Maharashtra

I

Introduction

Maharashtra, state in western India, bordered on the north-west by Gujarat State, on the north and north-east by Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh states, on the east by Andhra Pradesh State, on the south by Karnataka State, and on the west by the Arabian Sea. The union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli is located in the north of Maharashtra on the border with Gujarat. The state came into being in May 1960 when the former Bombay state was reorganized, with part forming Maharashtra State and the remainder becoming Gujarat State. Maharashtra has an area of 307,690 sq km (118,800 sq mi).

II

Physical Geography

Running parallel to the seacoast of the state are the Western Ghats, a highland area with elevations of about 2,000 (7,000 ft). Between this area and the Arabian Sea is a narrow strip of land known as the Konkan. Inland is the large Deccan Plateau, which is crossed by a number of rivers, notably the Krishna, Bhima, and Godavari. The greater metropolitan area of Mumbai, the state capital, occupies a low-lying area that once consisted of seven islands separated from each other only during high tide. Dredging and reclamation projects, as well as the construction of breakwaters and causeways, have linked the islands into a contiguous stretch of land known as Mumbai Island. Salsette Island is located to the north of Mumbai and is connected to the mainland by causeways and railway embankments.

The state has a coastline of 720 km (447 mi). A large plateau crossed by a number of rivers is located inland. On the coast the average minimum temperature in January is 16° C (61° F), and the average maximum is 32° C (90° F). In June the average minimum temperature is 26° C (79° F), and the average maximum is also 32° C (90° F). Inland the average temperatures range from 14° to 29° C (57° to 84° F) in January and from 25° to 40° C (77° to 104° F) in May. Maharashtra has a monsoon season that accounts for about 80 per cent of its annual rainfall.

III

Population

The population of Maharashtra is 96,752,247 (2001) and the average population density is 314 people per sq km (813 per sq mi). The capital is Mumbai (formerly Bombay; population, 2001, 11,914,398). In addition to Mumbai, there are several other major cities, including Ahmadnagar (2001, 347,396), Akola (1991, 328,034), Amravati (1991, 421,576), Aurangabad (2001, 891,841), Chandrapur (1991, 226,105), Ichalkaranji (2001, 285,795), Jalgaon (1991, 242,193), Kalyān (2001, 1,193,266), Nagpur (2001, 2,122,965), Nasik (2001, 1,152,048), Pune (2001, 3,755,525), Sholapur (1991, 604,215), and Ulhasnagar (1991, 369,077).

Marathi, the state language, is spoken by 90 per cent of the population. In addition, English (especially in Mumbai), Gujarati, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Urdu, Bengali, Malayalam, and Konkani are spoken. Most of the population is Hindu, although there are Muslim, Buddhist, and Christian minorities. Maharashtra’s population is varied and includes people from the Bhil, Gond, Gowari, Korku, and Warli ethnic groups.

IV

Education and Culture

Several colleges of higher education, universities, and important cultural institutions are located in Maharashtra, including the University of Mumbai (founded in 1857) in Mumbai; Marathwada Agricultural University (1972) in Parbhani; the University of Nagpur (1923) in Nagpur; and the University of Pune (1949), Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (1917), and the Film and Television Institute of India (1961), in Pune. The city of Mumbai is the centre of India’s large film industry, and colloquially termed “Bollywood”, which greatly exceeds the output of the Hollywood film industry in number of films produced annually. See also Indian Cinema.

Maharashtra is a distinct cultural region. The state is noted for its extraordinary Buddhist and Hindu cave temples. Considered architectural masterpieces, the caves were carved sometime between the 3rd and 8th centuries and can still be viewed in the towns of Ellora and Ajanta; these sites were both inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1983 (see Ajanta Caves). Elephanta Caves, six rock-cut temples dating from the 7th century, on the island of Elephanta in Mumbai harbour, were designated a World Heritage Site in 1987. Mumbai’s Victorian Gothic Revival railway station—the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly known as the Victoria Terminus)—was added to the World Heritage List in 2004. Also unique to the state is a huge crater created by the impact of a hypervelocity meteorite, located in the small village of Lonar.