Bhopal (Hindi भोपाल, Urdu بھوپال‎) is a city in central India. The capital of the state of Madhya Pradesh. Nickname – “city of seven lakes.” The population is more than 1.5 million inhabitants, of which 56% are Hindus and 38% are Muslims.

Geography and climate
Bhopal is located in the central part of India, on the Malwa plateau. The city is located at an altitude of 427 m above sea level.

The climate of Bhopal is humid tropical, with mild winters, hot dry summers and a wet monsoon season. Summer begins at the end of March and lasts until mid-June, the average temperature during this period reaches 30°C. The hottest month of the year is May, temperatures can exceed 40°C. The monsoons last from the end of June to the end of September, the average temperature of these months is 25°C. Winter lasts from October to early March, the temperature during this period is about 18 ° C, but sometimes it drops much lower. Average annual rainfall: 1146 mm.

History
The founder of the settlement on this site is considered to be King Parmara Bhoj (1000-1055), whose capital was the city of Dhar. Initially, the city was called “Bhojpalom” (“Bhojpal”), after its founder (“Bhoj” – “Bhoj”) and his deeds for this settlement (“pal” – “dam”), thanks to which the city had the Upper Lake. After the fall of the Parmar dynasty, Bhopal was destroyed and looted several times. After the death of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, one of his Afghan mercenaries, Dost Mohammed Khan of Tirah, began to create his own principality. The principality of Bhopal, founded by him, became the second largest Muslim state in India before its independence. The small village that was then Bhopal was turned into a walled city by this Pashtun ruler in the 1720s: on August 30, 1723, the foundation of the fort was laid. Thanks to Dost Mohammed Khan and his descendants, Islam and the Pashtuns had a strong influence on the culture and architectural appearance of the city. In 1742, Faiz Muhammad Khan moved the capital of the principality to Bhopal from Islamnagar.

From 1819 until 1926, the principality was ruled by women (there were four in all). During the reign of one of them, Shah Jahan Begum, the influence of Mughal architecture was noticeable, so one of the urban districts was called “Shahjahanabad”. During her reign, the largest mosque in Asia at that time was built in Bhopal. Taj-ul-Masajid.

The last ruler of the principality of Bhopal was Hamidullah Khan, son of Sultan Jahan Begum and grandson of Shah Jahan Begum. In 1949, the principality became part of the Indian Union and Bhopal became the capital of the new state. Sindhis who fled Pakistan as a result of the Partition of British India settled in the city’s western suburb, Bairagath. In 1956, the states of Bhopal, Madhya Bharat and Vindhya Pradesh were merged into the new state of Madhya Pradesh, with Bhopal as its capital.
On December 3, 1984, the world’s largest man-made disaster occurred in the city: at a local chemical plant, about 3 thousand people died as a result of a leak of 42 tons of toxic methyl isocyanate gas, and later another 15 thousand people died. Therefore, December 3 is a day of mourning in the city: every year on this day all government offices in Bhopal are closed.

Economy
Bhopal is a center of trade (grain, cotton, opium, timber, garments).
Bhopal is also famous for its handicrafts: beading and gold embroidery.
There are two industrial areas on the outskirts of the city, Mandideep and Govindpur. There is industry: chemical, cotton, flour-grinding, food, mechanical engineering. Factory of electrical appliances. Manufacture of matches, fabrics, sewing and knitwear and jewelry. The largest industrial company in Bhopal and the entire state of Madhya Pradesh is Hindustan Electro Graphite (HEG), which produces graphite electrodes.

In 1984, a huge Bhopal disaster occurred at a chemical plant in Bhopal, which negatively affected the economic development of the city. To attract investment, the authorities of Madhya Pradesh are planning to develop a network of roads linking Bhopal with major cities in the 2010s. In addition, work is underway to improve the quality of drinking water, supply the population with water and electricity. Efforts are being made to develop tourism and education (there is a university in Bhopal).

Transport
National Highway 12 passes through the city and connects Bhopal with Jabalpur (in the east) and Jaipur (in the west). Highway No. 86 connects the city with Sagar (in the east) and Dewas (in the west). Highway 17 connects Bhopal and Indore.
The city is well connected by railways with other cities in northern India.
Airport Бхопала расположен в 15 км к северо-западу от города, на хайвэе № 12. Airport принимает только местные рейсы и соединяет Бхопал регулярными рейсами с такими городами страны, как Дели, Бомбей, Ченнаи, Хайдерабад, Калькутта, Индаур, Ахмедабад и Райпур.
There is a major railway junction here.

Culture
The city hosts the Rangadhar theater festival.
The Holi festival is visited not only by Hindus, but also by citizens of other faiths. The concern of the city’s public for ecology led to the holding here in 2012 of the “green” Diwali.
The Muslim missionary organization Tabligh Jamaat annually holds thousands of three-day meetings of Muslim preachers in Bhopal called “Aalami Tableeghi Ijtima” (abbreviated as “Ijtima”).
The poet and philosopher Muhammad Iqbal lived in Bhopal from 1934 to 1938.
Since 2007, Bhopal has become a popular filming location for Indian films (Engagement to Wedding, 2008; Rajniti, 2010; People’s Life, 2010). In the 2010s, the TV series Chintu Chinki Aur Ek Badi Si Love Story, Tum Dena Saath Mera, Second Wedding and Consent were filmed here.