Bikaner is a medieval city of palaces and the temples, rich in Rajasthani art and architecture. This city is located in the north west of the state of Rajasthan. Bikaner is popular for the Laxmi Niwas Palace and many other west India architectural heritages of medieval India and British India.
Location of Bikaner
Bikaner is situated at about 330 kilometers northwestern part of Jaipur. Bikaner is also the administrative headquarters of Bikaner District and Bikaner division.
History of Bikaner
History of Bikaner dates back from the time of Rao Bika. Rao Bika established Bikaner in 1488 AD and later he developed this monumental city. Rao Bika was the son of Maharaja Rao Jodha, the founder of Jodhpur. After that he conquered the north of Rajasthan and formed Bikaner. During the rule of Mughal Dynasty in Delhi, the kings of Bikaner accepted the suzerainty of Mughals. Later the Princely state of Bikaner was formed during the rule of British Empire in India. Princely state of Bikaner was functional by the Princes of Bikaner till India gained Independence in 1947.
Geography of Bikaner
Bikaner is situated in Thar Desert area of north Rajasthan sharing the boundaries with Jodhpur, Nagpur and Pakistan. Bikaner enjoys a hot semi-arid climate with very little precipitation and tremendous hot temperatures.
Climate in Bikaner
Climate in Bikaner is characterized with the hot and cold climate and weather changes. In the summer season, Bikaner enjoys the heat of 28 degree Celsius to 50.5 degree Celsius. The winter is intense cold with 5 degree Celsius to 23.2 degree Celsius. The annual rainfall is about 260 to 440 millimeters.
Demography of Bikaner
According to the Population census in the year 2011, Bikaner has the total estimated population of 644,406. The males and females in this fortified city are 338,442 and 305,964 respectively.
Culture of Bikaner
The people of Bikaner celebrate the foundation day of the city on Akshaya Tritiya by flying kites and Rajasthani food. The Rajasthani foods include Bajre Ka Khichda and Imli ka Paani and other snacks. The festival lasts for two days. It is known as Chhoti Akha Teej and Badi Akha Teej.
Tourism in Bikaner
Junagarh Fort, Laxmi Niwas Palace, Karni Mata Temple and Bhandasar Jain Temple are the popular tourist destinations in Bikaner.
Visiting Information
Bikaner is easily connected with all the major cities through the roadways and railways. The major cities like Sriganganagar, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Alwar, Bhubaneswar, Sambalpur, Bilaspur, Kanpur, Agra, Jalandhar, Vadodara, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Jaipur, Surat, Gurgaon, Puri, Coimbatore, Thiruvananthapuram, Chandigarh, Kota, Kollam, Jammu, Jodhpur and Ahmedabad, Pune, Indore and Vijayawada are connected with Bikaner through roadways. Bikaner is also connected directly through railways with Delhi, Jaipur, Agra, Alwar, Ludhiana, Sri Ganganagar, Bhatinda, Ambala, Ahmedabad, Haridwar and Jodhpur. The nearest airport in Bikaner is Domestic Civil Airport.