The city of bhopal has witnessed many changes since In the year 1708 it was discovered by the
Afghan soldier “Dost Mohammed”. The city has been through many phases, gentle as well as turbulent,
prosperous as well as disastrous. Bhopal has been a city in which one finds traces of cultures as
different as those of Buddhists, Hindus, Moguals and Afghans, all of which have been blended to
perfection, providing Bhopal a distinct identity.
The discoverer of the bhopal is raja bhoj and he constructed the dam to form the lakes that
surrounds Bhopal. After the decline of Raja, an Afghan soldier named “Dost Mohammad” laid out the
present city at the same site following the death of the mughal emperor Aurangzeb in 1707. It was the
largest muslim empire.
Bhopal is the second largest muslim state in pre-independent India. From 1819 to 1926, bhopal
was ruled by four begums. The first female ruler of bhopal was "Qudisa Begum". She was succeeded
by her only daughter "Sikandar", who in turn was succeeded by her only daughter, "Shahjehan". The
last female ruler of bhopal`s history was "Kaikhusrau Jahan Begum" after which the kingdom passed
on to her son.
The era of the rein of the begums can be considered as a golden age in the history of
bhopal as the city saw innovations as waterworks, railways and a postal system. Several monuments
still stand in the city as reminders of this glorious period in its history.
In 1947, a municipality was constituted in Bhopal. It was the last princely state to sign the
`Instrument of Accession` in 1947. Even though India achieved independence in August 1947, the ruler
of bhopal acceded to the indian government only on 1 May 1949.As per the states reorganization Act of
1956, bhopal state was integrated into the state of madhya pradesh, and bhopal was declared as its
capital.
Bhopal witnessed the worst of the tragedies on December 3, 1984, when a union carbide plant
in bhopal leaked 40 tons of toxic methyl isocyanate gas, leading to the bhopal disaster. Bhopal disaster
is often alluded to as the worlds worst industrial disaster.
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