Jaipur District GK Profile for RAS Prelims

Jaipur: From Hilltop Fortress to Planned Capital

Long before Jaipur city existed, the seat of power in this region was Amber, a hill fort that served as the Kachhwaha capital for roughly seven centuries. The Kachhwahas had wrested Amber from the Susawat Minas in the 11th century and moved their capital there from Dausa; because the Kachhwaha rulers accepted Mughal suzerainty early, Amber was spared the destruction that befell many rival forts. Its best-known building phase came under Raja Man Singh I, who built much of the fort's palace complex in red sandstone and white marble starting in 1592, blending Hindu and Islamic architectural styles. Later additions under Mirza Raja Jai Singh — including the Diwan-e-Aam, the mirror-worked Sheesh Mahal, and the ornamented Ganesh Pol gateway — turned Amber into one of Rajasthan's most celebrated palace complexes; the 19th-century British bishop Reginald Heber called it more beautiful than anything he had seen of the Kremlin or heard of the Alhambra.

In 1727, Sawai Jai Singh II founded a new, carefully planned city below the fort and made it his capital — the city that grew into modern Jaipur. The move marked a shift from a defensible hill fortress to a city built for trade, administration and the future.

Jaipur in Rajasthan's Modern Governance

Jaipur's standing in the state's administrative history runs deep. When the princely states integrated into united Rajasthan, Jaipur's own former ruler, Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II, became the state's first and only Rajpramukh, holding the position until November 1956. Today, the Governor of Rajasthan resides at Raj Bhavan in the Civil Lines area of Jaipur, and the city has also housed the headquarters of the Indian Army's South Western Command since its establishment in 2005.

Water and Infrastructure

Jaipur district has been at the centre of some of the state's more ambitious water-security efforts in recent years, including cloud-seeding trials near Jamwaramgarh Dam aimed at reviving Ramgarh Lake, and feeder-canal work linking the Isarda dam to reservoirs across Jaipur and neighbouring districts as part of the broader Ramjal Setu Link project. Jaipur has also been proposed as the site for a new Centre of Excellence for Water Management, aimed at strengthening water-use planning across the state.

Quick Facts

• Amber served as the Kachhwaha capital for around 700 years before Jaipur city was founded in 1727 by Sawai Jai Singh II.
• Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur was Rajasthan's first and only Rajpramukh.
• The Governor of Rajasthan's official residence, Raj Bhavan, is located in Jaipur.
• Jaipur hosts the headquarters of the Indian Army's South Western Command.