Bhopal (pop. 1,798,218; met. area pop. 1,883,381) is the capital of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is a major manufacturing and transport center. It was once the seat of the Muslim princely state of Bhopal. In December 1984, Bhopal was the site of the world’s worst industrial disaster, when large amounts of a deadly gas leaked late at night from a pesticide plant in the north of the city. About 3,000 people died at the time, and hundreds of thousands more were poisoned. Through the years, the death toll from the disaster has risen, by some estimates, to about 15,000.
There are two lakes in the center of the city of Bhopal, known as the Upper Lake and Lower Lake. The old city and most of the city’s industry lie to the north of these lakes. The new part of the city lies to the south and west of these lakes.
The Taj-ul-Masjid, one of the largest mosques in India, is in Bhopal. The Bharat Bhavan, an arts complex designed by the architect Charles Correa, is a major center for the preservation of Indian folk art. Bhopal University is also based in the city. Bhopal’s major industries include the manufacture of electrical equipment, the weaving of cloth, and flour milling. Bhopal has an airport and is also a junction of major north-south and east-west rail lines.
Bhopal was once the capital of the princely state of Bhopal. This state was founded in 1709 by Dost Mohammad Khan, an Afghan adventurer who came to India in the reign of the Mughal emperor Bahadin Shah I. It was the largest Muslim princely state in central India. In 1817, Bhopal signed a treaty of alliance with the British East India Company against the pindaris (lawless robber bands). It became part of the Bhopal Agency, which combined the state of Bhopal with several other minor princely states. Bhopal was unusual among princely states in that it was ruled for nearly 70 years by a succession of women. There were no male heirs to the throne during this time, and Muslim law allowed women to rule under these circumstances.
Bhopal’s status as a separate province continued after Indian independence in 1947. In 1949, it became part of India, with a state commissioner. Bhopal was amalgamated with the state of Madhya Pradesh in 1956 and became the capital of the state at that date.
