2. Bombay.
At first, Bombay was the major outlet for cotton
textiles from Gujarat. Later, in the nineteenth
century, the city functioned as a port through
which large quantities of raw materials such as
cotton and opium would pass. Gradually, it also
became an important Administrative Centre in
western India, and then, by the end of the
nineteenth century, a major Industrial Centre.
4. Bombay. Work.
The first cotton textile mill in Bombay was
established in 1854. By 1921, there were 85
cotton mills with about 146,000 workers. Only
about one-fourth of Bombay’s inhabitants
between 1881 and 1931 were born in Bombay:
the rest came from outside. Large numbers
flowed in from the nearby district of Ratnagiri
to work in the Bombay mills.
6. Bombay.
Reclamation.
In 1864, the Back Bay Reclamation Company
won the right to reclaim the western foreshore
from the tip of Malabar Hill to the end of
Colaba. Reclamation often meant the leveling of
the hills around Bombay.
By the 1870s, although most of the private
companies closed down due to the mounting
cost, the city had expanded to about 22 square
miles.
8. Bombay.
Reclamation.
A successful reclamation project was
undertaken by the Bombay Port Trust, which
built a dry dock between 1914 and 1918 and used
the excavated earth to create the 22-acre
Ballard Estate. Subsequently, the famous Marine
Drive of Bombay was developed.
9. Bombay. Trade.
By 1845, the seven islands were coalesced into a
single landmass by the Hornby Vellard project
via large scale land reclamation. On 16 April
1853, India's first passenger railway line was
established, connecting Bombay to the
neighbouring town of Thane. During
the American Civil War (1861–1865), the city
became the world's chief cotton trading
market, resulting in a boom in the economy that
subsequently enhanced the city's stature.
11. Bombay. Events.
The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 transformed
Bombay into one of the largest seaports on
the Arabian Sea. In September 1896, Bombay was
hit by a bubonic plague epidemic where the death
toll was estimated at 1,900 people per week. About
850,000 people fled Bombay and the textile
industry was adversely affected. As the capital of
the Bombay Presidency, it witnessed the Indian
independence movement, with the Quit India
Movement in 1942 and The Royal Indian Navy
Mutiny in 1946 being its most notable events.
19. Mumbai. The Metropolitan City.
Mumbai, formerly known as, is the capital of the
Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most
populous city in India, and the fourth most
populous city in the world, with a total
metropolitan area population of approximately
20.5 million.
Mumbai lies on the west coast of India and has a
deep natural harbor. In 2009, Mumbai was
named an Alpha world city. Mumbai is also the
richest city in India, and has the highest GDP of
any city in South, West or Central Asia.
