Mumbai

INTRO
Mumbai (called Bombay in British tomes) is the glamorous commercial and entertainment capital of India. Home of Bollywood, and housing at the same time important financial institutions such as the National Stock Exchange of India or the Reserve Bank of India, the cosmopolitan city has it all - shopping malls full of famous labels, red double-decker buses queuing in heavy traffic jams, numerous film studies and the infamous cages of the red-light district. Being the capital of the state of Maharashtra, Mumbai has a lot of streets with Victorian townscape - reminiscent of the prosperous 19th century. The spirit of an English industrial city mixed in pungent combination with vibrant streetlife, stunning nightlife and wealth of bazaars.

City Profile
City: Mumbai (Bombai)
Country: India
Area: 437,71
Population: 12,883,645
Districts: 2
Mayor: Shubha Raul
Language: Marathi, Gujarati, Hindi, English
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LOCATION
Mumbai is located on Salsette Island, lyning in the mouth of the Ulhas River off the western Indian coast. Big part of the city is at sea level, only the northern part being hilly - the highest point of the city is at 450 meters. The coastline of Mumbai is indented with large number of bays and creeks.

TIME TO VISIT
There is no doubt that the biggest event in the calendar of Mumbai events is Ganesh Chaturthi. It is an 11-day Hindu festival that takes place every August/September. The climax of this colourful spectacle is when huge images of elephant-headed god are dipped in the sea - most notably off Chowpatty Beach. If you want to explore Mumbai, probably the best time to do that is between October and April, when you can count on dry and cool weather. From June to September is the rain period - floods are quite often in that time of year. During monsoon period it is often impossible to visit some of the city's main attractions - ferries to Elephanta Island stop and trips to Sanjay Gandhi National Park and cave temples around Mumbai are quite risky. During the months just before monsoon period, temperatures can reach more than 40oC.

POPULATION
The population of Mumbai is almost 13 million, and density is as high as more than 27,000 people per square kilometre. Religions in Mumbai include Hindus (68% of the population), Muslims (17% of the population), Christians - 4%, Jains - 4,5%. The remainder are Buddhists, Sikhs, Jews and atheists. The demographic groups include Marathi people (42%), Gujarati (18%), North Indian (21%), Kannadigas (5%), Tamil people (3%), Sindhis (3%). There are a few languages that are spoken in Mumbai. Marathi - the official language of Maharashtra is used by almost the whole population, other languages are Hindi, Gujarati and English. An interesting fact is that there are 811 females to every 1000 males - lower than the national average. That is a result of many working men coming from rural areas, leaving behind their wives.

DISTRICTS
The metropolis of Mumbai can be divided into two districts - city and suburban district

City area - the city region of Mumbai is also commonly referred to as the Island city. That is where the industrial and economic power of Mumbai is concentrated. Typical are the huge shopping mall, tall administrative buildings and nicely landscaped parks - a getaway from the busy streets.
Suburban district - it comprises big part of Salsette Island, and houses millions of people. This is where Borivali National Park is located. The eastern part of the island is covered with large mangrove swamps and is very rich in biodiversity. On the western sea shore are the marvellous Juhu and Chowpatty beaches.

SIGHTS & ATTRACTIONS
Being extraordinarily fascinating, mystical and enchanting, Mumbai has a number of sights that are worth paying a visit.

Chowpatty beach - the right place to go if you like the sea breeze and fresh air after visiting the crowded city covered by a thick layer of smog. Water is not as clean as you might want, but the beach is litter-free, lit-up at night and patrolled by lifeguards.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus- the most exuberant Gothic building in the city. Even though it is a train station, it has more the look of a lavishly decorated cathedral or palace. It was built in 1887, and was designed to be the headquarters of the Great Indian Peninsular Railway Company.
Crawford Market - colourful indoor market, called also Phule Market, is reminiscent of the times of British Bombay - before the boom of the central bazaars.
Elephanta Island - home of the famous cave temples in Maharashtra. They are carved into the solid rock are a large number of Shaivite temples and covered in sculptures of Hindu deities. Boats to the island leave the Gateway of India regularly every day except Monday, fare for an economy boat is 90 Rupees, a deluxe boat is 20 Rupees more.
Gateway of India- yellow basalt arch of triumph, conceived after the visit of King George in 1911. The design of the arch was derived from the Muslim styles of the 16th century Gujarat.
St. Thomas' Cathedral - the oldest English building in Mumbai. It was finished in 1718, after more than 45 years of construction. It was completely restored in 2004.
Mani Bhavan - that is the building in which Mahatma Gandhi used to stay during his visits to Bombay. Now it is a small but engrossing museum.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum - is also known as the Prince of Wales Museum. Its collection includes impressive sculptures, weaponry, miniature paintings and porcelain figures.
Nehru Planetarium and Nehru Centre - this cultural complex fascinates with its modern bold architecture. You can enjoy its theatre, restaurant and free history exhibition.

AIRPORT
The city of Mumbai is served by 1 major airport - it holds both domestic and international flights.

Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport - formerly called Sahar International Airport. Spread over an area of 5,9 sq km, it serves as India's biggest international airport, as well as a major domestic hub. It is the busiest in India and South Asia, handling more than 20 million passengers a year. The airport consists of 2 terminals - domestic (Terminal 1 aka Santa Cruz) and international (Terminal 2 aka Sahar). The terminals use the same airside facilities, but are separated on the landside, the drive between them takes 10-15 minutes. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport is easily reachable by bus and the suburban electric trains.

LOCAL TRANSPORTATION

Mumbai Suburban Railway - it is the backbone of the public transportation in the metropolis. It comprises of 3 separate networks that are running the whole length of the city in north-south direction. On daily basis this system carries more than 6 million commuters.
Buses - public buses in Mumbai are run by BEST - Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport. The company is also electricity provider for the city. The bus transport service covers the entire Mumbai.
Taxis - there are Black and yellow taxis which are metered, and Blue and silver cabs known as Cool Cabs - they are also metered, and have air-conditioning.
Auto rickshaw services - metered Black and yellow rickshaws which are not allowed in the Central area of the city.
Waterway services - hovercraft services connect Vashi to the Gateway of India. The service links Chowpatty to Juhu on the west. There are ferry services available for visiting Elephanta Caves, and also to nearby places such as Rewas and Mandwa.

HISTORY
Present Mumbai was an archipelago of 7 islands. There is evidence that these islands have been inhabited since the Stone Age. In the beginning of the New Age Mumbai was ruled by Indo-Scythian Western Satraps and the Satavahanas. Islands were later governed by the Silhara Dynasty, and they were annexed by the kingdom of Gujarat in 1343. The Portuguese appropriated the islands in 1534. They were later ceded to Charles II of England as dowry for Catherine de Braganza, and then leased to the British East India Company for a sum of 10 Pounds per annum - in 1668. The company settled up their first port in the sub-continent and transferred its headquarters from Surat to Bombay. Population quickly rose. In the 19th century the city was reshaped with large civil engineering projects that aimed merging all islands into a single amalgamated mass. The project was completed in 1845. In 1853 was established the first passenger railway in India, connecting Bombay to the Thane town. During the American Civil War Bombay become world's main cotton trading market. The opening of the Suez Canal transformed the city into one of the largest seaports on the Arabian sea. The population of Bombai reached 1 million in 1906. In 1950 the city expanded to its present borders by incorporating big part of Salsette Island on the north. Maharashtra state was formed with Mumbai as a capital in 1960. In 1995 the city was renamed Mumbai, in keeping with the government policy of renaming colonial institutions after historic local appellations.

CITY LINKS

Official site of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai - http://www.mcgm.gov.in/forms/grindex1.aspx
Map of Mumbai - http://wikimapia.org/#y=18960000&x=72820000&z=12&l=0&m=h&v=2
Mumbai City Guide - http://theory.tifr.res.in/bombay/
Mumbai city info - http://www.mumbainet.com/

UNIVERSITY LINKS

University of Mumbai - http://www.mu.ac.in/
Indian Institute of Technology - http://www.iitb.ac.in/