KUSTANAY

also spelled Kustanai, or Kustanaj, Kazak Qostanay city, northern Kazakstan, on the Tobyl River. Founded by Russian settlers from the Volga region in 1879, it became a centre of trade in the steppe, particularly in grain, a role that was enhanced by the construction of a branch railway in 1913. Kustanay was made an oblast (province) administrative centre in 1933, but its greatest expansion dates from the mid-1950s and the Virgin and Idle Lands Campaign, which extended agriculture and hastened the exploitation of mineral wealth, and the construction of rail lines in the region. The city's most economically important industries are food processing and other light enterprises, though there are vehicle and agricultural-equipment repair shops, and spare parts are produced for excavators and mining equipment. Kustanay has a teacher-training institute. Pop. (1995 est.) 232,100.