When was Maharashtra founded?
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.
Mumbai
Between the second century BCE and ninth century CE, the islands came under the control of successive indigenous dynasties: Satavahanas, Western Satraps, Abhira, Vakataka, Kalachuris, Konkan Mauryas, Chalukyas and Rashtrakutas, before being ruled by the Shilaharas from 810 to 1260. Some of the oldest edifices in the city built during this period are the Jogeshwari Caves (between 520 and 525), Elephanta Caves (between the sixth to seventh century), Walkeshwar Temple (10th century), and Banganga Tank (12th century).
King Bhimdev founded his kingdom in the region in the late 13th century and established his capital in "Mahikawati" (present day Mahim). The Pathare Prabhus, among the earliest known settlers of the city, were brought to "Mahikawati" from Saurashtra in Gujarat around 1298 by Bhimdev. The Delhi Sultanate annexed the islands in 1347–48 and controlled it until 1407. During this time, the islands were administered by the Muslim Governors of Gujarat, who were appointed by the Delhi Sultanate.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Jul 28, 1946: The committee holds a conference, "Maharashtra Ekikaran Parishad", in Bombay, organized by SK Patil and presided over by Shankarrao Deo. Around 200 delegates from Maharashtra, south Maharashtra, Vidharbha and Marathwada are present for the conference and resolution of "Samyukta Maharashtra" is passed after Acarya Dada Dharmadhikari’s proposal.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Dec 1946: People supporting the formation of state on linguistic lines hold a meeting in New Delhi under leadership of Pattabhi Sitaramaiya.
List of constituencies of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly
The present Indian state of Maharashtra came into existence on 1 May 1960. The number of constituencies of the first Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha, the lower house of the Maharashtra state legislature in 1960 was 264. 33 constituencies were reserved for the candidates belonging to the Scheduled castes and 14 were reserved for the candidates belonging to the Scheduled tribes. The number of constituencies of the third Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha (1967–72) was raised to 270, out of which 15 constituencies were reserved for the candidates belonging to the Scheduled castes and 16 were reserved for the candidates belonging to the Scheduled tribes.
Mumbai
Following protests during the movement in which 105 people lost their lives in clashes with the police, Bombay State was reorganised on linguistic lines on 1 May 1960. Gujarati-speaking areas of Bombay State were partitioned into the state of Gujarat. Maharashtra State with Bombay as its capital was formed with the merger of Marathi-speaking areas of Bombay State, eight districts from Central Provinces and Berar, five districts from Hyderabad State, and numerous princely states enclosed between them. As a memorial to the martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, Flora Fountain was renamed as "Hutatma Chowk" (Martyr's Square), and a memorial was erected. The following decades saw massive expansion of the city and its suburbs. In the late 1960s, Nariman Point and Cuffe Parade were reclaimed and developed. The Bombay Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA) was established on 26 January 1975 by the Government of Maharashtra as an apex body for planning and co-ordination of development activities in the Bombay metropolitan region. In August 1979, a sister township of New Bombay was founded by the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) across the Thane and Raigad districts to help the dispersal and control of Bombay's population. The textile industry in Bombay largely disappeared after the widespread 1982 Great Bombay Textile Strike, in which nearly 250,000 workers in more than 50 textile mills went on strike. Mumbai's defunct cotton mills have since become the focus of intense redevelopment.
Shripad Amrit Dange
After India's independence in 1947, the princely states were integrated into the Indian Union, and the Deccan States including Kolhapur were integrated into Bombay State, which was created from the former Bombay Presidency in 1950. The Government of India had appointed the States Re-organisation Committee for setting up states on the basis of language. This committee recommended a bi-lingual state called Bombay for Maharashtra-Gujarat, with Bombay as its capital. The state came into being on 1 November 1956, but stirred up political unrest in both the states. In Maharashtra, under the leadership of Keshavrao Jedhe, an all-party meeting was held in Pune and a joint Maharashtra council (Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti) was founded. In the second general elections the Samiti defeated the stalwarts of Congress by securing 101 seats out of 133, including 12 from Mumbai.
Jainism in Maharashtra
Jainism has been present in Maharashtra since ancient times. The famous Ellora Caves demonstrate that Jainism was part of a thriving religious culture in Maharashtra in premodern times.
History of Maharashtra
The Yadavas of Devagiri Dynasty was an Indian dynasty, which at its peak ruled a kingdom stretching from the Tungabhadra to the Narmada rivers, including present-day Maharashtra, north Karnataka and parts of Madhya Pradesh, from its capital at Devagiri (present-day Daulatabad in modern Maharashtra). The Yadavas initially ruled as feudatories of the Western Chalukyas. The founder of the Suena dynasty was Dridhaprahara, the son of Subahu. According to Vratakhanda, his capital was Shrinagara. However, an early inscription suggests that Chandradityapura (modern Chandwad in the Nasik district) was the capital. The name Seuna comes from Dridhaprahara's son, Seunachandra, who originally ruled a region called "Seunadesha" (present-day Khandesh). Bhillama II, a later ruler in the dynasty, assisted Tailapa II in his war with the Paramara king Munja. Seunachandra II helped Vikramaditya VI in gaining his throne. Around the middle of the 12th century, as the Chalukya power waned, they declared independence and established rule that reached its peak under Singhana II. The Yadavas of Devagiri patronised Marathi which was their court language. Kannada may also have been a court language during Seunachandra's rule, but Marathi was the only court-language of Ramchandra and Mahadeva Yadavas. The Yadava capital Devagiri became a magnet for learned scholars in Marathi to showcase and find patronage for their skills. The origin and growth of Marathi literature is directly linked with rise of Yadava dynasty.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra was ruled by the Maurya Empire in the fourth and third centuries BCE. Around 230 BCE, Maharashtra came under the rule of the Satavahana dynasty for 400 years. The greatest ruler of the Satavahana dynasty was Gautamiputra Satakarni. In 90 CE, Vedishri, son of the Satavahana king Satakarni, the "Lord of Dakshinapatha, wielder of the unchecked wheel of Sovereignty", made Junnar, 30 miles north of Pune, the capital of his kingdom. The state was also ruled by Western Satraps, Gupta Empire, Gurjara-Pratihara, Vakataka, Kadambas, Chalukya Empire, Rashtrakuta Dynasty, and Western Chalukya before finally, the Yadava rule. The Buddhist Ajanta Caves in present-day Aurangabad display influences from the Satavahana and Vakataka style. The caves were possibly excavated during this period. The Chalukya dynasty ruled from the sixth to the eighth centuries CE, and the two prominent rulers were Pulakeshin II, who defeated the north Indian Emperor Harsha, and Vikramaditya II, who defeated the Arab invaders in the eighth century. The Rashtrakuta dynasty ruled Maharashtra from the eighth to the tenth century. The Arab traveller Sulaiman described the ruler of the Rashtrakuta Dynasty (Amoghavarsha) as "one of the four great kings of the world". Shilahara dynasty began as vassals of the Rashtrakuta dynasty which ruled the Deccan plateau between the eighth and tenth centuries. From the early 11th century to the 12th century, the Deccan Plateau, which includes a significant part of Maharashtra, was dominated by the Western Chalukya Empire and the Chola dynasty. Several battles were fought between the Western Chalukya empire and the Chola dynasty in the Deccan Plateau during the reigns of Raja Raja Chola I, Rajendra Chola I, Jayasimha II, Someshvara I, and Vikramaditya VI.
Saurashtra (state)
Following Mahagujarat Movement, the Bombay State was again dissolved to be carved into two separate states of Maharashtra and Gujarat created on linguistic basis on 1 May 1960 With this, the area of Saurashtra State again became a geographically defined region, Saurashtra, within the State of Gujarat.
Vidarbha
After India's independence in 1947, Central Provinces and Berar became the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. In 1956 Vidarbha was transferred to Bombay state along with all other Marathi-speaking areas. In 1960 Bombay State was split along linguistic lines into the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat. Marathi-speaking Vidarbha became part of the state of Maharashtra.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra has 24 universities with a turnout of 160,000 Graduates every year. Maharashtra has played a pioneering role in the development of the modern education system in India. The University of Mumbai, is the largest university in the world in terms of the number of graduates and has 141 affiliated colleges.
According to prominent national rankings, 5 to 7 Maharashtra colleges and universities are ranked among the top 20 in India. Maharashtra is also home to such notable autonomous institutes as Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Technological University, Institute of Chemical Technology, Homi Bhabha National Institute, Walchand College of Engineering, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology Nagpur (VNIT) and Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI), Sardar Patel College Of Engineering (SPCE). Most of these autonomous institutes are ranked the highest in India and have very competitive entry requirements. The University of Pune (now Savitribai Phule Pune University), the National Defence Academy, Film and Television Institute of India, Armed Forces Medical College and National Chemical Laboratory were established in Pune soon after the Indian independence in 1947. Mumbai has an IIT and Nagpur has IIM and AIIMS
Nagpur division
After Indian Independence, The Central Provinces and Berar (Amravati Division) became the new state of Madhya Pradesh. The Indian states were reorganised along linguistic lines in 1956, and on 1 November Nagpur and Amravati Divisions were transferred to Bombay State, while Balaghat District remained in Madhya Pradesh. The Marathi-speaking portion of Bombay State became Maharashtra State in 1960.
List of Chief Ministers of Maharashtra
Maharashtra was formed by dissolution of Bombay State on 1 May 1960. Yashwantrao Chavan, who was serving as the third CM of Bombay State since 1956, became the first CM of Maharashtra. He belonged to the Indian National Congress and held the office until the 1962 Assembly elections. Marotrao Kannanwar succeeded him and was the only CM to die while in office. Vasantrao Naik, who was in office from December 1963 to February 1975 for more than 11 years, has by far been the longest serving CM. He also was the first and only CM to complete his full term of five years (1967-1972). With the exceptions of Manohar Joshi (Shiv Sena), Narayan Rane (Shiv Sena) and Devendra Fadnavis (Bharatiya Janata Party), all other CMs have been from the Congress or its breakaway parties. So far, President's rule has been imposed twice in the state: first from February to June 1980 and again from September to October 2014. Devendra Fadnavis is the incumbent CM since 31 October 2014, the first from the BJP.
Maharashtra Day
The state of Maharashtra and Gujarat were formed as a result of this movement according to the Bombay Reorganisation Act, 1960 enacted by the Parliament of India on 25 April 1960. The act came into effect on 1 May 1960, hence the reason of annual celebration.
Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation
After the formation of Maharashtra state on 1 May 1960, the government of Maharashtra constituted a "Board of Industrial Development" (BID) on 1 October 1960, under the chairmanship of Shri. S. G. Barve, I.C.S. The committees recommendations received in the industries department were taken up for implementation. As per the Borkar Committee's recommendations, development of Ulhas Valley Water Supply was entrusted to the Board of Industrial Development (BID). The BID framed the legislation; it was introduced before the state legislation and passed in the form of "Maharashtra Industrial Act" which gave birth to MIDC, as a separate corporation on 1 August 1962. A small ceremony at Wagle estate, Thane, under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Shri Y.B. Chavan, marked the birthday of MIDC on 1 August 1962.
Maharashtra
The first passenger train in India ran from Mumbai to Thane on 16 April 1853.
Rail transportation consists of the Central Railway and the Western Railway zones of the Indian Railways that are headquartered in Mumbai, at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) and Churchgate respectively. The Mumbai Rajdhani Express, the fastest rajdhani train, connects the Indian capital of New Delhi to Mumbai. Thane and CST are the busiest railway stations in India, the latter serving as a terminal for both long-distance trains and commuter trains of the Mumbai Suburban Railway. Nanded division of South central railway comprises Marathwada region.
Paramahansa Mandali
It was the first socio-religious organization of Maharashtra. Founded in 1849 Maharashtra, the founders of these mandli believed in one god. They were primarily interested in breaking caste rules. At their meetings food cooked by lower caste people was taken by the members. The mandali also advocated women's education and widow remarriage.
Nagpur Municipal Corporation
On 22 January 1950, CP & Berar Act No. 2, was published in the Madhya Pradesh Gazette which is known as the City of Nagpur Corporation Act, 1948 (CNC Act). The Municipal Corporation came into existence in March 1951. The first development plan of the city was prepared in 1953. 
The Berar Province became part of the Maharashtra State in 1956 with Mumbai becoming the capital. Nagpur was declared the second capital of Maharashtra in 1960.
History of Maharashtra
The decline of Islamic rule in Deccan started when Shivaji founded the Maratha Empire by annexing a portion of the Bijapur Sultanate in 1674. Shivaji later led rebellions against the Mughal rule, thus becoming a symbol of Hindu resistance and self-rule. Maratha Empire went on to end the Mughal rule and ruled over a vast empire stretching from Attock to Cuttack.
History of Maharashtra
After India's independence, the Deccan States, including Kolhapur were integrated into Bombay State, which was created from the former Bombay Presidency in 1950. In 1956,the States Reorganisation Act reorganised the Indian states along linguistic lines, and Bombay Presidency State was enlarged by the addition of the predominantly Marathi-speaking regions of Marathwada (Aurangabad Division) from erstwhile Hyderabad state and Vidarbha region from the Central Provinces and Berar. The southernmost part of Bombay State was ceded to Mysore.From 1954 to 1955 the people of Maharashtra strongly protested against bilingual Bombay state and the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, was formed to fight for a United Maharashtra for Marathi people. The Mahagujarat Movement was started, seeking a separate Gujarat state. Keshavrao Jedhe, S.M. Joshi, Shripad Amrit Dange, Pralhad Keshav Atre and Gopalrao Khedkar fought for a separate state of Maharashtra with Mumbai as its capital under the banner of Samyukta Maharashtra Movement. On 1 May 1960, following mass protests and 105 deaths, the separate Marathi-speaking state was formed by dividing earlier Bombay State into the new states of Maharashtra and Gujarat. The state continues to have a dispute with Karnataka regarding the region of Belgaum and Karwar. Some Marathi majority talukas were also transferred to Adilabad, Medak, Nizamabad and Mahaboobnagar districts of new Telugu State (now Telangana)in 1956. Even today, the old town names of all these regions are Marathi names.
Maharashtra
Modern Theatre in Maharashtra can trace its origins to the British colonial era in the middle of the 19th century. It is modelled mainly after the western tradition but also includes forms like Sangeet Natak (Musical drama). In recent decades, Marathi Tamasha has been also been incorporated in some experimental plays.
Today, theatre continues to have a marked presence in Mumbai and Pune with an educated loyal audience base, when most theatre in other parts of India have had a tough time facing the onslaught of cinema and television. Its repertoire ranges from humorous social plays, farces, historical plays, musical, to experimental plays and serious drama. Marathi Playwrights such as Vijay Tendulkar, P. L. Deshpande, Mahesh Elkunchwar and Satish Alekar have influenced theatre throughout India. Besides Marathi theatre, Maharashtra and particularly, Mumbai, has had a long tradition of theatre in other languages such as Gujarati, Hindi and English.
Keshavrao Jedhe
The Indian National Congress was pledged to linguistic states, but the States Re-organisation Committee recommended a bi-lingual state for Maharashtra-Gujarat, with Mumbai as its capital. Its inauguration on 1 November 1956, caused a great political stir and, under the leadership of Keshavrao Jedhe, an all-party meeting was held in Pune and Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti was founded on 6 February 1956. In the second general election the Samiti defeated the stalwarts of Congress by securing 101 seats out of 133, including 12 from Mumbai. The Congress could form a government only with the support of Gujarat, Marathwada and Vidarbha. Yashwantrao Chavan became the first Chief Minister of the bi-lingual Bombay State.
History of Bombay in independent India
In the 1960s,the Marathi-speaking middle-class in Bombay, who had been the most consistent supporters of the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti,felt threatened in Bombay despite the creation of Maharashtra. This was mainly because of the increasing number of migrants competing with them for jobs. The Gujarati and Marwari communities owned majority of the industry and trade enterprises in the city, while the white-collar jobs were mainly sought by the South Indian migrants to the city.
Mumbai
The Banganga Festival is a two-day music festival, held annually in the month of January, which is organised by the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) at the historic Banganga Tank in Mumbai. The Elephanta Festival—celebrated every February on the Elephanta Islands—is dedicated to classical Indian dance and music and attracts performers from across the country. Public holidays specific to the city and the state include Maharashtra Day on 1 May, to celebrate the formation of Maharashtra state on 1 May 1960, and Gudi Padwa which is the New Year's Day for Marathi people.
Western India
The states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa are culturally varied and distinct.
Maharashtrian culture derives from the ancient Hindu Vedic culture influenced deeply by the Maratha Empire. Maharashtrians take great pride in the Maratha Empire, and many places in Maharashtra are named after the founder of the Empire, Shivaji. Marathi literature and cinema are popular in the state as well as across India. Bollywood has had a huge impact on the lifestyle and culture of this part of India as the industry is primarily located in Mumbai.
Nagpur Pact
The Nagpur Pact was concluded between Indian political leaders on 28 September 1953. It led to the creation of the state of Maharashtra from contiguous Marathi-speaking areas of the then Bombay State, Madhya Pradesh State and Hyderabad state.
History of Maharashtra
Between 800-1200 CE, parts of Western Maharashtra including the Konkan region of Maharashtra were ruled by different Shilahara houses based in North Konkan South Konkan and Kolhapur respectively. At different periods in their history, the Shilaharas served as the vassals of either the Rashtrakutas or the Chalukyas.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Jun 3, 1956: Nehru declares Bombay a Union territory for five years, but refuses to make the city capital of Maharashtra. He announces a high court and a public service commission for Bombay, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
April 13, 1947: The Akola pact is finalized between Shankarrao Deo and Madhav Aney. It is decided that the "Maharashtra Ekikaran Parishad" will work on formation of Samyukta Maharashtra including Western Maharashtra (Bombay Province) and C.P and Berar Province commonly styled as Maha-Vidarbha.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Oct 10, 1955: Fazal Ali’s report is made public. The report suggests formation of two states, Bombay and Vidharbha. Ali proposes Bombay with two divisions – Gujarat, including Kutch and Saurashtra, and Maharashtra, including Marathwada. However, the Samyukta Maharashtra Parishad opposes this proposal.
Politics of Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state in the western region of India and is India's third-largest state by area. It has over 112 million inhabitants and its capital, Mumbai, has a population of approximately 18 million. Nagpur is Maharashtra's second capital as well as its winter capital. Government in the state is organized on parliamentary system. Power is further devolved to large city councils, District councils (Zila Parishad) and sub-district (Taluka) councils and the village parish councils (Gram panchayat). The politics of the state is dominated by the numerically strong Maratha-Kunbi community. There are National and regional parties in the state serving different demographics such as those based on religion, caste, urban and rural residents.
Middle kingdoms of India
The Maitraka Empire ruled Gujarat in western India from the c. 475 to 767 CE. The founder of the dynasty, "Senapati" (general) Bhatarka, was a military governor of Saurashtra peninsula under Gupta Empire, who had established himself as the independent ruler of Gujarat approximately in the last quarter of the 5th century. The first two Maitraka rulers Bhatarka and Dharasena I used only the title of "Senapati" (general). The third ruler Dronasimha declared himself as the "Maharaja". King Guhasena stopped using the term "Paramabhattaraka Padanudhyata" along his name like his predecessors, which denotes the cessation of displaying of the nominal allegiance to the Gupta overlords. He was succeeded by his son Dharasena II, who used the title of "Mahadhiraja". His son, the next ruler Siladitya I, Dharmaditya was described by Hiuen Tsang as a "monarch of great administrative ability and of rare kindness and compassion". Siladitya I was succeeded by his younger brother Kharagraha I. Virdi copperplate grant (616 CE) of Kharagraha I proves that his territories included Ujjain.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH) is a state in the western region of India and is the second-most populous state and third-largest state by area in India. Spread over , it is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west and the Indian states of Karnataka, Telangana, Goa, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh and the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. It is also the world's second-most populous subnational entity. It was formed by merging the western and south-western parts of the Bombay State, Berar and Vidarbha, and the north-western parts of the Hyderabad State and splitting Saurashtra (in present-day Gujarat) by the States Reorganisation Act. It has over 112 million inhabitants and its capital, Mumbai, has a population around 18 million making it the most populous urban area in India. Nagpur hosts the winter session of the state legislature. Pune is known as 'Oxford of the East' due to the presence of several well-known educational institutions.
Saurashtra (region)
Referred to as Saurashtra and as some other names as well over a period of time, since the Mahabharata and Vedic period, this region is mentioned again as Surastrene, or Saraostus in the 1st century CE Periplus of the Erythraean Sea: 
Surashtra and its Prakrit name Sorath, literally means "good country". The name finds mentions in the Junagadh Rock inscription dating 150 CE, attributed to Rudradaman I. Prior to this, during the rule of Ashoka (268–232 BCE), the region was under Yavana Tushaspa, and governed by Pushyagupta during Chandragupta Maurya's reign (322BC – 298BC). Vrajlal Sapovadia noted from literature and Tamil Nadu Government record that around AD 1000, a community left Saurashtra region to South India and are known as the Saurashtra people.
Geography of Maharashtra
Located in the north centre of Peninsular India, with a command of the Arabian Sea through its port of Mumbai, Maharashtra has a remarkable physical homogeneity, enforced by its underlying geology. The dominant physical trait of the state is its plateau character; Maharashtra's western part of coastal plains, 
western upturned rims rising to form the Sahyadri Range and its slopes gently descending towards the east and southeast. The major rivers and their master tributaries have carved the plateau into alternating broad-river valleys and intervening higher lever interfluves, such as the Ahmednagar, Buldana, and Yavatmal plateau.
Jainism in Maharashtra
The first Marathi inscription known is at Shravanabelagola, Karnataka near the left foot of the statue of Bahubali, dated 981 CE.
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.
Maharashtra
The modern Marathi language developed from the Maharashtri Prakrit, and the word "Marhatta" (later used for the Marathas) is found in the Jain Maharashtri literature. The terms Maharashtra, Maharashtri, Marathi, and Maratha may have derived from the same root. However, their exact etymology is uncertain. The Nashik Gazetteer states that in 246 BC Maharatta is mentioned as one of the places to which Mauryan emperor Ashoka sent an embassy, and Maharashtraka is recorded in a Chalukyan inscription of 580 CE as including three provinces and 99,000 villages, but the Marathas as a people do not seem to be mentioned before the 13th or 14th century.
Christianity in Maharashtra
Most history of the Church in India was lost between the 9th and the 14th Century, as Persia went over to the Nestorianism in 800 AD. Since the provision of Church offices and all the apparatus of public worship was looked to a foreign source, the Indian Christians were reduced to "nominal" Christians when this foreign aid was withdrawn. When Dominican and Franciscan Missionaries arrived in the 1300s with the intention of preaching the Gospel, they were surprised to find a small Christian community already in existence. Protestant Missionaries first arrived in Maharashtra from England and America in 1813.
Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation
The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation Limited, commonly abbreviated as MSRDC, is an Indian Public limited company fully owned by the Government of Maharashtra. MSRDC was established on July 9, 1996 and incorporated as a public limited company under the Companies Act 1956 on August 2, 1996. It is responsible for developing, building and maintaining roads in Maharashtra.
History of Maharashtra
The ultimatum in 1942 to the British to "Quit India" was given in Mumbai, and culminated in the transfer of power and the independence of India in 1947. Raosaheb and Achutrao Patwardhan, Nanasaheb Gore, Shreedhar Mahadev Joshi, Yeshwantrao Chavan, Swami Ramanand Bharti, Nana Patil, Dhulappa Navale, V.S. Page, Vasant Patil, Dhondiram Mali, Aruna Asif Ali, Ashfaqulla Khan and several others leaders from Maharashtra played a prominent role in this struggle. B.G. Kher was the first Chief Minister of the tri-lingual Bombay Presidency in 1937.
Maharashtra Chess Association
The Maharashtra Chess Association (MCA) is the apex body for the game of chess in Maharashtra, India. It was formed in 1963 and is affiliated with the All India Chess Federation.
The first chess association in Maharashtra is South Maharashtra Chess Club which was formed in 1921. In 1930 the Sangali Chess Society was established. Again in 1941, Nutan Buddhibal Mandal was formed in Sangali, which is still in existence. Later in 1955 the Southern Maratha Country Chess Association was formed. Looking at the growth of the game in Bombay Province, the first Chess body, Known as Bombay Chess Association was established in 1944. Then in 1950, All India Chess Federation was started in Bombay. In 1963, the Bombay Chess Association and Southern Maratha Country Chess Association were merged and the unified state Association came to be known as Maharashtra Chess Association.
All the districts in Maharashtra are affiliated to the Maharashtra Chess Association.
History of Maharashtra
The death of Aurangzeb in 1707, after an exhausting 27 years of war against the Marathas, led to the swift decline of the Mughal Empire. During much of this era, the Peshwas, belonging to the (Bhat) Deshmukh Marathi Chitpavan Brahmin family, controlled the Maratha army and later became the hereditary heads of the Maratha Empire from 1749 to 1818. During their rein, the Maratha empire reached its zenith in 1760, dominating most of the Indian subcontinent. Bajirao I, the second Peshwa from the Bhat family was only 20 when appointed Peshwa. For his campaigns in North India, he actively promoted young leaders of his own age such as Ranoji Shinde, Malharrao Holkar, the Puar brothers and Pilaji Gaekwad. These leaders also did not come from the traditional aristocratic families of Maharashtra. Separate from Bajirao I, Raghoji Bhonsle expanded Maratha rule in central and East India. All these military leaders or their descendants later became rulers in their own right during the Maratha Confederacy era.
History of Maharashtra
The British ruled for more than a century and brought huge changes, in every aspect of life, for the people who resided in the Maharashtra region. Areas that correspond to present day Maharashtra were under direct or indirect British rule, first under the East India Company and then under the British crown from 1858. The Maharashtra region during this era was divided in to Bombay presidency, Berar, Central provinces, Hyderabad state and various Princely states such as Kolhapur, Miraj etc.
Maharashtra
The period of British rule was marked by social reforms and an improvement in infrastructure as well as revolts due to their discriminatory policies. At the turn of the 20th century, the struggle for independence took shape, led by radical nationalist Bal Gangadhar Tilak and the moderates like Justice Mahadev Govind Ranade, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Pherozeshah Mehta and Dadabhai Naoroji, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Jyotirao Phule – social reformers who were all born in this region. After the partial autonomy given to the states by the Government of India Act of 1935, B. G. Kher became the first Chief Minister of the Congress party led Government of tri-lingual Bombay Presidency. The ultimatum to the British during the Quit India Movement was given in Mumbai, and culminated in the transfer of power and independence in 1947.
Vijayadashami
In Maharashtra, the deities installed on the first day of Navratri are immersed in water. Observers visit each other and exchange sweets.
The festival has been historically important in Maharashtra. Shivaji, who challenged the Mughal Empire in the 17th-century and created a Hindu kingdom in western and central India, would deploy his soldiers to assist farmers in cropping lands and providing adequate irrigation to guarantee food supplies. Post monsoons, on Vijayadashami, these soldiers would leave their villages and reassemble to serve in the military, re-arm and obtain their deployment orders, then proceed to the frontiers for active duty.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
May 1, 1960: Maharashtra is formed with Bombay as its capital.
Maharashtra
After India's independence, the Deccan States, including Kolhapur were integrated into Bombay State, which was created from the former Bombay Presidency in 1950. In 1956, the States Reorganisation Act reorganised the Indian states along linguistic lines, and Bombay Presidency State was enlarged by the addition of the predominantly Marathi-speaking regions of Marathwada (Aurangabad Division) from erstwhile Hyderabad state and Vidarbha region from the Central Provinces and Berar. The southernmost part of Bombay State was ceded to Mysore. From 1954 to 1955 the people of Maharashtra strongly protested against bilingual Bombay state and Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, was formed. The Mahagujarat Movement was started, seeking a separate Gujarat state. Keshavrao Jedhe, S.M. Joshi, Shripad Amrit Dange, Pralhad Keshav Atre and Gopalrao Khedkar fought for a separate state of Maharashtra with Mumbai as its capital under the banner of Samyukta Maharashtra Movement. On 1 May 1960, following mass protests and 105 deaths, the separate Marathi-speaking state was formed by dividing earlier Bombay State into the new states of Maharashtra and Gujarat. The state continues to have a dispute with Karnataka regarding the region of Belgaum and Karwar.
History of Mumbai
The islands suffered incursions from Mughals towards the end of the 17th century. During the mid-18th century, the city emerged as an important trading town, with maritime trade contacts with Mecca and Basra. Economic and educational development characterised the city during the 19th century with the first-ever Indian railway line beginning operations between Mumbai and neighbouring Thane in 1853. The city became a strong base for the Indian independence movement during the early 20th century and was the epicentre of the Rowlatt Satyagraha of 1919 and Royal Indian Navy Mutiny of 1946. After India's independence in 1947, the territory of Bombay Presidency retained by India was restructured into Bombay State. The area of Bombay State increased, after several erstwhile princely states that joined the Indian union were integrated into Bombay State.
Politics of Maharashtra
The politics of Maharashtra since its inception in 1960 and also of predecessor states such as Bombay has been dominated by the Indian National Congress party. Maharashtra became a bastion of the Congress party producing stalwarts such as Yashwantrao Chavan, Vasantdada Patil, Vasantrao Naik and Shankarrao Chavan. Sharad Pawar has been a towering personality in the state and National politics for nearly forty years. During his career, he has split the Congress twice with significant consequences for the state politics. The Congress party enjoyed a near unchallenged dominance of the political landscape until 1995 when the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured an overwhelming majority in the state to form a coalition government. After his second parting from the Congress party in 1999, Sharad Pawar formed the NCP but joined a Congress led coalition to form the state government after the 1999 Assembly elections.Prithviraj Chavan of the Congress party was the last Chief Minister of Maharashtra under the Congress-NCP alliance that ruled until 2014.
For the 2014 assembly polls, the two alliances between the NCP and Congress and between the BJP and Shiv Sena respectively broke down over seat allocations. In the election, the largest number of seats went to the Bharatiya Janata Party, with 122 seats. The BJP initially formed a minority government under Devendra Fadnavis but Shiv Sena has, as of December 2014, entered the Government and therefore the Government now enjoys a comfortable majority in the Maharashtra Vidhansabha.
Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti
Samyukta Maharashtra Movement (or Sanyukta Maharashtra Chalavala) was an organisation that, starting in 1956, demanded the creation of a separate Marathi-speaking state out of the (then-bilingual) State of Bombay in western India, with the city of Bombay as its capital. Similarly, in 1956 the Mahagujarat Movement started agitation for creation of separate Gujarati-speaking State out of Bombay State, which became the state of Gujarat.
International Workers' Day
1 May is also celebrated as "Maharashtra Day" and "Gujarat Day" to mark the date in 1960, when the two western states attained statehood after the erstwhile Bombay State was divided on linguistic lines. Maharashtra Day is held at Shivaji Park in central Mumbai. Schools and offices in Maharashtra remain closed on 1 May. A similar parade is held to celebrate Gujarat Day in Gandhinagar.
Maharashtra Day
The Marathi language Wikipedia was started on 1 May 2003.
Maharashtri Prakrit
The rise of the Prakrits is dated to the middle of the second millennium BCE when they existed alongside Vedic Sanskrit and later evolved into highly developed literary languages. It is a subject of scholarly debate as to whether Sanskrit or the Prakrits are older with some scholars contending that Sanskrit was born out of the Prakrits. According to the Sanskrit scholar, Rajaramshastri Bhagawat, Maharashtri is older and more vivacious than Sanskrit.
Marathi language
The earliest example of Maharashtri as a separate language dates to approximately 3rd century BCE: a stone inscription found in a cave at Naneghat, Junnar in Pune district had been written in Maharashtri using Brahmi script. A committee appointed by the Maharashtra State Government to get the Classical status for Marathi has claimed that Marathi existed at least 2300 years ago alongside Sanskrit as a sister language. Marathi, a derivative of Maharashtri, is probably first attested in a 739 CE copper-plate inscription found in Satara. Several inscriptions dated to the second half of the 11th century feature Marathi, which is usually appended to Sanskrit or Kannada in these inscriptions. The earliest Marathi-only inscriptions are the ones issued during the Shilahara rule, including a c. 1012 CE stone inscription from Akshi taluka of Raigad district, and a 1060 or 1086 CE copper-plate inscription from Dive that records a land grant ("agrahara") to a Brahmin. A 2-line 1118 CE Marathi inscription at Shravanabelagola records a grant by the Hoysalas. These inscriptions suggest that Marathi was a standard written language by the 12th century. However, there is no record of any actual literature produced in Marathi until the late 13th century.
Transport in Maharashtra
Civil aviation in Maharashtra began in the 1920s with the establishment of Juhu Aerodrome as of one of the first aerodromes in British India. It served as a base for  J.R.D. Tata's Tata Airlines in the 1930s. The Maharaja of the princely state of Kolhapur, constructed an airfield in his city in 1939 and offered a subsidy to Air Services of India to operate an air service to Juhu. By the 1940s, small airstrips had been built at Phaltan, Sangli, Akola and Gondia. in addition to the bigger airfields at Santacruz, Pune and Nagpur built by the Royal Air Force which were also used for civilian operations. During the 80's and 90's, Vayudoot served as many as ten airports in the state.
History of Bombay in independent India
The States Reorganisation Committee report was to be implemented on 1 November 1956. It caused a great political stir and, led to the establishment of the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti (United Maharashtra Committee) on 6 February 1956. The Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti was basically born from the Samyukta Maharashtra Parishad, but had an enlarged identity with broad representation from not only the Congress, but opposition parties, and independents as well. The Samiti spearheaded the demand for the creation of a separate Maharashtra state including Bombay out of the bilingual Bombay State using violent means. In the August 1956 discussions, the Union cabinet agreed on the creation of a bigger bilingual Bombay State including Maharashtra, Marathwada, Vidharbha, Gujarat, Saurashtra, Kutch, and Bombay City. In the second general elections of Bombay State held in 1957, the Samiti secured a majority of 101 seats out of 133 in the present day Western Maharashtra region. The Congress could secure only 32 seats out of 133 in Maharashtra, obtaining a bare majority of 13 out of 24 in Greater Bombay. The Congress suffered the same fate in Gujarat, winning only 57 out of 89 seats. The Congress however succeeded in forming a government in Bombay State with the support of Marathwada and Vidarbha. Yashwantrao Chavan became the first Chief Minister of the Maharashtra State. In 1959, he headed a cabinet of 15, out of which 4 represented Gujarat, to discuss the future of Bombay State. Chavan managed in convincing Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, who was elected President of the Indian National Congress in 1959, of the futility of the bilingual Bombay State, which was increasingly jeopardizing Congress prospects in Gujarat and Maharashtra. Finally on 4 December 1959, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) passed a resolution recommending the bifurcation of the Bombay State.
History of Pune
After gaining independence from British rule in 1947, Pune became part of the Bombay state. Just after a year of independence, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated in 1948. Gandhi's assassin, Nathuram Godse and most of his fellow conspirators were from Pune. In 1950s, Pune came at the forefront of the struggle for a unified state of Maharashtra for the Marathi speakers. Many leaders of the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, such as Keshavrao Jedhe, S.M. Joshi, Shripad Amrit Dange, Nanasaheb Gore and Prahlad Keshav Atre, were based in Pune. After the spectacular success of the Samiti in Marathi speaking areas, the Congress party government at the center agreed to merge Marathi speaking areas into the newly created state of Maharashtra in 1960, with Pune as one of its leading cities. The city has been part of the Pune Lok sabha constituency since independence. Since independence, the city has more often than not, elected candidates from the Congress party such as Vithalrao Gadgil, and in recent past, Suresh Kalmadi who was charged with corruption. The city elected opposition candidates in times of crisis, such as Nanasaheb Gore during the struggle for united Maharashtra in 1957, or Mohan Dharia after the lifting of Emergency in 1977. The city and its surrounding areas have six single-member constituencies for Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha. The Congress party or its breakaway factions such as NCP, have historically dominated elections to this body.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Dec 1, 1955: Yashwantrao Chavan states that if he has to make a choice between Samyukta Maharashtra and Nehru, he will choose Nehru.
Geography of Maharashtra
The word "Maharashtra", the land of the Marathi-speaking people, appears to be derived from Maharashtri, an old form of Prakrit. Some consider it a corruption of the term 'Maha Kantara' (the Great Forest), a synonym for 'Dandakaranya'. Maharashtra is the third largest state (in area) in India after Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. It covers an area of 307,713 km and is bordered by the states of Madhya Pradesh to the north, Chhattisgarh to the east, Telangana to the southeast, Karnataka to the south and Goa to the southwest. The state of Gujarat lies to the northwest, with the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli sandwiched between the borders. Maharashtra has coastline of 720 km.The Arabian Sea makes up Maharashtra's west coast. Maharashtra consists of two major relief divisions. The plateau is a part of the Deccan tableland and the Konkan coastal strip abutting on the Arabian Sea.
History of Mumbai
The islands were incorporated into the Maurya Empire under Emperor Ashoka of Magadha in the third century BCE. The empire's patronage made the islands a centre of Hindu and Buddhist religion and culture. Buddhist monks, scholars, and artists created the artwork, inscriptions, and sculpture of the Kanheri Caves in the mid third century BCE and Mahakali Caves. After the decline of the Maurya Empire around 185 BCE, these islands fell to the Satavahanas. The port of Sopara (present-day Nala Sopara) was an important trading centre during the first century BCE, with trade contacts with Rome. The islands were known as "Heptanesia" (Ancient Greek: A Cluster of Seven Islands) to the Greek geographer Ptolemy in 150 CE. After the end of the Satvahana rule in 250 CE, the Abhiras of Western Maharashtra and Vakatakas of Vidarbha held dominion over the islands. The Abhiras ruled for 167 years, till around 417 CE. The Kalachuris of Central India ruled the islands during the fifth century, which were then acquired by the Mauryas of Konkan in the sixth and early part of the seventh century. The Mauryas were feudatories of Kalachuris, and the Jogeshwari Caves were constructed during their regime between 520 and 525. The Greek merchant Cosmas Indicopleustes visited Kalyan (near Mumbai) during 530–550. The Elephanta Caves also dates back to the sixth century. Christianity arrived in the islands during the sixth century, when the Nestorian Church made its presence in India. The Mauryan presence ended when the Chalukyas of Badami in Karnataka under Pulakeshin II invaded the islands in 610. Dantidurga of the Rashtrakuta Dynasty of Karnataka conquered the islands during 749–750.
The Silhara dynasty of Konkan ruled the region between 810 and 1260. The Walkeshwar Temple was constructed during the 10th century and the Banganga Tank during the 12th century under the patronage of the Silhara rulers. The Italian traveler Marco Polo's fleet of thirteen Chinese ships passed through Mumbai Harbour during May — September 1292. King Bhimdev founded his kingdom in the region in the late 13th century and established his capital in "Mahikawati" (present day Mahim). He belonged to either the Yadava dynasty of Devagiri in Maharashtra or the Anahilavada dynasty of Gujarat. He built the first Babulnath temple in the region and introduced many fruit-bearing trees, including coconut palms to the islands. The Pathare Prabhus, one of the earliest settlers of the city, were brought to Mahim from Patan and other parts of Saurashtra in Gujarat around 1298 by Bhimdev during his reign. He is also supposed to have brought Palshis, Pachkalshis, Bhandaris, Vadvals, Bhois, Agris and Brahmins to these islands. After his death in 1303, he was succeeded by his son Pratapbimba, who built his capital at Marol in Salsette, which he named Pratappur. The islands were wrested from Pratapbimba's control by Mubarak Khan, a self-proclaimed regent of the Khalji dynasty, who occupied Mahim and Salsette in 1318. Pratapbimba later reconquered the islands which he ruled till 1331. Later, his brother-in-law Nagardev for 17 years till 1348. The islands came under the control of the Muslim rulers of Gujarat in 1348, ending the sovereignty of Hindu rulers over the islands.
Outline of Maharashtra
Geography of Maharashtra
Marathi people
During the ancient period, around 230 BC, Maharashtra came under the rule of the Satavahana dynasty which ruled the region for 400 years. The greatest ruler of the Satavahana Dynasty was Gautami putra Satakarni. The Vakataka dynasty ruled Maharashtra from the 3rd century to the 5th century. The Chalukya dynasty ruled Maharashtra from the 6th century to the 8th century. The two prominent rulers were Pulakeshin II, who defeated the north Indian Emperor Harsh, and Vikramaditya II, who defeated Arab invaders in the 8th century. The Rashtrakuta Dynasty ruled Maharashtra from the 8th to the 10th century. The Arab traveler Sulaiman called the ruler of the Rashtrakuta Dynasty (Amoghavarsha) 'one of the 4 great kings of the world'. From the early 11th century to the 12th century the Deccan Plateau was dominated by the Western Chalukya Empire and the Chola dynasty.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra's regional literature is about lives and circumstances of Marathi people in specific parts of the state. The Marathi language, which boasts a rich literary heritage, is written in the Devanagari script. The earliest instances of Marathi literature is by Sant Dnyaneshwar with his "Bhawarthadeepika" (popularly known as "Dnyaneshwari"). The compositions, written in the 13th century, are spiritually inclined. Other compositions are by Bhakti saints such as Tukaram, Eknath, Namdev, Ramdas, and Gora Kumbhar. Their compositions are mostly in poetic form, which are called Abhang. Maharashtra has a long tradition in spiritual literature, evidenced by the "Amrutanubhav", "Bhavarth Deepika", "Bhagavata Purana", "Eknathi Bhagwat" and "Bhavarth Ramayan".
Bank of Maharashtra
The bank was founded by V. G. Kale and D. K. Sathe and registered as a banking company on 16 September 1935 at Pune.
Maharashtra Film Company
Maharashtra Film Company was an Indian film production company, established by Baburao Painter in Kolhapur. Established in 1918, it was a silent film studio, which was a pioneer in Maharashtra and Marathi cinema, under the patronage of the Shahu Maharaj, the Maharaja of Kolhapur. It released the first significant historical, "Sairandhari", released in Pune 7 February 1920. In the coming decade the only other major company was Dada Saheb Phalke's Hindustan Film Company. It made numerous films till the advent of talkies in 1931, but started collapsing after V. Shantaram left in 1929, to form Prabhat Film Company, it finally closed down in 1931.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Jan 16, 1956: Violent agitations follow Nehru’s announcement of making Bombay a union territory.
Maharashtra
According to the provisional results of the 2011 national census, Maharashtra is the richest state in India and second most populous state in India with a population of 112,374,333 (9.28% of India's population) of which male and female are 58,243,056 and 54,131,277 respectively. The total population growth in 2011 was 15.99 percent while in the previous decade it was 22.57 percent. Since independence, the decadal growth rate of population has remained higher (except in the year 1971) than the national average. For the first time, in the year 2011, it was found to be lower than the national average. The 2011 census for the state found 55% of the population to be rural with 45% being urban based.
Marathis comprise the majority of the population. Maratha, Mahar, Buddhist, Kunbi, Muslim, Dhangar, Brahmin, Mali, Mang, Lingayat, Gond, Teli, Bhil, Koli, Dhimar, Rajput, Banjara, Lambadi, Gowari, Agri, Christian, Chambar, Koshti, Vani, Komati, Warli, Mannerwarlu, Jain, Vanjari, Sunar, Kumbhar, Dewang, Kalar are the major communities of Maharashtra .
Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University
The Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU) was established in July 1989 by Act XX- (1989) of the Maharashtra State Legislature, named after Yashwantrao Chavan, Maharashtra’s great political leader and builder of modern Maharashtra. It is the fifth Open University in India. The jurisdiction of the university, originally for the State of Maharashtra, has now been extended beyond this State and the university can now operate anywhere across the globe. The YCMOU has been recognised under section 12 (B) of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
Nov 1955: Non-Congress political parties form the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti in Pune.
Culture of Maharashtra
Maharashtra is the third largest state of India. It is known as the land of saints, educationists and revolutionists, teachers, doctors, actors, actresses, film makers, notable among them being Mahadev Govind Ranade, Swatantraveer Savarkar, Savitribai Phule, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Dadasaheb Phalke, Dada Kondke and many others. It has a long history of Marathi saints of Varakari religious movement, such as Dnyaneshwar, Namdev, Chokhamela, Eknath and Tukaram which formsthe one of bases of the culture of Maharashtra or Marathi culture. Maharashtra is also known for its "purogami" culture which translates as "reformist" or "forward" culture which was started by earlier saints and led by Mahatma Phule, Shahu Maharaj, Babasaheb Ambedkar in modern times. Maharashtra has huge influence all over the world of 17th-century King Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj of Maratha Empire and his concept of Hindavi Swarajya which translates to "self-rule of people".
History of Maharashtra
From the 4th century BCE until 875, Maharashtri Prakrit and its Apabhraṃśas were the dominant languages of the region. Marathi, which evolved from Maharashtri Prakrit, has been the lingua franca from the 9th century onwards.The oldest stone inscriptions in Marathi language can be seen at Shravana Belgola in modern-day Karnataka at the foot of the Bahubali Statue. In the course of time, the term Maharashtra was used to describe a region which consisted of Aparanta, Vidarbha, Mulak, Assaka(Ashmaka) and Kuntal. Tribal communities of Naga, Munda and Bhil peoples inhabited this area, also known as Dandakaranya, in ancient times. The name "Maharashtra" is believed to be originated from "rathi", which means "chariot driver". Maharashtra entered the recorded history in the 2nd century BC, with the construction of its first Buddhist caves. The name "Maharashtra" first appeared in the 7th century in the account of a contemporary Chinese traveler, Huan Tsang. According to the recorded History , the first Hindu King ruled the state during the 6th century, based in Badami.
Parbhani district
From 1596 to 1724, major part of the present territory of the district was divided between Pathri and Washim sarkars of Berar Subah of the Mughal empire. In 1724, after the battle of Sakharkheda, it went under the Nizam's rule. Following the re-organization of the states in 1956, Parbhani along with the other districts of Marathwada became part of Bombay State. On 1 May 1960 when Maharashtra state was formed, it became a part of it.
Shivaji Park
Besides being a venue for gatherings of freedom fighters in British India, after independence in 1947, Shivaji Park was the focal point of the "Samyukta Maharashtra Chalval" (the struggle for a consolidated Maharashtra) that led to the present Maharashtra state being formed in 1960. During this period, the legendary writer, journalist, playwright, poet and social leader Acharya Prahlad Keshav Atre led this movement, addressing crowds of lakhs at this ground, earning him the title of "Lord of Shivaji Park". Shivaji Park has been integral to the political gatherings of the local party Shiv Sena, and has witnessed numerous other political rallies. In May 2010, the Bombay High Court declared the ground as a silence zone after residents filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in September 2009, complaining about the sound pollution in the area on account of the political rallies.
Bombay State
In 1956, the States Reorganisation Committee, against the will of Jawaharlal Nehru, recommended a bilingual state for Maharashtra-Gujarat with Bombay as its capital, whereas in "Lok Sabha" discussions in 1955, the Congress party demanded that the city be constituted as an autonomous city-state. In the 1957 elections, the Samyukta Maharashtra movement opposed these proposals, and insisted that Bombay be declared the capital of Maharashtra.
Maharashtra
In the early 14th century, the Yadava dynasty, which ruled most of present-day Maharashtra, was overthrown by the Delhi Sultanate ruler Ala-ud-din Khalji. Later, Muhammad bin Tughluq conquered parts of the Deccan, and temporarily shifted his capital from Delhi to Daulatabad in Maharashtra. After the collapse of the Tughluqs in 1347, the local Bahmani Sultanate of Gulbarga took over, governing the region for the next 150 years. After the break-up of the Bahamani sultanate in 1518, Maharashtra split into five Deccan Sultanates: Nizamshah of Ahmednagar, Adilshah of Bijapur, Qutubshah of Golkonda, Bidarshah of Bidar and Imadshah of Elichpur. These kingdoms often fought with each other. United, they decisively defeated the Vijayanagara Empire of the south in 1565. The present area of Mumbai was ruled by the Sultanate of Gujarat before its capture by Portugal in 1535 and the Faruqi dynasty ruled the Khandesh region between 1382 and 1601 before finally getting annexed by the Mughal Empire. Malik Ambar, the regent of the Nizamshahi dynasty of Ahmednagar from 1607 to 1626. increased the strength and power of Murtaza Nizam Shah and raised a large army. Malik Ambar is said to have been a proponent of guerilla warfare in the Deccan region. Malik Ambar assisted Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in Delhi against his stepmother, Nur Jahan, who had ambitions of seating her son-in-law on the throne.
Maharashtra State Financial Corporation
Maharashtra State Financial Corporation (MSFC) is the term lending development financial institution in Maharashtra state in India. It provides finance to small and medium scale enterprises. It was set up by Government of Maharashtra in 1 April 1962.
Area under- Maharashtra, goa,Div-Daman
Bombay High Court
Nagpur is an industrial and commercial city situated in the centre of India. Formerly, it was the capital of the former State of CP & Berar, later old Madhya Pradesh and now it is the sub-capital of the State of Maharashtra. A full-fledged High Court was established at Nagpur on 9 January 1936. Later it was included as a separate bench in the Bombay High Court jurisdiction after the formation of the state of Maharashtra in 1960.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is divided into five geographic regions. Konkan is the western coastal region, between the Western Ghats and the sea. Kandesh is the north-western region lying in the valley of the Tapti River. Jalgaon, Dhule and Bhusawal are the major cities of this region. Desh is in the centre of the state. Marathwada, which was a part of the princely state of Hyderabad until 1956, is located in the southeastern part of the state. Aurangabad and Nanded are the main cities of the region. Vidarbha is the easternmost region of the state, formerly part of Central Provinces and Berar. Nagpur, where the winter session of the state assembly is held, Akola,Amravati and Chandrapur are the main cities in the region. Sahyadri range, with an elevation of 1000 meters, is known for its crowning plateaus. Lying between the Arabian Sea and the Sahyadri Range, Konkan is narrow coastal lowland, just 50 km wide and with an elevation below 200 meters. The third important region is the Satpura hills along the northern border, and the Bhamragad-Chiroli-Gaikhuri ranges on the eastern border, which form physical barriers preventing easy movement. These ranges also serve as natural limits to the state.
Maharashtri Prakrit
Maharashtri or Maharashtri Prakrit (""), is a language of ancient and medieval India which is the ancestor of Marathi and Konkani. It is one of the many languages (often called dialects) of a complex called Prakrit, and the chief Dramatic Prakrit. Maharashtri was spoken for 1000 years (500 BCE to 500 CE). It was used in numerous works of literature, and its literary use was made famous by the Sanskrit playwright Kālidāsa.
Maharashtra Education Society
The Maharashtra Education Society (MES) is one of the oldest private education institutions in Pune, India. It was founded in 1860 as the "Poona Native Institution" by the revolutionary leaders Vasudeo Balwant Phadke, Waman Prabhakar Bhave, and Laxman Nahar Indapurkar.
History of Bombay in independent India
The desire to domesticate a Marathi social and linguistic Bombay to a cosmopolitan framework was strongly expressed in the 1950s. On 13 May 1946, a session of the Marathi literary conference held at Belgaum, unanimously resolved on the formation of a united Marathi state. Consequently, the Samyukta Maharashtra Parishad (United Maharashtra Conference) was formed on 28 September 1946, to unite all Marathi-speaking territories into a single political unit. The Parishad consisted of political leaders from the Congress and other parties, and prominent literary figures. It presented its point of view to the States Reorganisation Committee. However, the States Reorganisation Committee in its report to the Indian Government in 1955, recommended a bilingual state for Maharashtra–Gujarat with Bombay as its capital. The Maharashtrians wanted Bombay as a part of Maharashtra, since it had majority of Marathi speakers. However, the city's economic and political elite feared that Bombay would decline under a government committed to developing the rural hinterland. Bombay Citizens' Committee, an advocacy group composed of leading Migrant Gujarati industrialists lobbied for Bombay's independent status.
Yashwantrao Chavan
In 1946, he was first elected as Member of Legislative Assembly of the Bombay State from the South Satara constituency. In the same year he was appointed as parliamentary secretary to the Home Minister of Bombay State. In the next government of Morarji Desai he was appointed as Minister of Civil Supplies, Social Welfare and Forests. In 1953 he was a signatory to the Nagpur Pact that assured equitable development of all regions of what is now the state of Maharashtra. The 1950s witnessed the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti (United Maharashtra Movement) leading struggle for United Maharashtra with Mumbai as its capital. Chavan never joined the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti (United Maharashtra Movement) and in fact called Prime minister Nehru, who opposed formation of language based state reorganization, as "Greater than Maharashtra". In 1957 Assembly elections Yashwantrao Chavan was elected from the Karad constituency. This time he was elected as Leader of Congress Legislative Party and became Chief Minister of the bilingual Bombay state. The election saw the Congress party losing badly in the Marathi speaking areas to the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti. However, he was able to persuade Nehru to agree to form Maharashtra and therefore he is regarded as the chief architect in the formation of Marathi speaking state of Maharashtra. On 1 May 1960, Yashwantrao Chavan became the first Chief Minister of Maharashtra. From 1957 to 1960 he also served on the All India Congress Working Committee.
Chavan's vision for Maharashtra for the development envisaged the equal development of both the industrial and agricultural sectors across all the regions of the state. He sought to realise this vision through the co-operative movement. Legislation regarding democratic decentralized bodies and the Agricultural Land Ceiling Act were passed during his tenure as Chief Minister.
Transport in Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state in the western region of India. It is the second most populous state and third largest state by area in India. Maharashtra is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, Gujarat and the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli to the northwest, Madhya Pradesh to the north and northeast, Chhattisgarh to the east, Karnataka to the south, Telangana to the southeast and Goa to the southwest. The state covers an area of or 9.84% of the total geographical area of India.
Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
1940-45: The demand of Maharashtra was postponed due to World War and Quit India Movement.
History of Ahmednagar
Although Ahmadnagar district was created as early as in 1818, modern history of Ahmadnagar may be said to have commenced from 1869, the year in which parts of Nashik and Solapur (which till then had comprised Nagar) were separated and the present Nagar district was formed.
Ahmednagar District was created after the defeat of the Maratha Confederacy in the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1818, when most of the Peshwa's domains were annexed to British India.
The district remained part of the Central division of Bombay Presidency until India's independence in 1947, when it became part of Bombay State, and at its split in 1960 of the new state of Maharashtra.
Mumbai
The seven islands that constitute Mumbai were originally home to communities of Koli people, who originated in Gujarat in prehistoric times. For centuries, the islands were under the control of successive indigenous empires before being ceded to the Portuguese Empire and subsequently to the East India Company when in 1661 Charles II of England married Catherine of Braganza and as part of her dowry Charles received the ports of Tangier and Seven Islands of Bombay. During the mid-18th century, Bombay was reshaped by the Hornby Vellard project, which undertook reclamation of the area between the seven islands from the sea. Along with construction of major roads and railways, the reclamation project, completed in 1845, transformed Bombay into a major seaport on the Arabian Sea. Bombay in the 19th century was characterised by economic and educational development. During the early 20th century it became a strong base for the Indian independence movement. Upon India's independence in 1947 the city was incorporated into Bombay State. In 1960, following the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement, a new state of Maharashtra was created with Bombay as the capital.
Bombay State
Following protests of Samyukta Maharashtra Movement, in which 105 people were killed by police, Bombay State was reorganised on linguistic lines. Gujarati-speaking areas of Bombay State were partitioned into the state of Gujarat following Mahagujarat Movement. Maharashtra State with Bombay as its capital was formed with the merger of Marathi-speaking areas of Bombay State, eight districts from Central Provinces and Berar, five districts from Hyderabad State, and numerous princely states enclosed between them.
Vidarbha movement
The signatories to the pact in 1953 were:On 1 May 1960, the Vidarbha state was merged with a newly formed Maharashtra State, under the agreement known as Nagpur Pact. At that time Nagpur city lost the state capital status. Nagpur thus became the only city in independent India, which lost "state capital status" after historically being a capital of the biggest state of India (by area) for more than 100 years.
Ahmednagar district
Although Ahmadnagar district was created as early as in 1818, modern history of Ahmadnagar may be said to have commenced from 1869, the year in which parts of Nasik and Solapur which till then had comprised Nagar were separated and the present Nagar district was formed. Ahmednagar District was created after the defeat of the Maratha Confederacy in the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1818, when most of the Peshwa's domains were annexed to British India. The district remained part of the Central division of Bombay Presidency until India's independence in 1947, when it became part of Bombay State, and in 1960 the new state of Maharashtra.
Bhandara
According to local interpretation, the name Bhandara is a corruption of Bhanara. Reference to Bhanara is found in an inscription from 1100 AD in Ratanpur. The district was under regency administration from 1818 to 1830. Prior to 1820, the district was administered from Lanji; the headquarters of the district was shifted to Bhandara in 1820–1821. The area became British Territory in 1853. From 1947 to 1956 the district of Bhandara, along with the other districts of the Vidarbha region, continued to form a part of the central provinces. With the reorganization of states in 1956, Bhandara district was transferred from Madhya Pradesh to the Bombay State, which came into existence in the same year. In 1960 it became part of the newly formed state of Maharashtra.
List of cities in Maharashtra
Maharashtra ( ), is a state in the western region of India. It is a second most populous state after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India. Maharashtra is the wealthiest state in India, contributing 15% of the country's industrial output and 13.3% of its GDP (2006–2007 figures).
Morarji Desai
Before the independence of India, he became Bombay's Home Minister and later was elected as Chief Minister of Bombay State in 1952. The state was a bi-lingual state, home to Gujarati-speaking and Marathi-speaking people. Since 1956, activist organization Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti led a movement for a Marathi-only speaking state of Maharashtra. A staunch nationalist himself, Morarji Desai was opposed to such movements, including the Mahagujarat Movement led by Indulal Yagnik demanding a new state of Gujarat. Desai proposed that the metropolitan Mumbai (as coined by earlier Koli inhabitants), be made into a union territory or a separate development region to suit its cosmopolitan nature, due to its long-settled citizens from diverse settings across various linguistic, cultural, and religious backgrounds spanning several generations. In opposition to his alleged Gandhian thoughts, Desai ordered police to fire on demonstrators of the Mumbai-unit of Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti at Flora Fountain who had gathered there to demonstrate against government. The protesters were led by Senapati Bapat. Desai ordered firing which killed 105 protesters including an eleven-year-old girl during the incident. This escalated the issue and is believed to have forced the Federal Government to agree to two separate states based on language. After the formation of the present State of Maharashtra, Bombay, now Mumbai became its state capital. Flora Fountain was renamed "Hutatma Chowk" ("Martyrs' Square" in Marathi) to honour the 105 people killed in the firing. Later Desai moved to Delhi when he was inducted as Home Minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
Saurashtra (region)
After India's independence in 1947, 217 princely states of Kathiawar, including the former Junagadh State, were merged to form the state of Saurashtra on 15 February 1948. Initially, it was named United State of Kathiawar, which was renamed to Saurashtra State in November 1948. The exercise took up a lot of Shri Vallabhbhai Patel's time to convince the local princes and petty subas (totalling 222 in Saurashtra alone). However, Maharaja Krishnakumar Sinhji of Bhavnagar State readily extended to offer his large and royal empire of Bhavnagar / Gohilwar to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and Bhavnagar became the first in the country to be merged into the union of India.
Maharashtra Rationalist Association
The Maharashtra Rationalist Association was an offshoot of the broad social and religious reformation movement in Maharashtra which traces its origin to the nineteenth century in the thoughts and actions of Jyotiba Phule and Gopal Ganesh Agarkar. Shahu Maharaj, Jawaharlal Nehru, Ramaswami Naicker, B.R. Ambedkar, M.N. Roy, Goparaju Ramachandra Rao ‘Gora’ and Sahodaran Ayyappan moulded the rationalist mode of thinking in India in the 20th century. Among the first rationalist organisations in India were Rationalist Association of India which was set up in 1930, and Yukthivadi Sangham which was registered in 1935. The Atheist Centre launched by Mahatma Gandhi's follower Goparaju Ramachandra Rao "Gora" in Andhra Pradesh in 1940, and the Indian Rationalist Association (IRA) set up in Chennai with R.P. Paranjpye as founding president were among the other important organisations in the Indian rationalist movement. Maharashtra Rationalist Association was one of the first rationalist organisations in Maharashtra.
Wagle Estate
After the formation of Maharashtra state, the government of Maharashtra constituted a "Board of Industrial Development" (BID) on 1 October 1960, under the chairmanship of Shri. S. G. Barve. The committees recommendations received in the industries department were taken up for implementation. As per the Borkar Committee's recommendations, development of Ulhas Valley Water Supply was entrusted to the Board of Industrial Development (BID). The BID framed the legislation; it was introduced before the state legislation and passed in the form of "Maharashtra Industrial Act" which gave birth to Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), as a separate corporation on 1 August 1962. A small ceremony at Wagle Estate, Thane, under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Shri Yashwantrao Chavan, marked the birthday of MIDC on 1 August 1962.
Maharashtra Lokayukta
The Maharashtra Lokayukta is the body overseeing corruption in various agencies in the Govt. of Maharashtra in India. Established in 1971, it is the first ever Lokayukta of all States of India. It was established through "The Maharashtra Lokayukta and Upa-Lokayuktas Act, 1971".
Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad
Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad is a literary institution situated in the West Indian state of Maharashtra for the purpose of the "furtherance of Marathi language and literature". It was set up in Pune in 1906. The Encyclopedia of Indian Literature considers it as Marathi's first representative literary body. The "Parishad" arranges annual conferences runs "Maharashtra Sahitya Patrika" a Marathi quarterly, provides a reference library, conducts qualifying examinations in Marathi language and literature and classes for non-Marathi speakers in Pune. It has undertaken the publishing a "History of Marathi literature". It has constituted various awards in the field of literature. The "Parishad" according to Deshpande lead in the demand for the formation of a separate linguistic state - Maharashtra.
Maharashtra Day
Maharashtra Day, (Marathi: महाराष्ट्र दिन "Mahārāṣţra Din") commonly known as Maharashtra Diwas also referred to as Maharashtra Din is a state holiday in the Indian state of Maharashtra, commemorating the formation of the state of Maharashtra from the division of the Bombay State on 1 May 1960. Maharashtra Day is commonly associated with parades and political speeches and ceremonies, in addition to various other public and private events celebrating the history and traditions of Maharashtra.