Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti
The Samyukta Maharashtra Movement achieved its aim when the present state of Maharashtra was created on 1 May 1960. The state reorganization left Marathi-speaking areas in Northern Karnataka, such as Belgaon, outside Maharashtra. The newly liberated people of Goa in a 1967 referendum rejected merger with Maharashtra.
History of Maharashtra
Chhatrapati Shivaji maharaj is considered the founder of the modern Marathi empire; his policies were instrumental in forging a distinct Maharashtrian identity.
Shivaji Bhosale c. 1627/1630 – 3 April 1680), also known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was a member of the Bhonsle clan. Shivaji Maharaj carved out an enclave from the declining Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur that formed the genesis of the Maratha Empire. In 1674, he was formally crowned as the Chhatrapati (Monarch) of his realm at Raigad.
Shivaji was an able warrior and established a government that included such modern concepts as a cabinet ("ashtapradhana mandala"), foreign affairs ("dabir") and internal intelligence. Shivaji Maharaj established an effective civil and military administration. He also built a powerful navy and erected new forts like Sindhudurg and strengthened old ones like Vijayadurg on the west coast of Maharashtra.