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Aurangzeb is a flourishing trade
centre in the Maharashtra State and is also a historic city. The town
was named after Aurangzeb (1659 - 1707 AD) the last of the great Mughals.
Its original name was 'khidki' or window. It was a gateway to deogiri
and pratishthan, i.e. the Daulatabad and Paithan of today. While Aurangabad
has a number of attractions of its own, the tourists value it mainly
as the place from which the Ellora and Ajanta Caves are to be visited.
The gateway to the World Heritage
Sites of Ajanta and Ellora, Aurangabad is named after the Mughal emperor,
Aurangzeb. Lying along the right bank of the Kham River, the city is
the district headquarters, which offers visitors all the modern comforts
and amenities. There are several luxury and budget hotels, shopping
centres and banks. In the city are three museums housing the art treasures
of the region -- the Sunheri Mahal Museum, the University Museum and
the Chhatrapati Shivaji Museum. You can also while away the hours in
the pleasant confines of the Bani Begum Gardens. The 34 monasteries
and temples, extending over more than 2 km, were dug side by side in
the wall of a high basalt cliff, not far from Aurangabad, in Maharashtra.
Ellora, with its uninterrupted sequence of monuments dating from A.D.
600 to 1000, brings the civilization of ancient India to life. Not only
is the Ellora complex a unique artistic creation and a technological
exploit but, with its sanctuaries devoted to Buddhism, Hinduism and
Jainism, it illustrates the spirit of tolerance that was characteristic
of ancient India. 
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