Google Map Of Maharashtra

Official Website: http://maharashtra.gov.in/
Established: 1 May 1960 (Maharashtra Day)
Capital: Mumbai
Largest city: Mumbai by population, Pune by area
Districts: 35 total
Government Body: NA
Legislature: NA
Parliamentary constituency: 48
High Court: Bombay High Court
Area Total: 307,713 km2 (118,808.7 sq mi)
Area rank: 3rd
Population 2011: (2011)[2]
Population Density: 365.2/km2 (945.8/sq mi)
Time zone: IST (UTC+05:30)
UN/LOCODE: NA
ISO 3166 code: IN-MH
Vehicle registration: NA
HDI: 0.689 (medium)
HDI rank: 12th (2005)
Literacy: 82.9% (6th)
Official languages: Marathi[3][4]

The State of Maharashtra, the third largest state and the second most populous state in India has a distinct culture with many religious festivals, mouthwatering cuisines and a variety of art forms.

Maharashtra Introduction

Maharashtra is the third largest state in India. The name is derived from Sanskrit words “Maha” means “Great’ and “Rashtra” means “Nation”. The name Maharashtra is believed to be originated from the word “rathi’ means ‘chariot driver”. The presence of the state was found in the history with the construction of Buddhist caves in the third century BC. Maharashtra was formed on May 1st,1960 with Bombay as the capital.

Maharashtra is located on the western part of India and a major part of the state lies in the high Deccan plateau. It covers an area of around 9.84% of the total geographical area of India and 17% of the state is covered by forests. Mumbai, the capital city is the largest city in India and financial capital of the nation. Official language is Marathi and is spoken by around 68.89% of the population, but Hindi and English is also widely used.

Maharashtra is the second most populous state in India. Hinduism is the major religion followed in the state. Christianity, Islam, Jainism are some other religions followed in Maharashtra. Zoroastrians also called as Parsis are also found in the state.

Maharashtra has a moderate climate and varies between 16oC and 35oC. March, April and May are the hottest months. Monsoon starts in the month of June and ends by September. But even in the monsoon season, many parts of inner Maharashtra gets only a very less rainfall and remains dry compared to other regions. Winter season is between the months of November and February.

History

Maratha nation was created by Chhatrapati Shivaji in the 17th century. Around one-third of the Indian subcontinent was under the Maratha power by 1960. British Raj came into power after the third Anglo-Maratha war. Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti played a major role in making all the Marathi speaking regions into one state after the Indian Independence. The present Maharashtra state was created on 1st May, 1960 and is celebrated as the Maharashtra Day.

The second most populous state in India is Maharashtra. Marathi is the official language of the region. Marathi speaking people is around 68.89%. This rate is declining and survey shows that there is a rise in the Hindi speaking population. The literacy rate is 77.27% of its total population.

Mumbai is the financial capital of India. Maharashtra is one of the leading industrial states and it influences the economic growth of the state. There are many factors which contribute to the economic growth of the state. They are:

• Industries – Chemical and allied products, electrical and non-electrical machinery, textile, petroleum etc.
• Agriculture – Food crops like rice, jowar, wheat etc. and cash crops like groundnut, turmeric etc.
• Banking and Bombay Stock Exchange
• Information technology
• Shipyards
• Hindi filmmaking industry – Bollywood
• Automobile industry

Culture

The culture of Maharashtra is famous for its richness and diversity. Marathi is the official language and Hinduism is the religion followed by majority of the people in Maharashtra. Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Jainism etc. are also followed by minor community. The state is also famous for its dance and music. Some of the dance forms are Povada, Lavani, Koli etc. and Dhangri Gaja, Dindi, Kala and Tamasha are some of the folk dances performed in the state.
There are many religious festivals in Maharashtra. Some of them are :

• Ganesh Chaturthi
• Vijayadashami
• Navaratri
• Holi
• Diwali

Maharashtrians also celebrate other festivals like Christmas, EID etc. Buddhist community celebrates festivals like Buddha Purnima and Bhim Jayanti.

There are a variety of dishes in Maharashtra ranging from very mild to spicy dishes. Vegetables, fruits, wheat, lentils, rice etc. are the most common things included in their diet. The cuisine is mainly influenced by the crops cultivated in the regions. Chapatti, bhaji, salad and pickle, papad or chutneys is the typical Maharashtrian lunch or dinner. Non-vegeterian dishes are also prepared using chicken, mutton, fish and other seafood.

Maharashtrian cusine also have variety of snack items like pohay, chivda, vada pav, missal pav etc. There are a number of sweets/desserts in their cuisine. Some of the sweets are festival delicacies like modak, puran poli, varieties of ladoos etc.