Introduction
Kheda is one among the oldest districts of Gujarat. It was bifurcated in 1998 and Anand was carved out of it and the head quarter of the district shifted from Kheda to Nadiad. On 17th September 2013, two talukas namely Balasinor and Virpur of Kheda district had been included in the Mahisagar district, and two new talukas namely Vaso and Galteshwar came into existence under the Kheda District. District is spread over 3958.84 sq km. Nadiad is birthplace of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and also known for the renowned personalities like Santram Maharaj and Indulal Yagnik. District is bound by two major rivers of Gujarat, on west side Sabaramati and Mahisagar on the East.
Places and Industry
Kheda and Anand are known as “Charotar-the Golden Leaf area”. Since many decades it has been major producer of tobacco in Gujarat. Moreover, it has strong base of cotton & rice too. Major industries of the district are of Textiles, Paper, Electrical equipment and Food Processing. Kheda is known for its timber industry and also recognized as hub for the packaging woods. There are more than 800 saw mills in the district. Ceramics, Plastic and its products, Cement and Gypsum manufacturing industries are up coming in the district. There is a great potential of further development in the district. Matar Taluka has abundant reserves of natural gas. Shell India has its bottling and filling plant in the district for oil and natural gas. There are many warehouses along the National Highway-8. The Mafatlal Pvt.Ltd. (Cotton Mill), Coca -Cola & Amul cheese Plant at Khatraj Chokdi (Ta.Mehmdabad) are also of importance.
Most popular religious places of the district are Santram Mandir (Nadaid), Vadtal Swaminarayan Mandir (Vadtal), Rannchhodrai Temple at Dakor, Galteshwer Mahadev Mandir and Roja Roji (Mehamdabad).
Rivers and Mountains
The district has total 9 (nine) major rivers namely Mahi, Sabarmati, Meshwo, Khari, Luni, Varasi, Sehar, Vatrak and Shedhi. Mahi river is famous by name Mahisagar for its large stretch which passes near by the Thasra taluka. There is no big mountain or mountain range.
Geological Composition
In the district, some areas of Kapadvanj Taluka are hilly and the remaining district Geography is flat. In the district, there are four types of soil mainly kyari, sandy, black and goradu (spatial) soil. Kyari soil is found in Matar and Mahemdabad taluka. Goradu soil is usually found in Charotar track comprising area of Nadiad and Thasra Taluka. Black soil which is considered good for cotton crop is located in Kapadvanj and Thasra talukas. Some areas of black type soil in Matar Taluka, known as Bhal tract are considered good for wheat crop.