Shikohabad is a city and municipal board in the Firozabad district of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Situated in the western part of the state, it lies in the Doab region between the Ganga and Yamuna rivers and serves as a tehsil headquarters within Firozabad district.
| Country | India |
|---|---|
| State | Uttar Pradesh |
| District | Firozabad |
| Region | Doab, Western Uttar Pradesh |
| Civic body | Nagar Palika Parishad (Municipal Board) |
| Languages | Hindi, Urdu |
The town is traditionally said to be named after Dara Shikoh, the eldest son of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. The suffix -abad, of Persian origin, denotes a settled or inhabited place, a naming convention common to many towns established or renamed during the Mughal period.
Shikohabad is located on the alluvial plain between the Ganga and Yamuna rivers. The terrain is flat and fertile, supporting an agrarian economy dominated by sugarcane, wheat, mustard, potato and pulses. The climate is humid subtropical, with hot summers, a monsoon season from June to September, and cool winters.
Shikohabad is administered as a Nagar Palika Parishad (municipal council) and functions as the headquarters of Shikohabad tehsil in Firozabad district. The district itself was carved out of Agra district in 1989. For Lok Sabha elections, the area falls within the Firozabad parliamentary constituency, while it is represented in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly through the Shikohabad Vidhan Sabha constituency.
Shikohabad lies on the Howrah–Delhi main railway line and is served by Shikohabad Junction railway station, an important station on the Allahabad division of the North Central Railway. From Shikohabad Junction, a branch line connects to Farrukhabad via Mainpuri, providing rail links into the Rohilkhand region.
By road, the city is connected to Firozabad, Etawah, Mainpuri and Agra, and lies in the broader corridor between Agra and Kanpur. The Yamuna Expressway and the Agra–Lucknow Expressway pass through the wider region, improving connectivity to Delhi, Noida and Lucknow.
The local economy is based on agriculture, agro-processing and trade. Sugarcane cultivation has historically supported sugar mills and jaggery (gur) production in the surrounding belt. Small-scale industries, grain markets (mandis) and retail trade contribute to the urban economy, while the city is also linked to the bangle and glassware industry centred on the district headquarters at Firozabad.
Shikohabad has a number of inter colleges, degree colleges and schools affiliated to the Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad and the CBSE. Higher education colleges in the town are affiliated to Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Agra.
According to the Census of India, Shikohabad is classified as a town with a mixed Hindu and Muslim population. Hindi is the principal language of administration and daily use, with Urdu also spoken. Literacy rates and sex ratio broadly follow the patterns observed across western Uttar Pradesh.