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Valsad district (Gujarati: વલસાડ જિલ્લો) is one of the 26 districts in the Western Indian state of Gujarat. It is bound by Navsari district to the north, Nashik district of Maharashtra state to the east, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli union territory and Thane district of Maharashtra to the south. The Arabian Sea lies west of the district. The coastal Daman enclave of Daman and Diu union territory is bounded by Valsad district on the north, east, and south.[1] The district’s administrative capital is Valsad. The district’s largest city is Vapi.

The district covers 5,244 square kilometres and is divided into five talukas: Valsad, Pardi, Umargam, Kaparada and Dharampur. According to the 2001 India census,”Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)”. Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01. the total population of the district was 1,410,553, with 27.02% of its residents living in urban areas.[1] Valsad is well known for its production of mangoes, sapodilla, and teak, and for its chemical industry based on Atul.

History

Parsis first entered India at the port of Sanjan.[2] Mount Parnera is home to temples and a fort of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.[2] Bagwada is home to Arjungad Fort and several temples, including a Jain temple.
Geography

Average rainfall – 2000 mm
Seismic Zone – Zone III
Major rivers – Damanganga, Paar, Auranga, Kolak, Taan and Maan
Tithal Beach is very important tourist attraction of Valsad.[2] Wilson Hill in Dharampur is also a tourist attraction.

It is also contiguous with the Union Territories of Daman and Silvassa. This city’s longitude and latitude are 72.98 and 20.54 respectively.
Economy
Agriculture

Total production of food crops in Valsad in 2006-07 was 3.6 lakhs MT.
Major horticulture crops being produced in the district are mango, cucurbits, chikoo, banana and sugarcane. In 2006-07, Valsad had the highest production of mango in the State, accounting for 2,03,112 MT. The district was the 2nd highest producer of Cucurbits with a production of 47,960 MT during 2006-07.
Industry

Valsad is an industrial base for sectors such as chemicals, textiles, and paper & pulp industries. Since the 1980s, textile and chemicals have been the major sectors of investments and employment in the district. Valsad is emerging as a horticulture hub of the State, witnessing significant production in food grains and crops.

With over 300 medium and large scale industries, Vapi is a major industrial center in Valsad. One of the Asia’s largest Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) is present in Vapi[citation needed], owned by Vapi Waste & Effluent Management Company and promoted by Vapi Industrial Association. Over 10,716 units of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), involved in different sectors, such as chemicals, textiles, engineering, and paper industry etc., are present in the district. Several private conglomerates are present in Valsad, including Alok Industries ltd, Wyeth, Welspun India Ltd., Aarti Industries, Atul Limited, Gujarat Heavy Chemicals Ltd. (GHCL), Raymond, Sun Pharmaceuticals, United Phosphorus, Pidilite,Polyols & Polymers and Vadilal,Unique Polymers.

Valsad district contains areas such as Vapi (the Chemical Hub of Gujarat)[citation needed], Umbergaon and Sarigam (the Industrial Estates).
Major industries

Chemical products such as, diamino sulphone, acetic acids and esters, different types of dyes etc. Valsad Atul Limited Pharmaceutical products Valsad Wyeth Lederle Ltd. Cotton yarns, madeups of cotton terry towel and fabrics Alok Indutries ltd, Welspun Polyesters India Ltd. Semi processed & Instant foods, Tomato ketchup, canned and frozen foods Dharampur Vadilal Industries Ltd. Electronic equipments for environmental and air pollution control, Phosphorus Peentasulphide, Benzoate etc. vapi United Phosphorus Ltd. Pharmaceutical products, vapi Sun Pharmaceuticals Iron pipes, seamless pipes and stainless steels etc. Umbergaon Sarigam Steel Ltd. Uncoated craft paper, newsprint and poster paper etc. Pardi Ruby Mascot Ltd. synthetic resins, adhesives, colour pigments and lubricating chemicals etc.vapi Pidilite Industries ltd. Chemical products such as, chloroaniline, calcium phosphate, sulphuric acid, single super phosphate etc. vapi Aarti Industries Ltd. Weaving and processing of artificial and synthetic textile fibres etc. Pardi Raymond Ltd. Printing inks, synthetic resins, prepared glues and adhesives etc. vapi Hindustan Inks Ltd, vapi bilag, Madeups of curtains and bed covers etc. bhilad GHCL Ltd.[1]
Small scale industries (SSI)

In 5 talukas of the district, there are 10,716 units generating 58,641 jobs, with investments to the tune of INR 84,912 lakh (USD 207 million).

Dye stuff & opticals, cotton textiles, chemicals and lathes & machine tools are the major small scale industry sectors present in Valsad district. Pardi taluka houses maximum number of SSI units with a healthy investment of over INR 39,340 lakhs (USD 100 million), providing jobs to 25,776 people. About 7 km from Valsad City in Dhamdachi Village there is Company known as Advance Agrisearch Ltd. is engaged in manufacturing of Herbal Based Anti-Termite products in Termi Guard Brand for Wood Preservation and also for soil treatment, which are available in Domestic Market as well as exporting to various countries in the world. The said Company is the 1st in company the world who have developed Anti-termite Wood Adhesive known as Termicol Brand. The Company is also suppling their Anti-Termite Products to Pidilite Industries known as Terminator Wood Preservative and Structure Preservative.
Divisions

Talukas – 6 (Valsad, Pardi, Vapi, Dharampur, Kaprada, Umbergaon)
Major cities – 2 (Vapi, Valsad)
Transport
Railways

Valsad Station was established in 1925. City has a Control Tower for better railway operation. The basic training center for the Western Railway cadets of RPF (Railway Protection Force) is in Valsad. Valsad has one of the biggest Railway yards and full repair loco shed for electric locomotive in Western Railway along with the basic repair workshop for wagons and coaches. Many trains originate from Valsad for Mumbai,Ahmadabad,Kanpur,Patna.

Main Stations on Mumbai – Surat route are Umergaon Road, Sanjan, Bhilad, Vapi, Udwada, Pardi, Valsad, and Dungari.
Valsad Railway Station
Demographics

According to the 2011 census Valsad district has a population of 1,703,068,[3] roughly equal to the nation of The Gambia[4] or the US state of Nebraska.[5] This gives it a ranking of 287th in India (out of a total of 640).[3] The district has a population density of 561 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,450 /sq mi) .[3] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 20.74%.[3] Valsad has a sex ratio of 926 females for every 1000 males,[3] and a literacy rate of 80.94%.[3]
Culture
Notable personalities

Dayaram (1777–1853) Poet. Born in Chanod.
Morarji Desai – former Prime Minister of India.
Nirupa Roy – actress.
Bhulabhai Desai – freedom fighter and acclaimed lawyer.

Education

The Government Polytechnic, established in 1965 is one of the prominent institutions in Valsad.[6]
The district also has a Government Engineering College since 2004. Recently from last few years Computer Application stream had also been started successfully.[7]

There are other colleges offering various courses in Science, Commerce and Arts.[8] A new law college will be opened soon.[9]