MADHYA PRADESH

state of India. It is India's largest state, extending over 171,215 square miles (443,446 square kilometres), about 14 percent of the country's total area. It is bordered by the states of Rajasthan to the northwest, Uttar Pradesh to the north, Bihar to the northeast, Orissa to the east, Andhra Pradesh to the southeast, Maharashtra to the south, and Gujarat to the west. As its name impliesmadhya means central and pradesh means region or stateit is situated in the heart of India. The state has no coastline and no international frontier. The capital is Bhopal. largest of the constituent states of India and the sixth most populous. Landlocked in the central part of the country, it is bounded by the states of Rajasthan to the northwest, Uttar Pradesh to the north, Bihar to the northeast, Orissa to the east, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra to the south, and Gujarat to the west. The state capital is Bhopal. Rock paintings and stone and metal implements found in the area are evidence of prehistoric habitation. The area was part of the Mauryan Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries BC and was ruled by numerous dynasties during the early centuries AD. It fell under Islamic control in the 11th century and was annexed into the Mughal Empire in the 16th century. By 1760 the area was under Maratha rule and came under British domination early in the 19th century. When India became independent in 1947, the British Indian province of Central Provinces and Berar formed Madhya Pradesh. Boundary changes followed, with its present boundaries as a state fixed in 1956. Forested hills with steep slopes, extensive plateaus, and river valleys characterize the physiography of Madhya Pradesh. The state occupies the Deccan Plateau and in the north and west includes the Vindhya and Kaimur ranges, which in places rise to 1,500 feet (460 m) above sea level. There is very little land in Madhya Pradesh that is below 1,000 feet (350 m) in elevation. The Satpura, Mahadeo, and Maikala ranges in the south have elevations of more than 3,000 feet (900 m). Madhya Pradesh is the source of some of the most important rivers of Indiathe Narmada, the Tapti, the Mahanadi, and the Wainganga. One-fifth of the state is forested. The most economically important trees of the region are teak, sal, bamboo, and salai. The forests have plentiful wildlife, including tigers, panthers, bison, bears, wild buffalo, and a variety of deer. The climate is monsoonal, with much of the rain falling from June to October. The March-to-May season is hot and dry, and temperatures everywhere are higher than 85 F (29 C). Temperatures are lower during the rainy season, and winters are usually pleasant and dry. Generally, rainfall decreases westward and northward; in the east and southeast it averages 60 inches (1,500 mm) or more, dropping to 40 inches (1,000 mm) or less in the far west and less than 30 inches (750 mm) in the Chambal River valley to the north. Hindus form the majority of the population, but there are significant minorities of Muslims, Jains, Christians, and Buddhists and a small population of Sikhs. Hindi is the official and most widely spoken language; tribal languages include Bhili and Gondi, as well as eastern and western Hindi dialects. The second most important common language is Marathi. A number of tribes occupy Madhya Pradesh, including the Bhil, Baiga, Gond, Korku, Kamar, Kol, and Maria. About one-fifth of the state's total population is classified as tribal. Agriculture dominates the Madhya Pradesh economy, and most of the rural workers in the state are cultivators or agricultural labourers. Less than half the total area of the state is cultivated, however, and about 15 percent of the sown area is under irrigation. Traditional farming methods in Madhya Pradesh result in low yields. The most important crops are rice, wheat, sorghum (jowar), leguminous plants, sugarcane, cotton, soybeans, and peanuts (groundnuts). Rice is grown principally in the east, while wheat and sorghum are more important in the west. The state is rich in largely untapped minerals, including coal, iron ore, manganese, bauxite, limestone, dolomite, fireclay, and china clay. Although there are a number of large- and medium-scale industries, the only heavy industries are the iron and steel plant at Bhilai Nagar and the heavy electrical factory at Bhopal. Madhya Pradesh also contains a paper mill making newsprint and a plant for producing electrical equipment, together with ordnance factories, electronics industries, cement works, sawmills, and sugar, textile, flour, and oil mills. Cottage industries, notably handloom weaving and other traditional crafts, are widespread. Inadequate transportation facilities have hindered the development of the state's rich resources. Madhya Pradesh has both broad- and narrow-gauge rail lines, and it is connected with India's major citiese.g., Delhi, Calcutta, and Bombayvia airports at Bhopal, Gwalior, Khajuraho, Indore, and Raipur. Many districts, however, have only limited access by road. Well-endowed with power resources, Madhya Pradesh, in conjunction with other states, has developed a number of hydroelectric projects. Many of the tribal traditions in the state are still vital and strong, although they have been exposed in varying degrees to outside cultural influences. A great deal of tribal mythology and folklore is also preserved; e.g., the bards of the Gond continue to sing of the legendary deeds of Lingo-pen, the mythical originator of the Gond tribe. All tribes retain myths and legends regarding their origins, and they have songs for the ceremonies of birth and marriage, together with folktales, riddles, and proverbs illustrating their cultural heritage. A number of temples, fortresses, and cave works reflect ancient times; one of the earliest monumentsthe Buddhist stupa at Bharhutdates back to about 175 BC. There are many universities and colleges throughout the state. Area 171,215 square miles (443,446 square km). Pop. (1991 prelim.) 66,135,862. Additional reading Pranab Kumar Bhattacharyya, Historical Geography of Madhya Pradesh from Early Records (1977), traces the historical evolution of the state, its physiography, river system, and political organization. Dom Moraes, Answered by Flutes: Reflections from Madhya Pradesh (1983), is an illustrated general work. Rama Yagya Singh, The Malwa Region: Rural Habitat System, Structure, and Change (1978), discusses the historical processes of evolution and transformation of rural settlement. H.L. Shukla, Social History of Chhattisgahr (1985), covers sociocultural, administrative, and ethnic structures along with language and literature. N.P. Pandey, Geography of Transportation (1990), is an integrated study with special reference to western Madhya Pradesh. G.M. Joshi, Tribal Bastar and the British Administration (1990), traces the course of the British policy toward the Bastar administration. Saraswati Raju History The history of Madhya Pradesh can be traced from very early times. Several remains of prehistoric cultures, including rock paintings and stone and metal implements, have been found in rivers, valleys, and other areas. One of the earliest states that existed in the territory of present Madhya Pradesh was Avanti, with its capital at Ujjain. Located in the western part of Madhya Pradesh, this state was part of the Mauryan empire (4th3rd century BC) and was later known as Malwa. Because of the fertile black soils located in the western half of Madhya Pradesh, settlers from different parts of India migrated to this region. Three important migratory routesfrom the western coast, from the Deccan Plateau, and from Sravasti in the northmet at Malwa. 200 BC to 1900 Among the various dynasties that ruled part or all of Madhya Pradesh between the 2nd century BC and the 16th century AD were the Sungas (185 to 73 BC), who ruled in eastern Malwa; the Andhras (Satavahanas; 1st or 3rd century BC3rd century AD); the Ksatrapas (2nd4th century AD); and the Nagas (2nd4th century AD). The whole of Madhya Pradesh lying north of the Narmada River formed part of the Gupta empire (4th5th century AD) and was the scene of a power struggle against the nomadic Hunas and Kalacuris, the latter of whom occupied part of Malwa for a brief period. Yasodharman was an important Malwan king who wrested power from the Hunas in the 6th century. Malwa was annexed by the emperor of northern India, Harsa (Harsavardhana), during the first part of the 7th century. By the 10th century, the Kalacuris rose again to occupy eastern Madhya Pradesh, including the Narmada valley; their contemporaries were the Param aras at Dhar in what is now the western region, the Kachwahas at Gwalior in the north, and the Candellas at Khajuraho, about 100 miles southeast of Jhansi. Later the Tomaras ruled at Gwalior, and the tribal Gonds ruled over several districts. The Muslim invasion of the area began in the 11th century. The Hindu domains of Gwalior were incorporated into the Delhi sultanate in 1231 by the sultan Shams-ud-Din Iltutmish. Later, in the early 14th century, the Khalji sultans of Delhi overran Malwa, which was subsequently annexed into the Mughal Empire by Akbar (ruled 15561605), the greatest of the Mughal emperors. Maratha power extended into Malwa at the beginning of the 18th century, and a large part of what is now Madhya Pradesh had come under Maratha rule by 1760. With the defeat of the peshwas (hereditary Maratha chief ministers who centralized Maratha rule) in 1761, the Sindia dynasty of the Marathas was established at Gwalior in the north and the Holkar dynasty (also Maratha) at Indore in the southwest.