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Baroda

Located in the eastern part of the state of Gujarat, the city of Baroda is a place of tourist significance. It is also an important cultural centre in India and is well known for museums and art galleries. As the city is situated about 100 km south of Ahmedabad, you may drive down to the place.

A series of Palaces were constructed in Vadodara during the reign of the erstwhile Gaekwad dynasty. The term Maharaja Palace actually refers to a series of palaces that were constructed then. The places of tourist importance are as follows:

Nazarbaug Palace:

This palace was built in old classical style .The palace was used for ceremonial occasions in the past and now it houses the heirlooms which once belonged to the royal family.

Lakshmi Vilas Palace

A very exclusive building of the Indo Saracenic School of architecture built in the year 1890 and was designed by Major Charles Mant a reputed architect. It has the distinction of being one of the largest private dwelling places of the nineteenth century, and is four times the size of Buckingham Palace.

Besides the architectural grandeur it was technically advanced with modern amenities like elevator and the interiors is akin to a large European country house. The Royal family dwells here and they are looked upon with high regard by the people of Baroda.

The Darbar Hall is ornate with a Venetian mosaic floor, walls bedecked with artistic mosaic decorations and Belgium stained glass windows. There is an Italian style courtyard of water fountains, outside the Darbar Hall. The collectibles at the palace include a collection of old armory, sculptures in bronze and terracotta by Fellici.

The palace has a huge compound that covers around 700 acres and houses a number of buildings namely the Motibagh palace, Motibagh cricket ground and the Maharaja Fateh Singh museum.

The palace premises also have a zoo within the compound and the only remains of the zoo are the pond which has a number of crocodiles in them. There is a golf course created by Maharaja Pratap Singh which was renovated and opened for public. Besides this there is a club house, gym, sauna and a swimming pool. Packs of langoors and peacock can be spotted within the palace compound.

The other two palaces of Baroda are the Makarpura palace built on the southern outskirts and Pratap Vilas Palace. They are now used as the defense installation and Railway Staff College respectively.

Maharaja Fateh Singh Museum:

It is located within the Lakshmi Vilas Palace premises. Adorned with a spectacular collection of sculptures in marble and bronze, it also houses the collection of art of the royal family. Collection of European, Roman, and Greco –Roman art forms are seen here. Chinese and Japanese art collection also adorns the Museum.

Sayaji Bagh:

This is a widespread park, encircled by a mini railway. The park houses the Baroda museum and art gallery which have few fine statues and carvings. The gallery has miniatures as well as mediocre collection of European masters. The planetarium which is seen here gives demonstration in English and Hindi at 5 pm and 6 pm respectively with minimal entry fees. The zoo is open from 9am to 5pm on all days except Thursdays.

Baroda Museum and Art gallery:

It was founded by Gaekwad in the year 1894 and has impressive collectibles of archaeology, anthology and geology. European art, Veronese, Giordano, Zurbaran, and some Dutch school paintings are seen at the art gallery adjoining the museum.

Naulakhi Well:

It is a fine example of a step well . Step wells were built magnificently though the main purpose was to provide water to travelers. This step well has the EME temple which is unique in having an aluminum roof. The design is such that it can store water for the entire city. The construction is so well planned that water was available even during droughts.

EME Temple:

The Dakshinamurthy temple is popularly known as the EME temple after the Electrical Mechanical Engineering premises, Baroda where it is located. It is dedicated to Lord Dakshinamurthy an incarnation of Lord Shiva, who faces southward and preaches to the world.

The temple has idols that were excavated from nearby places and few of them date back to the 6th century .These ancient idols are beautifully arranged along the pathway.

The architecture of the temple represents five religions. The specific structure namely kalash, dome, the tower and golden structure on top of the tower stand for Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism. The grand entrances stand for Jainism. The temple also has a playground for children.

The EME temple is run entirely by the army authorities and is one of the major tourist attractions in Baroda.

Apart from the places of tourist attraction Baroda is also well known for the industries and educational Institutes. Visit Baroda to enjoy the mystic splendor and grandeur of a place with regal heritage.

Reaching There:

By Air: The nearest airport is Baroda.

By Rail: The nearest railhead is Baroda which is well connected to other cities and states.

By Road: There are good roadways connecting Baroda to major cities. A distance of hundred odd km can be covered by own vehicle and car rentals is also a good option.

Staying there:

Welcome hotel Vadodara (5 Star)
RC Dutt Road,
Alkapuri,
Vadodara,

Surya palace (3 Star)
Sayajigunj,Opposite
ParsiAgiari,
Vadodara, Pin - 390005, Gujarat, India.

Amul Diary at Anand district, Gujarat

Amul- the mere mention of the name evokes in us images of amul butter packs with the chubby butter girl, with the utterly, butterly delicious tagline. Well amul mean much more to the people of Anand district of Gujarat. Amul here means amul diary with its modern plant, which is an important educational tourist spot (a must see for everyone) at the Anand district in Gujarat. Amul diary initiated the white revolution in India, with its milk cooperative movement in 1960s. Infact, Anand is known as the milk capital of India and has made India the largest producer of milk and milk products.

The milk movement brought about a sea change in the lives of the rural population of Anand district by generating employment at a huge scale. Today, Anand is home to the National Dairy Development Board, an institution that seeks to combine the traditional skills of farmers with professional management to successfully capture the milk markets in the country, while supporting farmer investment with inputs and services.

If you are visiting Baroda or Vadodara from Ahmedabad then do pay a visit to the Amul Diary, which has made our Nation proud and inspired thousands of farmers to follow the same path of cooperative movement. At the dairy you may pay a visit to the Amul Dairy Museum, which is a living monument of Amul's 55 year old history as a cooperative dairy institution.

The museum was inaugurated on the birthday of Dr. Varghese Kurien the man behind the White Revolution in India has a main building made of red stones with a water pond surrounding. In it is a walkway which depicts the history of Amul- the path of its evolution over 5 decades, to the high-tech major industry of today through various photographs.

The museum has a 100 seat Auditorium where films on the history and evolution of the dairy is being projected. The old garage where Dr Kurien began his career at Anand in 1949 is also erected in the form of a model and constitutes an integral part of the Museum.

Reaching there:

Anand is situated on the National express highway from Ahmedabad to Vadodara and you can pay a visit to the amul diary at any time of the year on one of your visits from Ahmedabad to Vadodara and vice versa. .

Anand is well connected with other important cities of country by rail. The nearest airport is Baroda and Ahmedabad. It is 40Kms and 65 Kms away from Anand respectively.