Porbandar

In between Veraval and Dwarka, Porbandar is situated. It has a port of its own. Mahatma Gandhi was born in this place. Located on Gujarat’s southeast coastline, Porbandar is considered to be quite a cheery and amicable town. The cement and soda industries present here have made the town renowned. It is not a very popular tourist destination. The course coastline and the turbulent sea are not safe to take a swim in. Apart from walking and roaming around the roads, which are lined with greenery, having a good time in the lively and soothing seas breeze, making a trip to the place where the loin-clothed fakir used to dwell or offering prayers to the shrine located nearby, one does not have many a choices to do in this place. One can find birds in abundance on the beautiful mangrove trees near the Jynbeeli Bridge.

The former name of this port town was Sudamapuri. The name was derived from the name Sudama, who was a companion of Krishna. Also, a very prosperous business was conducted between this place, Africa and Gulf. The linkage of this place to Africa is quite obvious and clear because of the large number of African-Indians. This group is called Siddis. They form a distinct caste named Dalits.

Going back to the history, we find that Mahatma Gandhi was born here on 2nd October in the year 1869. He gave birth in a blue colored haveli which was 3 floors high. His complete name is Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. In this city of Porbander, Gandhi’s father, uncle and his grandfather had held the post of prime ministers to the princely state’s Jethwa Rajput Rulers. For many hundred years, this city has continued to be a flourishing business location. It carried out trade with countries of Arabia, Persian Gulf. It also had business connection with East Africa during the Mughal period, the Marathas rule and the British Empire. At present the city’s atmosphere has become quite dirty and polluted due to the presence of cement and chemical industries.

Kirti Mandir is the name of the place where Gandhi gave birth. The room, where he was born does not have any specialty about it. It is quite common. However, it has been turned into a museum. Ancient photographs related to him, his few personal items and a wonderful collection of books linked with the philosophy of Gandhi are upheld to the public view here in this museum. 

Bharat Mandir: Bharat Mandir is located at a distance of 2 Kms from the heart of the town. The Indian tradition and customs are reflected in the statues, sculptures, paintings and symbols, which are present here. Different shows related to astronomy are shown in the Nehru Planetarium, which is situated beside the mandir.

Kirti Mandir: The Kirti Mandir has another name by which it is known – Temple of Fame. It is a monument created in honor of the Gaekwads. It is situated in Vadodara. Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III constructed this monument in order to immortalize his ancestor’s great memories. The beautification of the Kirti Mandir is done by the Sun, the Moon and the Earth along with India’s map before the separation. In the year 1936, during Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III’s diamond jubilee celebrations, the construction of Kirti Mandir took place.   

Porbandar Beach: In between Veraval and Dwarka, Porbandar’s beach is situated. Among all the beaches in Gujarat, this beach is one of the beaches which haven’t been damaged. With the presence of wonderful and striking beaches along the coastline and beautiful bunglows, Porbander is all over a picturesque location to just relax and enjoy the blue of the Arabian Sea.

Rokadia Hanuman temple: One of the renowned temples of Prbander is this temple named Rokadia hanuman Temple.

Sudama Mandir: Dedicating to and remembering the friendship between Sudama and Krishna, the temple has been constructed. It is situated in the very middle of the city. It is called as Sudama Mandir.

Tara Mandir: In Gujarati language, the word “Tara” means stars. The building contains a planetarium. This planetarium is one of the initial two planetariums, which was constructed by Shri Jawaharlal Nehru in India. In the present time this place is nothing but a place of great disorder and it is in need of modern infrastructure.

By road: From other cities such as Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Dwarka, Veraval, Jamnagar and Junagadh, many state transport buses as well as private buses offer their services to Porbandar. 

By rail: Different cities like Rajkot, Ahmedabad and Mumbai are linked to Porbander via a railway station, which is located in the city.