Who built Mumbai

*WHO BUILT BOMBAY ?*
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*According to ancient history, a group of 7-seven islands comprising Colaba, Mazagaon, Old Woman's Island, Wadala, Mahim, Parel, & Matunga-Sion formed a part of the Kingdom of Ashoka the Great of Magadh, ironically in North India !*
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*The 7 islands of Mumbai passed through many hands - the Sultans of Gujarat, the Portuguese & the British !*
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*Every ruler left behind proof of residence in Mumbai !*
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*The Mauryans left behind the ★Kanheri-Caves (Borivali N-Park), ★Jogeshwari-Caves ★Mahakali-Caves & the caves of "Ghara-puri" island more popularly called.. Elephanta !*
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*The Sultans of Gujarat built the Dargahs at Mahim & Haji Ali !*
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*The Portuguese built the two Portuguese Churches, one at ★Prabhadevi & the other ★St. Andrews at Bandra !*
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*They also built Forts at Sion, Mahim, Bandra & Bassien (today's Vasai) !*
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*The Portuguese named the group of 7 slands 'Bom Baia', Good Bay !*
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*The British built a city out of the group of 7 islands & called her Bombay - spoilt from the original Mumbai !*
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*The original settlers of the 7 islands, the Koli fishermen, worshiped Mumba Devi, her Temple still stands at Zaveri Bazar/Paydhuni.. Cotton Exchange ..near Chowpatty !*
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*The Kolis called the island Mumbai, 'Mumba'-devi, Mother Goddess' !*
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*In 1662, King Charles II of England married the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza, & received the 7 islands of Bom Baia as part of his dowry !*
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*6 years later, the British Crown leased the 7 islands to the English East India Company for a sum of 10 pounds in gold per annum !*
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*It was under the "English East India Co" that the future megapolis began to take shape ! After the first War for Independence in 1857, Bombay once again became a colony of the British Empire !*
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*History has forgotten this but the first Parsi settler came to Bombay in 1640, he was Dorabji Nanabhoy Patel !*
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*In 1689-90, a severe "plague" प्लेग epidemic broke out in Bombay & most of the European settlers succumbed to it !*
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*The Siddi of Janjira Fort(MS) attacked in full force. Rustomji Dorabji Patel, a trader & the son of the city's first Parsi settler, successfully defeated the सिद्दी Siddi (African-Nigro) with the help of, the Kolis & saved Bombay !*
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*Gerald Aungier, Governor of Bombay built the Bombay Castle, an area that is even today referred to as Fort !*
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*He also constituted the Courts of Law. He brought Gujarati traders, Parsi shipbuilders, Muslim & Hindu manufacturers from the mainland & settled them in Bombay !*
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*It was during a period of 4 decades that the city of Bombay took shape!*
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*Reclamation was done to plug the breach at Worli & Mahalakshmi, and Hornby Vellard was built in 1784 !*
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*The Sion Causeway, connecting Bombay to Salsette, was built in 1803 !*
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*Colaba Causeway, connecting Colaba island to Bombay, was built in 1838 !*
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*A Causeway connecting Mahim & Bandra was built in 1845 !*
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*Lady Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, the wife of the First Baronet Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy donated Rs. 1,57,000 to meet construction costs of the Causeway. She donated ₹ 1,00,000 at first ! When the project costs escalated & money ran out half way through, she donated ₹ 57,000 again to ensure that the vital Causeway was completed !*
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*Lady Jamsetjee stipulated that no toll would ever be charged for those using the Causeway. Today Mumbaikars have to pay ₹-75 to use the Bandra-Worli Sealink, connecting almost the same two islands !*
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*Sir JJ Hospital was also built by Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy !*
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*The ship building "Wadia family of Surat" was brought to Bombay by the British. Jamshedji Wadia founded the ★Bombay Port Trust & built the ★Princess Docks in 1885 & the ★Victoria Docks & the Mereweather Dry Docks in 1891 !*
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*Alexandra Docks were built in 1914 !*
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*A Gujarati civil engineer supervised the building of the Gateway of India !*
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*The Tatas made Bombay their headquarters & gave it the iconic Taj Mahal Hotel & India 's first civilian airlines, Air India !*
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*The Godrejs gave India its first vegetarian soap !*
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*Cowasji Nanabhai Daver established Bombay 's first cotton mill, 'The Bombay Spinning Mills' in 1854 !*
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*By 1915, there were 83 textile mills in Bombay largely owned by Indians !*
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*This brought about a financial boom in Bombay ! Although the mills were owned by the Gujaratis, Kutchis, Parsis & Marwaris, the workforce was migrant Mahrashtrians from rural Maharashtra !*
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*Premchand Roychand, a prosperous Gujarati broker founded the Bombay Stock Exchange. Premchand Roychand donated Rs. 2,00,000 to build the Rajabai Tower in 1878 !*
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*Muslim, Sindhi & Punjabi migrants have also contributed handsomely to Mumbai!*
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*Apart from its original inhabitants, the Kolis, everyone else in Mumbai, are immigrants!*
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*When the Shiv Sena came to power in 1993, & the name Bombay was replaced with Mumbai !!*
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*This article was written on February 7, 2010 by Tushar Gandhi, Founder President of Mahatma Gandhi Foundation & a grandson of Mahatma Gandhi!*