 Maharashtra
Maharashtra Geography
Maharashtra encompasses an area of 308,000 km˛ (119,000 mi˛), the third largest in India after Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Maharashtra is bordered by the states of Madhya Pradesh to the north, Chhattisgarh to the east, Andhra Pradesh 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 in between. The Arabian Sea makes up Maharashtra's west coast.
The Western Ghats are a hilly range running parallel to the coast, at an average elevation of 1,200 metres (4,000 feet)). To the west of these hills lie the Konkan coastal plains, which is 50 – 80 kilometres in width. To the east of the Ghats lies the flat Deccan Plateau. The Western Ghats form one of the three watersheds of India, from which many South Indian rivers originate. To the north of the state, near the Madhya Pradesh border, lies the Satpura Range.
The Western Ghats form the source of several major rivers of Maharashtra, notable among them being Godavari and the Krishna. The rivers, along with their tributaries, flow eastwards into the Bay of Bengal, irrigating most of central and eastern Maharashtra. The Ghats are also the source of numerous small rivers which flow westwards emptying into the Arabian Sea. To the north of the state, the rivers Tapi and Narmada flow westwards into the Arabian Sea, irrigating most of northern Maharashtra. To the east are major rivers like Vainganga that flow to the south and eventually to Bay of Bengal.
The plateau is composed of black basalt soil, rich in humus. This soil is well suited for cultivating cotton, and hence is often called black cotton soil.
Maharashtra Districts
Maharashtra is divided into thirty-five districts, which are grouped into six divisions: Aurangabad, Amravati, Konkan, Nagpur, Nashik, and Pune. These are official revenue divisions of government of Maharashtra.
Geographically, historically and according to political sentiments Maharashtra has five main regions: Vidarbha or Berar (Nagpur and Amravati divisions), Marathwada (Aurangabad Division), Kandesh and Northern Maharashtra (Nashik Division), Desh or Western Maharashtra (Pune division), and Konkan (Konkan Division).
Districts
Thane , Mumbai (Suburban) , Mumbai (City) , Raigarh , Ratnagiri , Sindhudurg , Nashik , Ahmednagar , Pune , Satara , Sangli , Kolhapur , Nandurbar , Dhule , Jalgaon , Buldana , Aurangabad , Jalna , Parbhani , Beed , Latur , Osmanabad , Solapur , Amravati , Akola , Washim , Hingoli , Nanded , Wardha , Yavatmal , Nagpur , Chandrapur , Bhandara , Bhandara , Gondia , Gadchiroli
Maharashtra Economy
Maharashtra's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $106 billion in current prices.
Maharashtra's is India's leading industrial state contributing 23% of national industrial output. 64.14% of the people are employed in agriculture and allied activities. Almost 46% of the GSDP is contributed by industry. Major industries in Maharashtra include chemical and allied products, electrical and non-electrical machinery, textiles, petroleum and allied products. Other important industries include metal products, wine, jewellery, pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, machine tools, steel and iron castings and plastic wares. Food crops include mangoes, grapes, bananas, oranges, wheat, rice, jowar, bajra, and pulses. Cash crops include groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, turmeric, and tobacco. The net irrigated area totals 33,500 square kilometres.
Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra houses the headquarters of almost all major banks, financial institutions, insurance companies and mutual funds. Within Mumbai is located Bollywood, the centre of India's Hindi film and television industry. India's largest stock exchange Bombay Stock Exchange, which is the oldest in whole of Asia, is located in the city. After successes in the information technology in the neighbouring states, Maharashtra has set up software parks in Pune, Nagpur, Mumbai, and Nashik.
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