Kutch district
Kutch district is a district of Gujarat state in western India. Covering an area of 45,674 km², it is the largest district of India; the population of Kutch is about 2,092,000. It has 939 villages and 6 Municipalities; the Kutch district is home to the Kutchi people. Kutch means something which intermittently becomes wet and dry; the same word is used in Sanskrit origin for a tortoise. The Rann is known for its marshy salt flats which become snow white after the shallow water dries up each season before the monsoon rains; the district is known for ecologically important Banni grasslands with their seasonal marshy wetlands which form the outer belt of the Rann of Kutch. Kutch District is surrounded by the Gulf of Kutch and the Arabian Sea in south and west, while northern and eastern parts are surrounded by the Great and Little Rann of Kutch; when there were not many dams built on its rivers, the Rann of Kutch remained wetlands for a large part of the year. Today, the region remains wet for a significant part of year.
The district had a population of 2,092,379 as of 2011 census. Motor vehicles registered in Kutch district have their registration Number starting with GJ-12; the district is well connected by road and air. There are four airports in the district: Naliya, Kandla and Bhuj. Bhuj is well connected with Mumbai airport. Being a border district, Kutch has both an airforce base; the history of Kutch can be traced back to prehistorical times. There are several sites related to Indus valley civilization in region and is mentioned in Hindu mythology. In historical times, Kutch is mentioned in Greek writings during Alexander, it was ruled by Menander I of Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, overthrown by Indo-Scythians followed by Maurya Empire and Sakas. in the first century, it was under Western Satraps followed by Gupta Empire. By fifth century, Maitraka of Valabhi took over from which its close association with ruling clans of Gujarat started. Chavdas ruled the eastern and central parts by seventh century but were came under Chaulukyas by tenth century.
After fall of Chaulukya, Vaghelas ruled the state. Following conquest of Sindh by Muslim rulers, Rajput Samma started moving southwards to Kutch and ruled western regions initially. By tenth century, they controlled significant area of Kutch and by thirteenth century they controlled whole of Kutch and adopted a new dynastic identity, Jadeja. For three centuries, Kutch was ruled by three different branches of Jadeja brothers. In sixteenth century, Kutch was unified under one rule by Rao Khengarji I of these branches and his direct descendants ruled for two centuries and had good relationship with Gujarat Sultanate and Mughals. One of his descendants, Rayadhan II left three sons of whom two died and third son, Pragmal Ji took over the state and founded the current lineage of rulers at the start of the seventeenth century; the descendants of other brothers founded states in Kathiawar. After turbulent periods and battles with armies of Sindh, the state was stabilized in the middle of eighteenth century by council known as Bar Bhayat ni Jamat who placed Rao as a titular head and ruled independently.
The state accepted suzerainty of British East India Company in 1819 when Kutch was defeated in battle. The state was devastated by an earthquake in 1819; the state flourished in business under subsequent rulers. Upon the independence of India in 1947, Kutch acceded unto the dominion of India and was constituted an independent commissionaire, it was created a state within the union of India in 1950. The state witnessed an earthquake in 1956. On 1 November 1956, Kutch State was merged with Bombay state, which in 1960 was divided into the new linguistic states of Gujarat and Maharashtra, with Kutch becoming part of Gujarat state as Kutch district; the district was affected by tropical cyclone in 1998 and the earthquake in 2001. The state saw rapid growth in tourism in subsequent years. Kutch District, at 45,691.895 square kilometres, is the largest district in India. The administrative headquarters is in Bhuj, geographically in the center of district. Other main towns are Gandhidham, Nakhatrana, Mandvi, Madhapar and Bhachau.
Kutch has 969 villages. Kala Dungar is the highest point in Kutch at 458 metres. Kutch is an island, as it is surrounded by the Arabian Sea in the west; the border with Pakistan lies along the northern edge of the Rann of the Sir Creek. The Kutch peninsula is an example of active thrust tectonism. In Central Kutch there are four major east-west hill ranges characterized by fault propagation folds with steeply dipping northern limbs and dipping southern limbs. From the gradual increasing dimension of the linear chain of hillocks towards the west along the Kutch mainland fault and the epicentre of the earthquake of 2001 lying at the eastern extreme of Kutch mainland fault, it is suggested that the eastern part of the Kutch mainland fault is progressively emerging upward, it can be suggested from the absence of distinct surface rupture both during the 1956 Anjar earthquake and 2001 Bhuj earthquake, that movements have taken place along a blind thrust. Villages situated on the blind thrust in the eastern part of the Kutch mainland hill range were erased during the 20
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is bordered by states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west, Haryana on the southwest, Uttarakhand on the southeast, Tibet on the east. At its southernmost point, it touches the state of Uttar Pradesh; the state's name was coined by acharya Diwakar Datt Sharma, one of the state's eminent Sanskrit scholars. The predominantly mountainous region comprising the present day Himachal Pradesh has been inhabited since pre-historic times having witnessed multiple waves of migration from other areas. Through its history, the region was ruled by local kingdoms some of which accepted suzerainty of larger empires. Prior to India's independence from the British, Himachal comprised the hilly regions of Punjab Province of British India. After independence, many of the hilly territories were organized as the Chief Commissioner's province of Himachal Pradesh which became a union territory. In 1966, hilly areas of neighboring Punjab state were merged into Himachal and it was granted full statehood in 1972.
Himachal Pradesh is spread across valleys with many perennial rivers flowing through them. 90% of the state's population lives in rural areas. Agriculture, horticulture and tourism are important constituents of the state's economy; the hilly state is universally electrified with 99.5% of the households having electricity as of 2016. The state was declared India's second open-defecation free state in 2016. According to a survey of CMS - India Corruption Study 2017, Himachal Pradesh is India's least corrupt state. Tribes such as the Koli, Dagi, Dasa, Khasa and Kirat inhabited the region from the prehistoric era; the foothills of the modern state of Himachal Pradesh were inhabited by people from the Indus valley civilization which flourished between 2250 and 1750 B. C; the Kols or Mundas are believed to be the original migrants to the hills of present day Himachal Pradesh followed by the Bhotas and Kiratas. During the Vedic period, several small republics known as Janapada existed which were conquered by the Gupta Empire.
After a brief period of supremacy by King Harshavardhana, the region was divided into several local powers headed by chieftains, including some Rajput principalities. These kingdoms enjoyed a large degree of independence and were invaded by Delhi Sultanate a number of times. Mahmud Ghaznavi conquered Kangra at the beginning of the 10th century. Timur and Sikander Lodi marched through the lower hills of the state and captured a number of forts and fought many battles. Several hill states paid regular tribute to the Mughals; the Kingdom of Gorkha conquered many kingdoms and came to power in Nepal in 1768. They began to expand their territory; the Kingdom of Nepal annexed Sirmour and Shimla. Under the leadership of Amar Singh Thapa, the Nepali army laid siege to Kangra, they managed to defeat Sansar Chand Katoch, the ruler of Kangra, in 1806 with the help of many provincial chiefs. However, the Nepali army could not capture Kangra fort which came under Maharaja Ranjeet Singh in 1809. After the defeat, they began to expand towards the south of the state.
However, Raja Ram Singh, Raja of Siba State, captured the fort of Siba from the remnants of Lahore Darbar in Samvat 1846, during the First Anglo-Sikh War. They came into direct conflict with the British along the tarai belt after which the British expelled them from the provinces of the Satluj; the British emerged as the paramount power in the region. In the revolt of 1857, or first Indian war of independence, arising from a number of grievances against the British, the people of the hill states were not as politically active as were those in other parts of the country, they and their rulers, with the exception of Bushahr, remained less inactive. Some, including the rulers of Chamba, Bilaspur and Dhami, rendered help to the British government during the revolt; the British territories came under the British Crown after Queen Victoria's proclamation of 1858. The states of Chamba and Bilaspur made good progress in many fields during the British rule. During World War I all rulers of the hill states remained loyal and contributed to the British war effort, both in the form of men and materials.
Among these were the states of Kangra, Datarpur, Rajgarh, Chamba, Suket and Bilaspur. After independence, the Chief Commissioner's Province of Himachal Pradesh was organized on 15 April 1948 as a result of the integration of 28 petty princely states in the promontories of the western Himalayas; these were known as the Simla Hills States and four Punjab southern hill states under the Himachal Pradesh Order, 1948 under Sections 3 and 4 of the Extra-Provincial Jurisdiction Act, 1947. The State of Bilaspur was merged into Himachal Pradesh on 1 July 1954 by the Himachal Pradesh and Bilaspur Act, 1954. Himachal became a Part'C' state on 26 January 1950 with the implementation of the Constitution of India and the Lieutenant Governor was appointed; the Legislative Assembly was elected in 1952. Himachal Pradesh became a union territory on 1 November 1956; some areas of Punjab State— namely Simla, Kangra and Lahul and Spiti Districts, Nalagarh tehsil of Ambala District, Lohara and Una kanungo circles, some area of Santokhgarh kanungo circle and some other specified area of Una tehsil of Hoshiarpur District, besides some parts of Dhar Kalan Kanungo circle of Pathankot tehsil of Gurdaspur District—were merge
Mysore State
Mysore State was a separate state within the Union of India from 1948 until 1956 with Mysore as its capital. The state was enlarged in 1956 when it became a linguistically homogeneous Kannada-speaking state in 1956, within the Union of India, it was subsequently incorporated into the state of Karnataka. The Kingdom of Mysore was one of the three largest princely states within the former British Empire of India. Upon India's gaining its independence in 1947, Maharaja of Mysore Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar signed the instrument of accession, incorporating his realm with the Union of India on 15 August 1947; the territories of the erstwhile princely state of Mysore were reconstituted into a state within the Union of India. In 1956, the Government of India effected a comprehensive re-organisation of provincial boundaries, based upon the principle of shared language; as a result of the States Reorganisation Act on 1 November 1956, the Kannada-speaking districts of Belgaum, Bijapur and North Canara were transferred from Bombay State to Mysore State.
Bellary district was transferred from Andhra State. South Canara and Udupi districts were transferred from Madras State and the Koppal, Raichur and Bidar districts from Hyderabad State. Small Coorg State was merged, becoming a district of Mysore State.. The state was renamed as Karnataka on 1 November 1973. Bombay State Political integration of India
Bihar
Bihar is state in eastern India. It is the thirteenth-largest Indian state, with an area of 94,163 km2; the third-largest state by population, it is contiguous with Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Bengal to the east, with Jharkhand to the south. The Bihar plain is split by the river Ganges. Three main regions converge in the state: Magadh and Bhojpur. On 15 November 2000, southern Bihar was ceded to form the new state of Jharkhand. Only 11.3% of the population of Bihar lives in urban areas, the lowest in India after Himachal Pradesh. Additionally 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, giving Bihar the highest proportion of young people of any Indian state. In ancient and classical India, the area, now Bihar was considered a centre of power and culture. From Magadha arose India's first empire, the Maurya empire, as well as one of the world's most adhered-to religions, Buddhism. Magadha empires, notably under the Maurya and Gupta dynasties, unified large parts of South Asia under a central rule.
Another region of Bihar is Mithila, an early centre of learning and the centre of the Videha kingdom. Since the late 1970s, Bihar has lagged far behind other Indian states in terms of social and economic development. Many economists and social scientists claim that this is a direct result of the policies of the central government, such as the Freight equalisation policy, its apathy towards Bihar, lack of Bihari sub-nationalism, the Permanent Settlement of 1793 by the British East India Company; the state government has, made significant strides in developing the state. Improved governance has led to an economic revival in the state through increased investment in infrastructure, better health care facilities, greater emphasis on education, a reduction in crime and corruption; the name Bihar is derived from the Sanskrit and Pali word vihāra, meaning "abode". The region encompassing the present state was dotted with Buddhist vihara, the abodes of Buddhist monks in the ancient and medieval periods.
Medieval writer Minhaj al-Siraj Juzjani records in the Tabaqat-i Nasiri that in 1198 Bakhtiyar Khalji committed a massacre in a town identified with the word known as Bihar Sharif, about 70 km away from Bodh Gaya. Chirand, on the northern bank of the Ganga River, in Saran district, has an archaeological record from the Neolithic age. Regions of Bihar—such as Magadha and Anga—are mentioned in religious texts and epics of ancient India. Mithila gained prominence after establishment of the Videha Kingdom in Āryāvarta. During the late Vedic period, Videha became one of the major political and cultural centers of South Asia, along with Kuru and Pañcāla; the kings of the Videha Kingdom were called Janakas. Sita, a daughter of one of the Janaks of Mithila is mentioned as the consort of Lord Rama, in the Hindu epic, written by Valmiki; the Videha Kingdom became incorporated into the Vajji confederacy which had its capital in the city of Vaishali, in Mithila. Vajji had a republican form of government. Based on the information found in texts pertaining to Jainism and Buddhism, Vajji was established as a republic by the 6th century BCE, before the birth of Gautama Buddha in 563 BCE, making it the first known republic in India.
The region of modern-day southwestern Bihar called Magadha remained the centre of power and culture in India for 1000 years. The Haryanka dynasty, founded in 684 BC, ruled Magadha from the city of Rajgriha; the two well-known kings from this dynasty were Bimbisara and his son Ajatashatru, who imprisoned his father to ascend the throne. Ajatashatru founded the city of Pataliputra which became the capital of Magadha, he conquered the Vajji. The Haryanka dynasty was followed by the Shishunaga dynasty; the Nanda Dynasty ruled a vast tract stretching from Bengal to Punjab. The Nanda dynasty was replaced by India's first empire; the Maurya Empire and the religion of Buddhism arose in the region. The Mauryan Empire, which originated from Magadha in 325 BC, was founded by Chandragupta Maurya, born in Magadha, it had its capital at Pataliputra. The Mauryan emperor, born in Pataliputra is believed to be one of the greatest rulers in the history of the world; the Gupta Empire, which originated in Magadha in 240 AD, is referred as the Golden Age of India in science, astronomy, commerce and Indian philosophy.
Bihar and Bengal was invaded by Rajendra Chola I of the Chola dynasty in the 11th century. Buddhism in Magadha went into decline due to the invasion of Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khalji, during which many of the viharas and the famed universities of Nalanda and Vikramashila were destroyed, it was claimed. D. N. Jha suggests, that these incidents were the result of Buddhist-Brahmin skirmishes in a fight for supremacy. After fall of Pala Empire, Chero dynasty ruled some parts of Bihar from 12th century to 16th century till Mughal rule. In 1540, the great Pathan chieftain, Sher Shah Suri, from Sasaram, took northern India from the Mughals, defeating the Mughal army of Emperor Humayun. Sher Shah declared Delhi his capital. From the 11th century to the 20th century, Mithila was ruled by various indigenous dynasties; the first of these were the Karnatas, followed by the Oinwar dynasty and Raj Darbhanga. It was during this period that the capital of Mithila was shi
Gujarat
Gujarat is a state on the western coast of India with a coastline of 1,600 km – most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula – and a population in excess of 60 million. It is the ninth largest state by population. Gujarat is bordered by Rajasthan to the northeast and Diu to the south and Nagar Haveli and Maharashtra to the southeast, Madhya Pradesh to the east, the Arabian Sea and the Pakistani province of Sindh to the west, its capital city is Gandhinagar. The Gujarati-speaking people of India are indigenous to the state; the economy of Gujarat is the fifth-largest state economy in India with ₹14.96 lakh crore in gross domestic product and a per capita GDP of ₹157,000. The state encompasses some sites of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation, such as Lothal and Gola Dhoro. Lothal is believed to be one of the world's first seaports. Gujarat's coastal cities, chiefly Bharuch and Khambhat, served as ports and trading centers in the Maurya and Gupta empires, during the succession of royal Saka dynasties from the Western Satraps era.
Along with Bihar and Nagaland, Gujarat is one of the three Indian states to prohibit the sale of alcohol. Present-day Gujarat is derived from Sanskrit term Gurjaradesa, meaning the land of the Gurjaras who ruled Gujarat in the 8th and 9th centuries AD. Parts of modern Rajasthan and Gujarat have been known as Gurjaratra or Gurjarabhumi for centuries before the Mughal period. Gujarat was one of the main central areas of the Indus Valley Civilisation, it contains ancient metropolitan cities from the Indus Valley such as Lothal and Gola Dhoro. The ancient city of Lothal was; the ancient city of Dholavira is one of the largest and most prominent archaeological sites in India, belonging to the Indus Valley Civilisation. The most recent discovery was Gola Dhoro. Altogether, about 50 Indus Valley settlement ruins have been discovered in Gujarat; the ancient history of Gujarat was enriched by the commercial activities of its inhabitants. There is clear historical evidence of trade and commerce ties with Egypt and Sumer in the Persian Gulf during the time period of 1000 to 750 BC.
There was a succession of Hindu and Buddhist states such as the Mauryan Dynasty, Western Satraps, Satavahana dynasty, Gupta Empire, Chalukya dynasty, Rashtrakuta Empire, Pala Empire and Gurjara-Pratihara Empire, as well as local dynasties such as the Maitrakas and the Chaulukyas. The early history of Gujarat reflects the imperial grandeur of Chandragupta Maurya who conquered a number of earlier states in what is now Gujarat. Pushyagupta, a Vaishya, was appointed the governor of Saurashtra by the Mauryan regime, he built a dam on the Sudarshan lake. Emperor Ashoka, the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, not only ordered engraving of his edicts on the rock at Junagadh but asked Governor Tusherpha to cut canals from the lake where an earlier Mauryan governor had built a dam. Between the decline of Mauryan power and Saurashtra coming under the sway of the Samprati Mauryas of Ujjain, there was an Indo-Greek defeat in Gujarat of Demetrius. In 16th century manuscripts, there is an apocryphal story of a merchant of King Gondaphares landing in Gujarat with Apostle Thomas.
The incident of the cup-bearer torn apart by a lion might indicate that the port city described is in Gujarat. For nearly 300 years from the start of the 1st century AD, Saka rulers played a prominent part in Gujarat's history; the weather-beaten rock at Junagadh gives a glimpse of the ruler Rudradaman I of the Saka satraps known as Western Satraps, or Kshatraps. Mahakshatrap Rudradaman I founded the Kardamaka dynasty which ruled from Anupa on the banks of the Narmada up to the Aparanta region which bordered Punjab. In Gujarat, several battles were fought between the south Indian Satavahana dynasty and the Western Satraps; the greatest and the mightiest ruler of the Satavahana Dynasty was Gautamiputra Satakarni who defeated the Western Satraps and conquered some parts of Gujarat in the 2nd century AD. The Kshatrapa dynasty was replaced by the Gupta Empire with the conquest of Gujarat by Chandragupta Vikramaditya. Vikramaditya's successor Skandagupta left an inscription on a rock at Junagadh which gives details of the governor's repairs to the embankment surrounding Sudarshan lake after it was damaged by floods.
The Anarta and Saurashtra regions were both parts of the Gupta empire. Towards the middle of the 5th century, the Gupta empire went into decline. Senapati Bhatarka, the Maitraka general of the Guptas, took advantage of the situation and in 470 he set up what came to be known as the Maitraka state, he shifted his capital from Giringer near Bhavnagar, on Saurashtra's east coast. The Maitrakas of Vallabhi became powerful with their rule prevailing over large parts of Gujarat and adjoining Malwa. A university was set up by the Maitrakas, which came to be known far and wide for its scholastic pursuits and was compared with the noted Nalanda University, it was during the rule of Dhruvasena Maitrak that Chinese philosopher-traveler Xuanzang/ I Tsing visited in 640 along the Silk Road. Gujarat was known to the ancient Greeks and was familiar with other Western centers of civilization through the end of the European Middle Ages; the oldest written record of Gujarat's 2,000-year maritime history is documented in a Greek book titled The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea: Travel and Trade in the Indian Ocean by a Merchant of the First Century.
In the early 8th century, the Arabs of the Umayyad Caliphate established an empire in the name of the rising religion of Islam, which stretched
Travancore-Cochin
Travancore-Cochin or Thiru-Kochi was a short-lived state of India. It was called United State of Travancore and Cochin and was created on 1 July 1949 by the merger of two former Princely States, the kingdoms of Travancore and Cochin with Trivandrum as the capital, it was renamed State of Travancore-Cochin in January 1950. Paravur T. K. Narayana Pillai, the Congress Prime Minister of Travancore, became the Chief Minister of Travancore-Cochin. First elections were held in 1951 and A. J. John, Anaparambil from Congress party was elected as the Chief Minister, ruling until 1954; the ruler of Travancore was appointed as the governor of Travancore-Cochin. The Maharajah of Cochin was offered to be addressed as Uparaja Pramukh, but he did not want any title after handing over the power; the Maharaja politely said that the eldest member of Cochin Royal Family should be called Valiya Thampuran and gave up royal powers unconditionally for the good of the people. While Pattom A. Thanu Pillai was the Praja Socialist Party Chief minister in 1954, Travancore Tamil Nadu Congress launched a campaign for the merger of the Tamil-speaking regions of Southern Travancore with the neighbouring area of Madras State.
The agitation took a violent turn and civilians and local police were killed at Marthandam and Puthukkada, irreparably alienating the entire Tamil-speaking population from merger into Travancore-Cochin. Under State Reorganisation Act of 1956, the four southern taluks of Travancore, namely Thovalai, Agasteeswaram and Vilavancode and a part of the Chencotta, Tenkasi Taluk was merged with Madras State. On 1 November 1956 Travancore-Cochin was joined with Malabar District of Madras State to form the new state of Kerala, with a governor, appointed by the President of India, as the head of the state instead of'Rajapramukh'; the state had 4 districts which were divided into 36 taluks
Bombay State
Bombay State was a large Indian state created at the time of India's Independence, with other regions being added to it in the succeeding years. Bombay Presidency was merged with the princely states of the Baroda, Western India and Gujarat and Deccan States (which included parts of the present-day Indian states of Maharashtra and Karnataka. On 1 November 1956, Bombay State was re-organized under the States Reorganisation Act on linguistic lines, absorbing various territories including the Saurashtra and Kutch States, which ceased to exist. On 1 May 1960, Bombay State was dissolved and split on linguistic lines into the two states of Gujarat, with Gujarati speaking population and Maharashtra, with Marathi speaking population During the British Raj, portions of the western coast of India under direct British rule were part of the Bombay Presidency. In 1937, the Bombay Presidency became a province of British India. After India gained independence in 1947, Bombay Presidency became part of India, Sind province became part of Pakistan.
The territory retained by India was restructured into Bombay State. It included princely states such as Kolhapur in Deccan, Baroda and the Dangs in Gujarat, under the political influence of the former Bombay Presidency; as a result of the States Reorganisation Act on 1 November 1956, the Kannada-speaking districts of Belgaum, Bijapur and North Canara were transferred from Bombay State to Mysore State. But the State of Bombay was enlarged, expanding eastward to incorporate the Marathi-speaking Marathwada region of Hyderabad State, the Marathi-speaking Vidarbha region of southern Madhya Pradesh, Gujarati-speaking Saurashtra and Kutch states; the Bombay state was being referred to by the local inhabitants as "Maha Dwibhashi Rajya", meaning, "the great bilingual 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, insisted that Bombay be declared the capital of Maharashtra. Bombay State was dissolved with the formation of Maharashtra and Gujarat states on 1 May 1960. 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, numerous princely states enclosed between them. Bombay State had three Chief Ministers after the independence of India: Balasaheb Gangadhar Kher was the first Chief Minister of Bombay Morarji Desai Yashwantrao Chavan In 1960, the designation of the "Governor of Bombay" was transmuted as the Governor of Maharashtra.
Sources: Raj Bhavan and Greater Bombay District Gazetteer Graphical Political integration of India Samyukta Maharashtra movement for a separate Marathi state Mahagujarat Movement for separate Gujarati state. Indulal Yagnik
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