Location of Bikaner : - The city of Bikaner is situated in the north west part of Rajasthan India, just around 250 kms from the state of Haryana and Punjab this city is around 300 kms from Jaislamer, Jaipur is around 335 kms, Jodhpur is around 250 kms, very good roads connect these cities of Rajasthan, here traffic is minimal and movement is much faster.
In this area known as Jungledesh which extends up to Punjab and Haryana in north is the city of Bikaner. This is the last city of Rajasthan in the North West direction ruled by the Rajput rulers. RaoBika son of RaoJodha the famous Rajput chief who established the city of Jodhpur came to Jungledesh and laid the foundation of Bikaner. Today Bikaner is one of the big city of Rajasthan, numerous beautiful architecture were erected by the Rathore clan ofRajputs in Bikaner, these buildings showcase the wealth and the royal stature of the rulers, the rulers of Bikaner were very far sighted. Rao Ganga Singh on his personal behest constructed a canal known as the Ganga canal originating from Punjab during the British times .Because of the Ganga canal the area of Bikaner near Punjab border became fertile and started producing multiple crops even today Ganga nagar a city in name of Rao Ganga is known for its advance agriculture and the produce.
The Bikaner dynasty were an important vassal of the Mughal dynasty, they were a regal princely state under the British rule. They were accorded a 17 gun salute, the coat of arm shows two lions and a quote “Jai jungle Dhar Badshah” written in Devnagri script. The city is not very far from the international border of India with Pakistan. Similar to Jaisalmer the city of Bikaner is also famous for some very fine crafted Havelis made by wealthy merchants and the nobility. BikaneriBhujia a fried snack made from the chick pea flour and an assortment of various spices is very popular throughout India. Bikanerwala is a famous brand of restaurants and sweets which was established in the city of Bikaner today they have branches everywhere in India.
Junagarh Fort Bikaner : - Raja Raisingh a scion of the Rathore ruling dynasty became a vassal of the Mughal king Akbar and he was accorded a very high stature as an army general, he with his war exploits and with the jagirs he was conferred upon built a huge fort very near to the old fort of Bikaner. This fort of Jodhpur unlike other forts of Rajasthan has been constructed on a very plane area, The moat parallel to the outer wall safe guarded the inner palaces of the Bikaner fort. The fort has been constructed from the sand stone of Aravali hills, this area of Bikaner is very plain and has sand dunes. Raja Raisingh constructed the outer structure and formally the fort was inaugurated in 1594. The king was a great patron of art and architecture thus this fort depicts his deep interest in the same. The later kings of Bikaner Maharaja Karan Singh, Maharaja Anoop Singh, and Maharaja Gaj Singh added palaces to the earlier existing structure, those successive palaces added aura and beauty to the fort of Junagarh.
Places to Visit in Bikaner : - Diwan I aam, Karan Mahal palace, Anoop Mahal, Chandra Mahal (moon palace) hall of private audience, BadalMahal are the names of the palaces inside the Junagadh Fort these palaces exhibit exotic art and architecture of the bygone era. BadalMahal was made to create the ambience of the monsoon rain artifically in this arid area where rainfall is scanty , The fountains and the sound of thunder claps recreated the exact times of the rainy season even the walls are painted in the hue of blue to depict the clouds. There is a museum in the Junagarh fort where period arms and various other exhibits are on display in the large hall . The huge fort has seven gates for entry and apart from palaces it has temples, and other pavilions. The palaces constructed in the last century have an influence of the western art and architecture, glazed tiles showing the steam engine train can be seen at the palace.
Karnimata temple-deshnok : – A temple situated around 30 kms from the city of Bikaner.A female Sage who helped RaoJodha in constructing the fort of Jodhpur. According to the blessings of karniMata theRathore clan still holds onto their estates and kingdoms, The king believed dearly in Karnimata and a temple was constructed for the hermit, It is believed that the rats living in this temple are in fact children of the Karnimata so the devotees and the temple administration treats the rats with utmost devotion. There are some 25000 rats, most of them brown, sighting a white rat is considered very lucky, These rats eat and drink from large vessels situated in the temple, The devotees also take a bit(Prasad) from these vessels considering it to be holy. The temple has been constructed from marble and the sanctum sanctorum has an idol of Karni Mata in the centre. The sight of Karni Mata temple is certainly strange for the western tourists specially the Europeans who even now are afraid of rats, which are known to spread plague in Europe in the medieval times. No disease ever has been reported to be spread in this area due to the rat populationand the devotees love to serve these rats. If accidentally someone kills a rat then a rat made of gold has to be offered to the temple to appease Karni Mata.
National camel research centre : - Camel is the backbone of the desert economy, it is not only used as a mode of transport but it has various other uses, its used to plough the arid lands, An institute was set up by the Govt of India under the aegis of Indian council of agriculture research (ICAR) in year 1984, this research centre focuses on carrying scientific research and improving the breed of the Indian one humped camel (cameliusdromedarius) The institute also is employed in researching the two humped variety of camels found in Leh & Ladakh. At this camel research institute the tourists can tour the camel research centre and be apprised of the research activities, they can also ride the camels, taste ice cream made from camel milk. A proper camel museum has been made at the camel research centre to update the tourist.
