
12312-584: The climate of Agra is classified as BSh by the Köppen-Geiger climate classification system . This is the tropical and subtropical steppe climate , a major climate type of the Köppen classification that occurs primarily on the periphery of the true deserts in low-latitude regions, forming a transition between the desert climate ( BW ), and the more humid subtropical and tropical climates . The city features warm winters, sweltering and dry summers and
12464-583: The coastal regions, which were then occupied by the VOC, securing for it the monopoly over cinnamon. To prevent the Portuguese or the English from ever recapturing Sri Lanka , the VOC went on to conquer the entire Malabar Coast from the Portuguese, almost entirely driving them from the west coast of India. In 1652, Jan van Riebeeck established a resupply outpost at the Cape of Storms (the southwestern tip of Africa, now Cape Town , South Africa) to service company ships on their journey to and from East Asia. The cape
12616-418: The company at this time therefore were not hopeless, had one of the plans for reform been undertaken successfully. However, the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War intervened. British naval attacks in Europe and Asia reduced the VOC fleet by half; removed valuable cargo from its control; and eroded its remaining power in Asia. The direct losses of the VOC during the war can be calculated at 43 million guilders. Loans to keep
12768-513: The company operating reduced its net assets to zero. From 1720 on, the market for sugar from Indonesia declined as the competition from cheap sugar from Brazil increased. European markets became saturated. Dozens of Chinese sugar traders went bankrupt, which led to massive unemployment, which in turn led to gangs of unemployed coolies . The Dutch government in Batavia did not adequately respond to these problems. In 1740, rumours of deportation of
12920-401: The company's overhead rose in step with the growth in trade volume; declining gross margins translated directly into a decline in profitability of the invested capital. The era of expansion was one of "profitless growth". Specifically: "[t]he long-term average annual profit in the VOC's 1630–70 'Golden Age' was 2.1 million guilders, of which just under half was distributed as dividends and
13072-432: The coveted spices or brought back to Europe. The VOC was also instrumental in introducing European ideas and technology to Asia. The company supported Christian missionaries and traded modern technology with China and Japan. A more peaceful VOC trade post on Dejima , an artificial island off the coast of Nagasaki , was for more than two hundred years the only place where Europeans were permitted to trade with Japan . When
13224-671: The decline of the Mughal Empire, the city came under the influence of another post-Mughal Empire power, the Marathas , before falling into the hands of the British East India Company in 1803. In the years 1834–1836, Agra was the capital of the short-lived Presidency of Agra , administered by a Governor . It was then the capital of the North-Western Province from 1836 to 1858, governed by
13376-600: The decline of the Mughal empire in the late 18th century, the city fell successively first to Marathas and later to the East India Company . After Independence, Agra has developed into an industrial town, with a booming tourism industry, along with footwear, leather and other manufacturing. The Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort are UNESCO World Heritage Sites . The city features mild winters, hot and dry summers and
13528-482: The deterioration of revenues. To a large extent the costs of the operation of the VOC had a "fixed" character (military establishments; maintenance of the fleet and such). Profit levels might therefore have been maintained if the increase in the scale of trading operations that in fact took place had resulted in economies of scale . However, though larger ships transported the growing volume of goods, labour productivity did not go up sufficiently to realise these. In general
13680-471: The eunuch Firoz Khwaja to demolish the town and build a new one. The city was built on lands belonging to several neighboring villages, including Akbarabad , Sukhmalpur , Muhammadpur-Gajmalpur , Rasulpur , and Pempur-Raipur , and it was named Firozabad in honor of its founder. Firoz Khwaja's tomb, built of white marble, is by the road to Agra. Mr. Peter, a businessman working for the Dutch East India Company visited Firozabad on 9 August 1632, and found
13832-660: The first week in July; and generally end in mid-September. However, the monsoons , though substantial in Agra, are not quite as heavy as the monsoon in other parts of India. The weather moderates by the middle of October. The region around Agra, the northwest Indo-Gangetic plain is prone to extreme fog in the winter months, which is caused due to natural factors like low winds, low temperatures, availability of moisture apart from air pollution. This phenomenon often leads to big delays and sometimes cancellation of trains due to poor visibility. Agra has high levels of air pollution and one of
13984-597: The fortunes of the VOC started to decline. Five major contributing factors are attributed to its decay in the 50 years between 1730 and 1780: Despite these problems, the VOC in 1780 remained an enormous operation. Its capital in the Republic, consisting of ships and goods in inventory, totalled 28 million guilders; its capital in Asia, consisting of the liquid trading fund and goods en route to Europe, totalled 46 million guilders. Total capital, net of outstanding debt, stood at 62 million guilders. The prospects of
14136-520: The gangs from the Batavia area led to widespread rioting. The Dutch military searched houses of Chinese in Batavia for weapons. When a house accidentally burnt down, military and impoverished citizens started slaughtering and pillaging the Chinese community. This massacre of the Chinese was deemed sufficiently serious for the board of the VOC to start an official investigation into the Government of
14288-440: The highest was 48 °C (118 °F). Firozabad has been ranked 1st best “National Clean Air City” under (Category 2 3-10L Population cities) in India according to 'Swachh Vayu Survekshan 2024 Results' As of 2011 India census , Firozabad City had a population of 603,797. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Firozabad has an average literacy rate of 75.01% higher than the national average of 74%: male literacy
14440-596: The increased profits of this declining trade. Nevertheless, this lesson was slow to sink in and at first the VOC made the strategic decision to improve its military position on the Malabar Coast (hoping thereby to curtail English influence in the area, and end the drain on its resources from the cost of the Malabar garrisons) by using force to compel the Zamorin of Calicut to submit to Dutch domination. In 1710,
14592-438: The intense heat in glass furnaces often causes dehydration and heat exhaustion in workers, who often then have to borrow money for medical treatment. As of 1986, it was reported that the combination of heat, dust, and noise led to tuberculosis being widespread, and the average lifespan of glassworkers was reduced by 10 to 15 years. Child labour is also very common, with Neera Burra estimating that almost 50,000 children under
14744-480: The interim could only do this by selling their share to others on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange . Confusion of confusions , a 1688 dialogue by the Sephardi Jew Joseph de la Vega analysed the workings of this one-stock exchange. The VOC consisted of six Chambers ( Kamers ) in port cities: Amsterdam , Delft , Rotterdam , Enkhuizen , Middelburg and Hoorn . Delegates of these chambers convened as
14896-527: The island of Timor , Dutch advances were halted by an autonomous and powerful group of Portuguese Eurasians called the Topasses . They remained in control of the Sandalwood trade and their resistance lasted throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, causing Portuguese Timor to remain under the Portuguese sphere of control. At the time, it was customary for a company to be funded only for the duration of
15048-477: The largest in North India, weighing more than 3500 tonnes. There are many Jain temples near this temple. The following 89 villages are counted as part of Firozabad CD block: Agra Agra ( / ˈ ɑː ɡ r ə / AH -grə ; Hindi: [ˈaːɡɾaː] ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh , about 230 kilometres (140 mi) south-east of
15200-776: The late 18th century, the company went bankrupt and was formally dissolved in 1799. Its possessions and debt were taken over by the government of the Dutch Batavian Republic . In Dutch, the name of the company was the Vereenigde Nederlandsche Geoctroyeerde Oostindische Compagnie (abbreviated as the VOC), literally the 'United Dutch Chartered East India Company' (the United East India Company). The company's monogram logo consisted of
15352-496: The latter came close to bankruptcy; its share price plummeted from 600 to 250; and its president Josiah Child was temporarily forced from office. However, the writing was on the wall. Other companies, like the French East India Company and the Danish East India Company also started to make inroads on the Dutch system. The VOC therefore closed the theretofore flourishing open pepper emporium of Bantam by
15504-428: The latter continued to be the first city of the realm. It was, however, Shah Jahan (reigned 1628–58 ) whose building activity raised Agra to the pinnacle of its glory. Shah Jahan, known for his keen interest in architecture, gave Agra its most prized monument, the Taj Mahal . Built in loving memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal , the mausoleum was completed in 1653. The Jama Masjid and several other notable buildings like
15656-500: The latter period, 3.4 percent." Nevertheless, in the eyes of investors the VOC did not do too badly. The share price hovered consistently around the 400 mark from the mid-1680s (excepting a hiccup around the Glorious Revolution in 1688), and they reached an all-time high of around 642 in the 1720s. VOC shares then yielded a return of 3.5 percent, only slightly less than the yield on Dutch government bonds. After 1730,
15808-405: The level where interlopers were encouraged to enter the market (instead of striving for short-term profit maximisation ). The wisdom of such a policy was illustrated when a fierce price war with the EIC ensued, as that company flooded the market with new supplies from India. In this struggle for market share, the VOC (which had much larger financial resources) could wait out the EIC. Indeed, by 1683,
15960-509: The most important centres of Islamic learning in India. The sultan founded the village of Sikandra in the northern suburbs of the city and built there a Baradari of red sandstone in 1495, which was converted into a tomb by Jahangir, and now stands as the Tomb of Mariam-uz-Zamani , Akbar's empress. After the Sultan's death in 1517, the city passed on to his son, Sultan Ibrahim Lodi (reigned 1517–26 ). He ruled his sultanate from Agra until he
16112-497: The mutineers to Agra, some 6000 Europeans and associated people moved into the Agra Fort for safety on 3 July. On 5 July, the British force stationed there attempted to attack an approaching force of Mutineers, but was defeated, and the British retreated back into the fort. The Lieutenant-Governor, J.R. Colvin , died there, and was later buried in front of the Diwan-i-am . The mutineers, however, moved over to Delhi , it being
16264-467: The national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow . With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the fourth-most populous city in Uttar Pradesh and twenty-third most populous city in India. Agra's notable historical period began during Sikandar Lodi 's reign, but the golden age of the city began with the Mughals in the early 16th century. Agra was the foremost city of
16416-478: The nearby Yamuna river. The white-marble Taj Mahal is turning yellow and green because of filthy air in the world's eighth-most polluted city. The Taj Mahal flanks the garbage-strewn Yamuna river and is often enveloped by dust and smog from smokestacks and vehicles. The Yamuna River is one of the most polluted rivers in the world. Agra is the second largest contributor to River Yamuna's pollution, after Delhi. The river's pollution has caused several problems for
16568-432: The next two centuries the company acquired additional ports as trading bases and safeguarded their interests by taking over surrounding territory. It remained an important trading concern and paid annual dividends that averaged to about 18% of the capital for almost 200 years. Much of the labor that built its colonies was from people it had enslaved. Weighed down by smuggling, corruption and growing administrative costs in
16720-542: The north coast of Java , losing twelve crew members to a Javanese attack at Sidayu and killing a local ruler in Madura . Half the crew were lost before the expedition made it back to the Netherlands the following year, but with enough spices to make a considerable profit. In 1598, an increasing number of fleets were sent out by competing merchant groups from around the Netherlands. Some fleets were lost, but most were successful, with some voyages producing high profits. In 1598,
16872-486: The northern edge of the Deccan Plateau , at 27°09′N 78°24′E / 27.150°N 78.400°E / 27.150; 78.400 . It is located 164 metres (538 ft) above sea level. The boundaries of Firozabad district touch Etah district in north and Mainpuri and Etawah districts in the east. The Yamuna river makes its southern boundary. The city lies in the cultural region of Braj and
17024-501: The people is so great that moving about in the lanes and bazars is difficult. Akbar's successor Jahangir (reigned 1605–27 ) had a love of flora and fauna and laid many gardens inside the Red Fort. Akbar's mausoleum at Sikandra was completed during Jahangir's reign. The Jahangiri Mahal in Agra fort and the tomb of Itmad-ud-daulah were also constructed during the reign of Jahangir. Jahangir loved Lahore and Kashmir more than Agra, but
17176-573: The population of Indos in pre-colonial history . Around 1670, two events caused the growth of VOC trade to stall. In the first place, the highly profitable trade with Japan started to decline. The loss of the outpost on Formosa to Koxinga in the 1662 siege of Fort Zeelandia and related internal turmoil in China (where the Ming dynasty was being replaced with the China's Qing dynasty ) brought an end to
17328-474: The presence of the Taj Mahal and other historic monuments, Agra has a booming tourism industry as well as royal crafts like Pietra Dura , marble inlay and carpets. 40% of the population depends largely on agriculture, and others on the leather and footwear business and iron foundries. Agra was the second most self-employed in India in 2007, behind Varanasi, followed by Bhopal, Indore and Patna. According to
17480-584: The rebels in Delhi. With the fear of the rebellion spreading to Agra as well, the rest of these native infantry battalions, which were part of the garrison at Agra, were successfully disarmed by the British on 31 May. However, when the Gwalior contingent mutinied on 15 June, all other native units followed. On 2 July the rebel force of the Nimach and Nasirabad contingents reached Fatehpur Sikri . Fearing advance of
17632-728: The regime of Mohammad Shah . Jats of Mahawan attacked Faujdar Hakim Kajim ali bahadur jang at Firozabad and killed him on 9 May 1739. Jats ruled Firozabad for 30 years. Gajuddin, Hidayat Vaksh son of Alamgir second his nephew and Mirza baba the son in law, came to Firozabad. Mirza Nabab Khan stayed here until 1782. In the end of the 18th century, Firozabad was ruled by Himmat Bahadur with co-operation of Marathas . The French Army chief of Marathas, D. Wayan, established an ordnance factory in November 1794. Mr. Thomas Traving also mentioned this fact in his book Travels in India . Marathas appointed his subedar Lakwadads here who made
17784-408: The remainder reinvested. The long-term average annual profit in the 'Expansion Age' (1680–1730) was 2.0 million guilders, of which three-quarters was distributed as dividend and one-quarter reinvested. In the earlier period, profits averaged 18 percent of total revenues; in the latter period, 10 percent. The annual return of invested capital in the earlier period stood at approximately 6 percent; in
17936-523: The right bank of the river which is associated with the Mughals , and known throughout the world as the city of the Taj. Of ancient Agra little now remains except few traces of the foundations. It was a place of importance under various Hindu dynasties previous to the Muslim invasions of India , but its history is unclear, and possess little historical interest. The 17th century chronicler named Abdullah said it
18088-499: The risk of despotic governors-general, a Council of the Indies ( Raad van Indië ) was created. The governor-general effectively became the main administrator of the VOC's activities in Asia, although the Heeren XVII , a body of 17 shareholders representing different chambers, continued to officially have overall control. VOC headquarters were located in Ambon during the tenures of the first three governors-general (1610–1619), but it
18240-550: The river quite repulsed and disgusted. In consequence of the want of beauty and of the disagreeable aspect of the country, I gave up my intention of making a charbagh (garden house); but as no better situation presented itself near Agra, I was finally compelled to make the best of this same spot.... In every corner I planted suitable gardens, in every garden I sowed roses and narcissus regularly, and in beds corresponding to each other. We were annoyed by three things in Hindustan; one
18392-493: The river. On its west side, which has the greater population, its circumference is seven kos, and its breadth is one kos. The circumference of the inhabited part on the other side of the river, the side towards the east, is 2 1 ⁄ 2 kos, its length being one kos and its breadth half a kos. But in the number of its buildings it is equal to several cities of Iraq, Khurasan and Trans-Oxiana put together. Many persons have erected buildings of three or four storeys in it. The mass of
18544-700: The second capital of the empire. The decline of the Mughal empire caused the emergence of several regional kingdoms, and in the late 18th century the control of the city fell successively to the Jats, the Marathas, the Mughals, the ruler of Gwalior, and finally the British East India Company. The Jats of Bharatpur , waged many wars against the Mughal Delhi and in the 17th and 18th century carried out numerous campaigns in Mughal territories including Agra. After
18696-420: The silk trade after 1666. Though the VOC substituted Mughal Bengal 's for Chinese silk, other forces affected the supply of Japanese silver and gold. The shogunate enacted a number of measures to limit the export of these precious metals, in the process limiting VOC opportunities for trade, and severely worsening the terms of trade. Therefore, Japan ceased to function as the linchpin of the intra-Asiatic trade of
18848-546: The south-eastern borders of the district are offshoots from the Vindhya range of Central India . Agra is about 210 km away from the National capital of New Delhi (via Yamuna Expressway ), about 336 km from state capital Lucknow (via Agra-Lucknow Expressway ), and about 227 km from Kanpur (via Agra-Lucknow Expressway). The city has an average elevation of 170 metres above sea level. Broadly speaking,
19000-414: The spice trade had therefore failed. The company had however already (reluctantly) followed the example of its European competitors in diversifying into other Asian commodities, like tea, coffee, cotton, textiles, and sugar. These commodities provided a lower profit margin and therefore required a larger sales volume to generate the same amount of revenue. This structural change in the commodity composition of
19152-487: The time made this difficult to discern for the managers of the company, which may partly explain the mistakes they made from hindsight. This lack of information might have been counteracted (as in earlier times in the VOC's history) by the business acumen of the directors. By this time these were almost exclusively recruited from the political regent class, which had long since lost its close relationship with merchant circles. Low profit margins in themselves do not explain
19304-420: The time. The innovation in the case of the VOC was that the liability of not just the participanten but also of the bewindhebbers was limited to the paid-in capital (usually, bewindhebbers had unlimited liability). The VOC therefore was a limited liability company . Also, the capital would be permanent during the lifetime of the company. As a consequence, investors that wished to liquidate their interest in
19456-530: The total glass production in the unorganised sector in India. It is estimated that over 50% of the city's population is employed "directly or indirectly" in the glass industry, with bangle manufacturing alone employing about 100,000 people. Firozabad is the single largest producer of bangles in India, accounting for 46% of India's total production. Other products include things like glass tableware , laboratory glassware , glass containers, automotive glass, vases, chandeliers , and numerous decorative items. As of 2011,
19608-475: The total production of finished glass items in Firozabad is about 1,230 megatons per day. The percent of this that gets exported internationally is variously estimated to be about 35% or about 50%. As of 2011, the total annual revenue from Firozabad's glass industry was Rs. 23.26 billion. Working conditions for Firozabad glassworkers are often very poor. Workers are often forced to work 12-to-14-hour days or risk losing their jobs, workplace injuries are common, and
19760-399: The town in good condition. It is written in the gazetteer of Agra and Mathura that in 1596 Faraz was upgraded to a pargana . Faraz was bestowed to Nawab Sadulla Khan as jagir , in the regime of Shahjahan. Jahangir ruled here from 1605 to 1627. Etawah, Budaun, Mainpuri, Faraz were under first class mansabdar of emperor Farrukhsiar. Baji Rao I looted Firozabad and Etmadpur in 1737 in
19912-589: The trade. At the same time, the Portuguese trade system was unable to increase supply to satisfy growing demand, in particular the demand for pepper. Demand for spices was relatively inelastic ; therefore, each lag in the supply of pepper caused a sharp rise in pepper prices. In 1580, the Portuguese crown was united in a personal union with the Spanish crown (known as the Iberian Union ), with which
20064-642: The transport vehicles on this highway. Firozabad hence is connected to several bus services to the Western and Eastern parts of Uttar Pradesh state. Due to proximity to Agra and hence the borders of Uttar Pradesh with Rajasthan , Madhya Pradesh states several inter-state bus services also serve the city. Intra-city transport typically consists of Rickshaws and 3-wheelers The city is well connected with Yamuna Expressway and Taj Expressway to national capital New Delhi and state capital Lucknow respectively. Since few years, Firozabad has been suffering with
20216-473: The worst AQIs in India. In a study conducted by WHO using data from years 2010–2016, Agra ranked as the 8th most polluted city in India, along with other nearby cities including Delhi , Kanpur and Faridabad . Agra has been ranked 3rd best “National Clean Air City” (under Category 1>10L Population cities) in India according to 'Swachh Vayu Survekshan 2024 Results' The Taj Mahal has faced significant damage due to air pollution and sewage discharge into
20368-725: The year. The Taj Mahal has become a symbol of India. Post Independence, Taj Mahal has been visited by world leaders like US Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower (1959), Bill Clinton (2000), and Donald Trump (2020). Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom had visited Taj Mahal in 1961 on her India visit. Taj Mahal has also been visited by Russian President Vladimir Putin (1999), Chinese President Hu Jintao (2006), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (2018) and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (2018). Agra
20520-488: Was a distant second to its total traffic with 2,690 ships and a mere one-fifth the tonnage of goods carried by the VOC. The VOC enjoyed huge profits from its spice monopoly and slave trading activities through most of the 17th century. Having been set up in 1602 to profit from the Malukan spice trade, the VOC established a capital in the port city of Jayakarta in 1619 and changed its name to Batavia (now Jakarta ). Over
20672-663: Was a part of the Surasena Mahajanapada during the Vedic Age . It was subsequently ruled by the bigger kingdoms including the Mauryas, Guptas, Scythians, Kushans, Indo-Greeks, Harsha before falling into the hands of Brahmin Peshwa , Rajput rulers. Before the foundation of modern Firozabad, the main city in the area was at Chandwar , on the left bank of the Yamuna a short distance southwest of Firozabad. Chandwar,
20824-645: Was a village before the reign of Sikandar Lodi. The king of Mathura had used the Agra fort as a jail. The degradation in the status of the site was a result of the destruction brought upon it by Mahmud of Ghazni . Masud Sa'd Salman claims to have been there when Mahmud assaulted Agra, claiming the Raja Japal surrendered after seeing a nightmare. Mahmud however proceeds to pillage the city. Agra's period of historical importance began during Sikandar Lodi's reign. In 1504–1505, Sultan Sikandar Lodi (reigned 1489–1517 ),
20976-591: Was able to monopolise the trade in nutmeg, mace, and cloves and to sell these spices across European kingdoms and Emperor Akbar the Great's Mughal Empire at 14–17 times the price it paid in Indonesia ; While Dutch profits soared, the local economy of the Spice Islands was destroyed, because as a monopoly buyer, the VOC forced the prices paid to the local producers in the Spice Islands down to low levels. With
21128-424: Was also known as Akbarabad in the Mughal era. The name was coined by the emperor Shah Jahan , in honour of his grandfather Akbar. Agra has two histories: one of the ancient city on the east, or left, bank of the river Yamuna , going back so far as to be lost in the legends of Krishna and Mahabharata and reestablished by Sikandar Lodhi in 1504–1505; the other of the modern city, founded by Akbar in 1558, on
21280-706: Was appointed governor-general of the VOC. He saw the possibility of the VOC becoming an Asian power, both political and economic. On 30 May 1619, Coen, backed by a force of nineteen ships, stormed Jayakarta, driving out the Banten forces; and from the ashes established Batavia as the VOC headquarters. In the 1620s almost the entire native population of the Banda Islands was driven away, starved to death, or killed in an attempt to replace them with Dutch plantations. These plantations were used to grow nutmeg for export. Coen hoped to settle large numbers of Dutch colonists in
21432-505: Was approximately to double the size of the company. The tonnage of the returning ships rose by 125 percent in this period. However, the company's revenues from the sale of goods landed in Europe rose by only 78 percent. This reflects the basic change in the VOC's circumstances that had occurred: it now operated in new markets for goods with an elastic demand, in which it had to compete on an equal footing with other suppliers. This made for low profit margins. The business information systems of
21584-545: Was completely defeated at Kanauj in 1539, just nine years after his ascension, by Sher Shah Suri , an Afghan nobleman, who had submitted to Babur, but revolted against his son. In this brief interruption in Mughal rule between 1540 and 1556, Sher Shah Suri , established the short lived Sur Empire , and the region was eventually reconquered by Akbar in the Second Battle of Panipat in 1556. Under Akbar (reigned 1556–1605 ), and followed by his grandson Shah Jahan , Agra
21736-701: Was controlled by a powerful local ruler and subject to stiff competition from Chinese and English traders. In 1604, a second English East India Company voyage commanded by Sir Henry Middleton reached the islands of Ternate , Tidore , Ambon and Banda . In Banda, they encountered severe VOC hostility, sparking Anglo-Dutch competition for access to spices. From 1611 to 1617, the English established trading posts at Sukadana (southwest Kalimantan ), Makassar , Jayakarta and Jepara in Java , and Aceh, Pariaman and Jambi in Sumatra , which threatened Dutch ambitions for
21888-452: Was defeated and killed by Mughal Emperor Babur in the First battle of Panipat , fought in 1526. The golden age of the city began with the Mughals . Agra was the foremost city of the subcontinent and the capital of the Mughal Empire until 1658, when Aurangzeb shifted the entire court to Delhi. Babur (reigned 1526–30 ), the founder of the Mughal dynasty, acquired Agra after defeating
22040-443: Was immortalised in the history of the world. Akbar built the modern city of Agra on the right bank of Yamuna, where the majority of its part still lies. He converted the city into a great centre of political, cultural and economic importance, connecting it with the various parts of his vast empire. Akbar raised the towering ramparts of the Agra Fort, besides making Agra a centre for learning, arts, commerce, and religion. Akbar also built
22192-421: Was its heat, another the strong winds, and the third its dust. Baths were the means of removing all three inconveniences. Very few vestiges remain of Babur's city, of his fruit and flower gardens, palaces, baths, tanks, wells and watercourses. The remnants of Babur's Charbagh can be seen today at Aram Bagh , on the east side of Yamuna. Babur was followed by his son Humayun (reigned 1530–40 and 1555–56 ), but he
22344-554: Was later renamed Cape of Good Hope in honour of the outpost's presence. Although non-company ships were welcome to use the station, they were charged exorbitantly. This post later became a full-fledged colony, the Cape Colony , when more Dutch and other Europeans started to settle there. Through the seventeenth century VOC trading posts were also established in Persia , Bengal , Malacca , Siam , Formosa (now Taiwan), as well as
22496-487: Was no longer worth the trouble to try to dominate the Malabar pepper and spice trade. A strategic decision was taken to scale down the Dutch military presence and in effect yield the area to EIC influence. In the 1741 Battle of Colachel , warriors of Travancore under Raja Marthanda Varma defeated the Dutch. The Dutch commander Captain Eustachius De Lannoy was captured. Marthanda Varma agreed to spare
22648-459: Was not a satisfactory location. Although it was at the centre of the spice production areas, it was far from the Asian trade routes and other VOC areas of activity ranging from Africa to India to Japan. A location in the west of the archipelago was thus sought. The Straits of Malacca were strategic but became dangerous following the Portuguese conquest, and the first permanent VOC settlement in Banten
22800-649: Was renewed several times, but was allowed to expire on 31 December 1799. Most of the possessions of the former VOC were subsequently occupied by Great Britain during the Napoleonic wars , but after the new United Kingdom of the Netherlands was created by the Congress of Vienna , some of these were restored to this successor state of the Dutch Republic by the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 . While
22952-534: Was such a rich prize that her sale proceeds increased the capital of the VOC by more than 50%. Also in 1603, the first permanent Dutch trading post in Indonesia was established in Banten , West Java , and in 1611, another was established at Jayakarta (later "Batavia" and then "Jakarta"). In 1610, the VOC established the post of governor-general to more firmly control their affairs in Asia. To advise and control
23104-408: Was the site of a major battle between the Delhi and Jaunpur Sultanates , which led to a three-year truce between the two empires. The modern city of Firozabad was founded c. 1566, when Raja Todar Mal was returning from a pilgrimage to Gaya and stopped at the village of Asafabad (just southeast of modern Firozabad). The villagers insulted him, and when the emperor Akbar heard of this, he sent
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