Nagpur Division

Nagpur Division is one of six administrative divisions of

Maharashtra state in India. Nagpur is the easternmost division in the state, with an

administrative headquarters in the city of Nagpur.
 
Nāgpur

Third

largest city in the western Indian state of Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune with a population of 2.1 million (2001 Census),

Nagpur was the 13th largest urban conglomeration in India in 2001 and the foremost city in Maharashtra's eastern Vidarbha

region. Nagpur is also the state's second capital, and the winter session of the Maharashtra legislative assembly is held

here every year. The city also headquarters the respective administrations of Nagpur District and Nagpur Division. On a

global scale, Nagpur is estimated to be the 114th largest city and the 143rd largest urban area in the world in 2006 in terms

of population. Nagpur is also important geographically as it lies practically at the centre of India with the country's

geographical centre (Zero Mile) being situated here. Moreover, Nagpur is well-known throughout India as a trade centre for

high-quality oranges grown in the surrounding region and hence the city is also known as Santra Nagari (Marathi for 'Orange

City'). Recently, the city celebrated 300 years of its establishment.

  * Area: 51,336 km² (19,821

mi²)
  * Population (2001 census): 10,665,939
  * Districts: Bhandara, Chandrapur,

Gadchiroli, Gondia, Nagpur, Wardha
  * Literacy: 75.90%
  * Area under irrigation: 4,820

km²
 
History
The first reference to the name Nagpur is found in a 10th century

copper-plate inscription discovered at Devali in the neighbouring Wardha district. The

inscription is a record of grant of a village situated in the visaya (district) of Nagpura-Nandivardhana during time of

Rastrakuta king Krsna III in the Saka year 862 (940 CE). However, tradition ascribes the founding of Nagpur

to Bakht Buland, a prince of the Gond kingdom of Deogarh in the Chhindwara district. In

1743, the Maratha leader Raghoji Bhonsle of Vidarbha established himself at Nagpur, after conquering the territories of

Deogarh, Chanda and Chhattisgarh by 1751. After Raghoji's death in 1755, his son and successor Janoji was forced to

acknowledge the effective supremacy of the Maratha Peshwa of Pune in 1769. Regardless, the

Nagpur state continued to grow. Janoji's successor Mudhoji I (d. 1788) came to power in 1785 and bought

Mandla and the upper Narmada valley from the Peshwa between 1796 and

1798, after which Raghoji II (d. 1816) acquired Hoshangabad, the larger part of Saugor and Damoh. Under

Raghoji II, Nagpur covered what is now the east of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, and parts of

Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.
 
In 1803 Raghoji II joined the Peshwas against

the British in the Second Anglo-Maratha War. The British prevailed, and Raghoji was forced to cede

Cuttack, Sambalpur, and part of Berar. After Raghoji II's death in 1816,

his son Parsaji was deposed and murdered by Mudhoji II. Despite the fact that he had entered into a treaty with the British

in the same year, Mudhoji joined the Peshwa in the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1817 against

the British, but was forced to cede the rest of Berar to the Nizam of Hyderabad, and parts of Saugor and

Damoh, Mandla, Betul, Seoni and the Narmada valley to the British after

suffering a defeat at Sitabuldi in modern-day Nagpur city. Mudhoji was deposed after a temporary restoration to the throne,

after which the British placed Raghoji III the grandchild of Raghoji II, on the throne. During the rule of Raghoji III (which

lasted till 1840), the region was administered by a British resident. In 1853, the British took control of Nagpur after

Raghoji III died without leaving an heir. From 1853 to 1861, the Nagpur Province (which consisted of the

present Nagpur region, Chhindwara, and Chhatisgarh) became part of the Central Provinces and Berar and came

under the administration of a commissioner under the British central government, with Nagpur as its capital. Berar was added

in 1903.
 
TATA, one of the most respected industrial houses in India, started the country's

first textile mill at Nagpur, formally known as Central India Spinning and Weaving Company Ltd. The company was popularly

known as "Empress Mills" as it was inaugurated on 1 January 1877, the day queen Victoria was proclaimed

Empress of India.
 
Nagpur was a scene of significant political activity during India's freedom struggle. The

city hosted two annual sessions of the Indian National Congress and the Non Co-Operation

Movement was launched in the Nagpur session of 1920. After Indian Independence in

1947, Central Provinces and Berar became a province of India, and in 1950 became the Indian state of Madhya

Pradesh, again with Nagpur as its capital. However when the Indian states were reorganized along linguistic lines in 1956,

the Nagpur region and Berar were transferred to Bombay state, which in 1960 was split between the states of

Maharashtra and Gujarat. There has been talk of Nagpur being the next National Capital for

some time now, as at many given times, the government has felt that New Delhi is located too close to China and

Pakistan.
 
Geography and Climate
Nagpur has an area of approximately 220 km² and is situated

at 21° 06' N latitude and 79° 03' E longitude and a mean altitude of 310 meters above sea level. Being

located far away from any major water body at the centre of the Indian peninsula, the Nagpur's climate is

dry or mildly humid for most of the year except for the rainy season. Nagpur city receives an annual rainfall of 1,205 mm

(47.44 in) mostly between the months of June and September. The highest recorded rainfall was 304 mm on July 14, 1994. Summer

lasts from March to June, with temperatures peaking in the month of May. Summers in Nagpur are extremely hot, with daytime

temperatures regularly exceeding 40°C (104°F). Winter lasts from November to January, during which it is not unusual for

temperatures to drop below 10°C (50°F). The highest recorded temperature in the city was 48.6 °C (119.5 °F) on

1954-05-26, while the lowest was 3°C.