Overview
Kheda district is an administrative district in the central part of the state of Gujarat, India. The district headquarters is located at the town of Nadiad, while the district takes its name from the historic town of Kheda (also spelt Kaira). The district lies in the fertile Charotar region between the rivers Mahi and Sabarmati and is known for its agricultural productivity, dairy cooperatives, and association with the Indian freedom movement.
Key facts
| Country | India |
|---|---|
| State | Gujarat |
| Region | Charotar, central Gujarat |
| Headquarters | Nadiad |
| Type | District |
| Major rivers | Mahi, Sabarmati, Shedhi, Vatrak |
| Official language | Gujarati |
Geography
Kheda district occupies a part of the alluvial plain of central Gujarat. The terrain is largely flat and fertile, drained by the Mahi on the south and east and by the Sabarmati on the west, along with smaller rivers such as the Shedhi, Vatrak and Meshwo. The soils, locally classified as goradu, support intensive cultivation of tobacco, paddy, wheat, bajra, and a range of vegetables and fruits. The district experiences a tropical monsoon climate, with hot summers, a south-west monsoon between June and September, and mild winters.
Administration
The district is administered by a District Collector and is part of the revenue and administrative framework of the Government of Gujarat. It is divided into several talukas, including Nadiad, Kheda, Mahudha, Matar, Mehmedabad, Kapadvanj, Kathlal, Thasra, Galteshwar, and Vaso. Local self-government is exercised through the Kheda Zilla Panchayat at the district level, taluka panchayats, gram panchayats in villages, and municipalities in the larger towns such as Nadiad, Kapadvanj, Kheda, and Mehmedabad.
History
The town of Kheda has a long recorded history as a regional centre, and the surrounding area passed under various powers including the Chaulukyas, the Delhi Sultanate, the Gujarat Sultanate, the Mughals and the Marathas, before becoming part of British India. Under the British, the area was organised as the Kaira District of the Bombay Presidency.
Kheda Satyagraha
Kheda district occupies an important place in the history of the Indian independence movement as the site of the Kheda Satyagraha of 1918. Led by Mahatma Gandhi alongside Vallabhbhai Patel and Indulal Yagnik, the movement protested the British administration's refusal to suspend land revenue collection from peasants who had suffered crop failure. The struggle was one of Gandhi's earliest mass movements in India and helped establish the political prominence of Patel.
Reorganisation
After the formation of the state of Bombay State in 1947 and the bifurcation of Bombay in 1960, Kaira (Kheda) became part of the new state of Gujarat. In 1997, the southern part of Kheda district was carved out to form the separate Anand district, with the town of Anand as its headquarters.
Economy
Agriculture is the mainstay of the district's economy. Tobacco, paddy, wheat, bajra, pulses, and oilseeds are major crops, and the district is one of the leading tobacco-producing areas in India. Dairy farming is highly developed and is closely linked with the Amul cooperative movement, which originated in the neighbouring Anand area but draws milk from villages across the wider Kheda–Anand region. Small and medium industries, agro-processing units, and trade in agricultural commodities are concentrated around Nadiad, Kapadvanj, and Mehmedabad.