Madhyapradesh

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Madhyapradesh
Area: 443,446 sq km;
Capital: Bhopal;
Districts: 45;
Language: Hindi.

Physiography:

Situated in the centre of India, M.P. is the biggest state in the country. Except for the valleys of the Narmada and the Tapti, M.P. consists of a plateau with a mean elevation of 1600 ft above sea level, interspersed with the mountains of the Vindhya and the Satpura ranges.



The main river systems are the Chambal, Betwa, Sindh, Narmada, Tapti, Mahanadi and Indravati. Nearly a third of the state's area is covered with tropical forests.

M.P. has the largest population of Scheduled Tribes of all states and a high proportion of Scheduled Castes (one-third of the population). 23 districts are predominantly tribal. The major tribes of MP are Gonds, Bhils, Oraons, Korkens and Kols.

History:

The State of Madhya Pradesh was formed on November 1, 1956. It consists of the 17 districts of the previous state of Madhya Bharat (except the Sunel enclave of Mandsaur district), the former Vindhya Pradesh, the State of Bhopal and Sironj subdivision of Kotah district, which was an enclave of Rajasthan in Madhya Pradesh.

The state is divided into 45 districts.

New districts: Mahasmund, Dhamtari, Kawardha, Umaria, Hardan, Jashpur, Kanker, Shivopur, Korea, Porba, Barwani, Katni, Dindori, Jajgir, Champa, Dantewala and Neemuch. 'Three New States' for Chhattisgarh.

Districts

  1. Balaghat
  2. Bastar
  3. Betul
  4. Bhind
  5. Bhopal
  6. Bilaspur
  7. Chhatarpur
  8. Chhindwara
  9. Damoh
  10. Datia
  11. Dewas
  12. Dhaar
  13. Durg
  14. East Nimar
  15. Guna
  16. Gwalior
  17. Indore
  18. Hoshangabad
  19. Jabalpur
  20. Jhabua
  21. Mandla
  22. Mandsaur
  23. Morena
  24. Narsinghpur
  25. Panna
  26. Raigarh
  27. Raipur
  28. Raisen
  29. Rajgarh
  30. Rajnandgaon
  31. Ratlam
  32. Rewa
  33. Sagar
  34. Satna
  35. Sehore
  36. Seoni
  37. Shahdol
  38. Shajapur
  39. Shivpuri
  40. Sidhi 10
  41. Surguja
  42. Tikamgarh
  43. Ujjain
  44. Vidisha
  45. West Nimar

Economy:

The economy of the state is primarily agriculture-based. Nearly 80 per cent of the population live in villages. Total cultivated area is 44.20m hectares of which 28.6m hectares are irrigated. The Malwa region abounds in rich black cotton soil, the low lying areas of Gwalior, Bundelkhand, Baghelkhand and the Chhattisgarh plains have lighter soil, whereas the Narmada valley is formed of deep rich alluvial deposits. The main food crops are jowar, wheat and rice and coarse grains such as kodo, kulki, soma, etc. Important among the commercial crops are oilseeds, cotton, sugarcane and soyabean.

M.P. is very rich in natural resources like iron ore, manganese ore, coal, limestone and tin. In all, 27 kinds of minerals are being mined in the state. The major industries are the steel plant at Bhilai, Bharat Heavy Electricals at Bhopal, the Aluminium Plant at Korba, the Security Paper Mills at Hoshanga-bad, the Bank Note Press at Dewas, the Newsprint Mill at Nepanagar and Alkaloid Factory at Neemuch and cement factories, a vehicle factory, an ordnance factory and a guncarriage factory. There are also 23 textile mills (7 are nationalized). Annual production of cement is 1.50 lakh tonnes.

The Bhilai Steel Plant near Durg is one of the six major steel mills in India. A power station at Korba (Bilaspur) with a capacity of 420 MW serves Bhilai, the Aluminium Plant and the Korba coalfields. A 2000 MW - power plant is to be set up at Sipat (Bilaspur district).

The Bharat Heavy Electricals, India's first heavy electrical equipment factory was set up by the Government of India at Bhopal during the Second Plan period.
M.P. has entered the era of high-tech industries such as electricals, telecommunications, petrochemicals, food processing, motor vehicles etc. Pithampur near Indore is called the ''Detroit of India''.The Rau-Pithampur road is India's first private sector infrastructure project.

A large number of agro-based industries have also come up. Solvent extraction plants based on soyabean have been established. Fourteen Industrial Growth Centres are being developed.

Faced with an acute drinking water problem, the M.P. government has decided to privatise drinking water supply projects on the pattern of electricity projects.
Seven of India's top ten industrial and business groups have set up shop in the state. Fresh investments since 1984 have added up to Rs. 6000 cr. in the large and medium sector. Projects worth Rs. 31,000 cr. are under implementation.

Universities :

  • Awadhesh Pratap University, Rewa, Pin: 486 003
  • Barakatulla University, Bhopal, Pin: 462 026
  • Devi Ahilya Vishwa Vidyalaya, Indore, Pin: 452 001
  • Dr. Harisingh Gour Vishwa Vidyalaya, Sagar, Pin: 470 003
  • Guru Ghasidas University, Bilaspur, Pin: 495 009
  • Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur, Pin: 492 012
  • Indira Kala Sangit Vishwa Vidyalaya, Khairagarh, Pin: 491 88
  • Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Pin: 482 004
  • Jiwaji University, Gwalior, Pin: 474 011
  • Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education, Gwalior, Pin: 474 002
  • Madhya Pradesh Bhoj University, Bhopal, Pin: 462 016; National Law Institute University, Bhopal, Pin: 462 003
  • Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Vedic Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur, Pin: 482 001
  • Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakoot Gramoday Vishwavidyalay, Chitrakoot, Pin: 485 331
  • Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism, Bhopal, Pin: 462 016
  • Pandit Ravi Shankar Shukla University, Raipur, Pin: 492 010
  • Rani Durgavati Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Pin: 482 001
  • Vikram University, Ujjain, Pin: 456 010
  • Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Viswavidyalaya, Bhopal, Pin: 462 036.

M.P. also has 13 engineering and 6 medical colleges. 3.31 lakh persons have been made literate under the Total Literacy Compaign. In July, 97, 85.26 lakh persons were attending classes under TLC.
A 3000-metre long bridge (longest in India) is being built in collaboration with Japan's Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund.

Tourist Centres:

Khajuraho, once the capital of Chandella rulers is 595 km from Delhi. The embodiment of the great artistic activity of the 9th to the 12th centuries, only 22 temples out of 85 have survived. Ujjain, where Kumbha mela is held every 12th year,
Sanchi with ancient Buddhist monuments, Bhopal the lake-side capital city,
Jabalpur famous for marble rocks and Gwalior with beautiful forts, Indore, the largest city in the state, Panchmarhi, the hill station, Mandu, the historical town and Amarkantak, the source of the Son and Narmada rivers are among the other tourist attractions.

Kanha National Park near Jabalpur is one of the most beautiful wild life sanctuaries in India.M.P. which has one-sixth of the world's tiger population, has been declared a 'Tiger State' to give protection to tigers.The state recorded IMR of 97, the highest in India, against the national average of 72.

M.P. has Internet access in every district Indus-I, the synchroton radiation source (SRS) was commissioned at Indore in June, '99.In August 2000, Parliament approved the M.P. Reorganisation Bill 2000, thus clearing the way for the creation of the Chhattisgarh state.

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