History and Geography
The first well-known rulers of Maharashtra were the Satavahanas (230 B.C. 225 A.D.), who were the founders of Maharashtra, and have left a plethora of literary, epigraphic, artistic and archaeological evidence. This epoch marks tremendous development in every field of human endeavour.Then came the Vakatakas, who established a pan-Indian empire. Under them, Maharashtra witnessed an all-sided development in the fields of learning, arts and religion. Some of the Ajanta Caves and fresco paintings reached the high-level mark during their rule. After the Vakatakas and after a brief interlude of the Kalachuri dynasty, the most important rulers were the Chalukyas, followed by the Rashtrakutas and the Yadavas, apart from the Shilaharas on the coast. The Yadavas, with Marathi as their court language extended their authority over large parts of the Deccan.
While the Bahamani rule brought a degree of cohesion to the land and its culture, a uniquely homogeneous evolution of Maharashtra as an entity became a reality under the able leadership of Shivaji. A new sense of Swaraj and nationalism was evolved by Shivaji. His noble and glorious power stalled the Mughal advances in this part of India. The Peshwas established the Maratha supremacy from the Deccan Plateau to Attock in Punjab.
Maharashtra was in the forefront of the freedom struggle, and it was here that the Indian National Congress was born. A galaxy of leaders from Mumbai and other cities in Maharashtra led the Congress movement under the guidance of Tilak, and later Mahatma Gandhi. Maharashtra was the home of Gandhiji's movement, while Sevagram was the capital of nationalistic India during the Gandhian era.
Agriculture
About 65 per cent of the total workers in the State depend on agriculture and allied activities. Principal crops grown in the State are rice, jowar, bajra, wheat, tur, mung, urad, gram and other pulses. The State is a major producer of oilseeds. Groundnut, sunflower, soyabean are major oil seed crops. Important cash crops are cotton, sugarcane, turmeric and vegetables. The State has an area of 12.90 lakh hectares under various fruit crops like mango, banana, orange, grape, cashewnut, etc.
Industry
The State has been identified as the country's powerhouse and Mumbai, its capital as the centre point of India's financial and commercial markets. Industrial sector occupies a prominent position in the economy of Maharashtra. Food products, breweries, tobacco and related products, cotton textiles, textile products, paper and paper products, printing and publishing, rubber, plastic, chemical and chemical products, machinery, electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, and transport equipment and parts contribute substantially to the industrial production in the state.
Irrigation and Power
By the end of June-2005, 32 major, 178 medium and about 2,274 state sector minor irrigation projects had been completed. Another 21 major and 39 medium irrigation projects are under construction. The gross irrigated area in 2004-2005 was 36.36 lakh hectares.
Maharashtra had an installed capacity of 12,909 MW in 2004-2005. The PLF in the State was 81.6 per cent and power generation was 68,507 million KWH.
Tourist Centres
Some important tourist centres are: Ajanta, Ellora, Elephanta, Kanheri and Karla caves, Mahabaleshwar, Matheran and Panchgani, Jawhar, Malshejghat, Amboli, Chikaldara, Panhala Hill stations and religious places at Pandharpur, Nasik, Shirdi, Nanded, Audhanagnath, Trimbakeshwar, Tuljapur, Ganpatipule, Bhimashanker, Harihareshwar, Shegaon, Kolhapur, Jejuri and Ambajogai.
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