|  Vadodara
alias Baroda is a graceful city of gardens, palaces and shady avenues
and has one of the modern universities in the country. It has a public
park with a museum, a picture gallery and a zoo covering 60 hectares on
the banks of the Vishvamitri. The museum is of particular interest as
it has sections on Indian civilization and art with an imposing collection
of sculptures and miniatures, folklore, natural history, ethnology and
specialised sections devoted to neighbouring countries in Asia and Africa.
The Oriental Institute attached to the university is known for its collection
of ancient Sanskrit manuscript, particularly of the Ramayana, on which
scholars are engaged in specialisd research. The Laxmi Vilas palace, the
Makarpura palace, the Nazarbag palace and Pratap Vilas palace have Indo-Saracenic
style of architecture. The Kirti Mandir where the mortal remains of the
members of the ruling Gaekwad family are laid, is built of a variety of
stones and its inner walls have murals. Baroda is a leading industrial
centre.
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