Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti
The Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti achieved its goal on 1 May 1960, when the State of Bombay was partitioned into the Marathi-speaking State of Maharashtra and the Gujarati-speaking State of Gujarat. However Goa (then a Portuguese colony), Belgaum, Karwar and adjoining areas, which were also part of the Maharashtra envisaged by the Samiti, were not included in Maharashtra state. The prominent leaders of sanyukt maharashtra samiti decided to quit samiti after 1 May 1960, but the then chairman of the samiti Bhai Uddhavrao Patil continued his fight for the 862 Marathi-speaking villages of Karnataka that were excluded in 1960.
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.