35-491: Central India is a loosely defined geographical region of India . There is no clear official definition and various ones may be used. One common definition consists of the states of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh , which are included in almost all definitions. Like some other definitions this takes the part of northern India that is "central" on an east–west axis. Thus the Central Zonal Council set up by
70-464: A combined population exceeding 500 Gram Sabha . Clusters of villages are also sometimes called Hobli or Patti. Certain governmental functions and activities - including clean water availability, rural development, and education - are tracked at a sub-village level. These hamlets are termed "habitations". India is composed of 1,714,556 habitations In some states, most villages have a single habitation; in others (notably Kerala and Tripura ) there
105-578: A commander under Ahilyabai for her entire rule. His son Yashwantrao Holkar (r. 1797–1811) (also called as Jaswant Rao) succeeded him upon his death. He tried to free the Delhi Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II from the British in the unsuccessful Second Anglo-Maratha War . The grateful Shah Alam gave him the title of Maharajadiraj Rajrajeshwar Alija Bahadur in honor of his bravery. Attempts by Yashwantrao Holkar to unite
140-525: A definition: The country termed Central India is, roughly speaking, the region lying between the twenty-first and twenty-fifth degrees of north latitude, and the seventy-third and eightieth degrees of east longitude... Depending on definition, Indore , the commercial capital of Madhya Pradesh, is the largest city in the region. Other major cities include Raipur , Bhopal , Gwalior , Jabalpur , and Bilaspur . The states share many linguistic and cultural characteristics with North India including
175-577: A nested hierarchy of administrative divisions . Indian states and territories frequently use different local titles for the same level of subdivision (e.g., the mandals of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana correspond to tehsils of Uttar Pradesh and other Hindi-speaking states but to talukas of Gujarat , Goa , Karnataka , Kerala , Maharashtra , and Tamil Nadu ). The smaller subdivisions (villages and blocks ) exist only in rural areas. In urban areas, urban local bodies exist instead of these rural subdivisions. The diagram below outlines
210-521: A number of places. The settlements of humans in present-day Madhya Pradesh developed primarily in the valleys of rivers such as Narmada, Chambal, and Betwa. During the early Vedic period, the Vindhya mountains formed the southern boundary of the Indo-Aryan territory. The Holkars of Indore , Scindias of Gwalior , Puars of Dewas Junior , Dewas Senior and Dhar State were powerful families of
245-406: A result, Gaffur Khan Pindari secretly signed a treaty with the British on 9 November 1817 and killed Tulsabai on 19 December 1817. The treaty was signed on 6 January 1818 at Mandsaur . Bhimabai Holkar did not accept the treaty, and kept attacking the British by guerilla methods. Years later, in revolt of 1857, Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi took inspiration from Bhimabai Holkar and also fought against
280-522: A revenue district, is a basic administrative unit under a state or union territory. Each District is headed by an IAS officer called District Magistrate . A sub-division is an administrative division of a district in India. In some states( Andhra Pradesh , Telangana , Tamil Nadu , Kerala ) they are called Revenue Divisions . It is headed by a sub-divisional magistrate (also known as assistant collector or assistant commissioner). In some states,
315-523: Is a high ratio of habitations to villages. A metro area usually comprises multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighbourhoods, townships, cities, exurbs, suburbs, counties, districts, states, and even nations like the eurodistricts. As social, economic, and political institutions have changed, metropolitan areas have become key economic and political regions. Metropolitan areas include one or more urban areas, as well as satellite cities, towns, and intervening rural areas that are socio-economically tied to
350-465: Is as under: Each zone has a zonal headquarters where a zonal cultural center has been established. Several states have membership in multiple zones, but no state subdivisions are utilized in the zonal divisions. In addition to promoting the culture of the zones they are responsible for, each zonal center also works to cross-promote and create exposure to other cultural zones of India by organizing functions and inviting artistes from other zones. India
385-579: Is composed of 28 states and eight union territories (including a national capital territory). The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India allows for the formation of autonomous administrative divisions which have been given autonomy within their respective states . Presently, 10 Autonomous Councils in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura are formed by virtue of the Sixth Schedule with
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#1732765703971420-641: Is generally agreed. This definition includes either some or all of the Deccan , in particular Maharashtra , and may or may not include some of the Indo-Gangetic Plain to the north. If Maharashtra is included "Central India" includes a good part of the western coast, including Mumbai , but the eastern coast is never included, as Odisha stretches down to meet Andhra Pradesh , and these are counted in Eastern and Southern India respectively (and none of
455-686: Is headed by a senior IAS officer called Divisional Commissioner . States like Kerala , Tamil Nadu , Goa , etc. don't have separate divisions or regions. Instead, they're directly split into districts for administrative purposes. As of September 2022, divisions exist in 18 of the 28 states and 3 of the 8 union territories. As of September 2022, there are a total of 102 divisions in India. Some states consist of regions, which have no official administrative governmental status. They are purely geographic regions; some correspond to historic countries, states or provinces. A region may comprise one or more divisions, averaging about three divisions per region. However,
490-412: Is often the next level of administrative division (for development purposes, whereas tehsil is next to the district for revenue purposes). Villages are often the lowest level of subdivisions in India. The governmental bodies at the village level are called Gram Panchayat , of which there were an estimated 256,000 in 2002. Each Gram Panchayat covers a large village or a cluster of smaller villages with
525-611: Is part of the Hindi Belt , and Modern Standard Hindi is the predominant language. Other Hindi belt languages such as Chhattisgarhi are also common regionally. Besides these Indo-Aryan languages , the Munda-family language Korku is also spoken in Central India. Administrative divisions of India The administrative divisions of India are subnational administrative units of India ; they are composed of
560-577: Is the current titular head. The Holkars were of Dhangar origin. Malhar Rao Holkar (1694–1766), a Maratha chief serving Peshwa Baji Rao , established the dynasty's rule over Indore . In the 1720s, he led Maratha armies in the Malwa region, and in 1733 was granted 9 parganas in the vicinity of Indore by the Peshwa. The township of Indore already existed as an independent principality established by Nandlal Mandloi of Kampel , Nandlal Mandloi
595-553: The Maratha Empire which were based in Central India. The territories that now comprises Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh were ruled by numerous princes who entered into subsidiary alliance with the British . After independence , the states of Madhya Bharat , Vindhya Pradesh , and Bhopal were merged into Madhya Pradesh in 1956. In 2000, the new state of Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh . The region
630-682: The British. At the conclusion of the Third Anglo-Maratha War , the Holkars lost much of their territory to the British and were incorporated into the British Raj as a princely state of the Central India Agency . The capital was shifted from Bhanpura to Indore. Malharrao Holkar III entered Indore on 2 November 1818. Tantia Jog was appointed his Diwan as he was a minor. As the old palace had been destroyed by
665-545: The Indian government includes both these states, plus Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand to the north, the last taking the region to the border with Tibet/China in the Himalayas . Another approach, historically more usual, is to base "Central India" on a north-south axis, making it the part of India that is south of North India and north of South India ; the definition of South India also varies hugely, but that of North India
700-609: The Maratha Confederacy began to weaken due to internal clashes, the Holkars declared themselves the rulers of Indore in Central India , existing as an autonomous member of the Maratha Confederacy until 1818. Later, their kingdom became a princely state under the British protection. HH Maharanidhiraja Rani Rajeshwar Sawai Shrimant Akhand Soubbagyavati Usha Devi Holkar, 15th Maharani of Indore
735-519: The Union of India. Indore became a district of Madhya Bharat state, which was merged into Madhya Pradesh state in 1956. On 22 April 1948 Yashwantrao Holkar II signed a covenant with the rulers of the adjoining princely states to form a new state known as Madhya Bharat. Madhya Bharat was created on 28 May 1948. On 16 June 1948, the princely state of Indore, which the House of Holkar ruled, merged with
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#1732765703971770-564: The advantage of preserving the common "UP" abbreviation for what was formerly the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh . This definition is rather similar to the territories, all princely states , grouped by the British Raj in 1854 as the Central India Agency (not to be confused with the Central Provinces , bordering this to the south). The Memoir of Central India by Sir John Malcolm , Governor of Bombay begins with
805-404: The army of Daulat Rao Scindia, a new palace was constructed in its place. Malharrao III was succeeded by Marthand Rao Holkar , who formally ascended to the throne on 17 January 1834. He was replaced by Hari Rao Holkar , nephew of Yashwantrao, who ascended to the throne on 17 April 1834. He adopted Khande Rao Holkar II on 2 July 1841 and died on 24 October 1843. Khanderao was formally installed as
840-536: The boundaries of the regions and the boundaries of the divisions do not always coincide exactly. So far there has been no movement to give the regions official administrative status. If this was to be done, it would presumably require that the boundaries of the regions be slightly modified so that they correspond exactly with their constituent districts. States and territories (or divisions) are further subdivided into districts ( zilla ), of which there are 797 (as of Nov 2023). A district in India, officially referred to as
875-615: The eastern coast is part of the Hindi Belt ). Another definition is "the hill-country south of the Ganges plain", but north of the Deccan. Some official divisions of the country do not recognise any "Central" division at all. Another definition, which treats the Deccan as a different unit, defines "Central India" as Madhya Pradesh and "eastern and central Uttar Pradesh ". "Madhya Pradesh" means "central province", while "Uttar Pradesh" means "northern province", though when adopted in 1950 it had
910-551: The kings failed, and he was approached to sign a peace treaty with the British. The Treaty of Rajghat, signed late December 1805, recognised him as a sovereign king. In 1811, the four-year-old Malhar Rao Holkar III succeeded Yashwantrao Holkar. His mother, Tulsabai Holkar, looked after the administration. However, with the help of Pathans , Pindaris , and the British, Dharama Kunwar and Balaram Seth plotted to imprison Tulsabai and Malharrao. When Tulsabai learnt about this, she beheaded both of them in 1815 and appointed Tantia Jog. As
945-915: The land and revenue department, headed by tehsildar ; and blocks come under the rural development department, headed by the block development officer and serve different government administrative functions over the same or similar geographical area. States use varying names for their sub-districts. Detailed information is as follows (as of 2018): Census of India (2011) states the following criteria in defining towns. They are: All areas under statutory urban administrative units like Municipal Corporation , #India , Cantonment Board , Notified Town Area Committee, Town Panchayat , etc., are known as Statutory Towns. Census towns are areas in India that have urban characteristics but are not defined as towns by state governments. They are governed by rural local bodies like gram panchayats, unlike statutory towns. The Community Development Block also known as CD Block or just block,
980-614: The post is designated as Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) or Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil). A district may have multiple sub-divisions, and each of those sub-divisions may contain multiple sub-districts ( tehsils / C.D. Blocks ) and municipalities. For example, in West Bengal , the Murshidabad district contains five sub-divisions ( mahakumas ) In some instances, tehsils (sub-districts) overlap with " blocks " (panchayat union blocks or community development blocks) and come under
1015-506: The predominance of Hindi . The Bhimbetka caves show evidence of paleolithic settlements in present-day Madhya Pradesh. Stone age tools have also been discovered at various places along the Narmada river valley. Chalcolithic sites have been discovered at a number of places including Eran , Kayatha, Maheshwar, Nagda, and Navdatoli. Rock shelters with cave paintings, the earliest of which can be dated to 30,000 BCE, have also been discovered at
1050-632: The rest being formed as a result of other legislation. There are 10 Autonomous District Councils created by the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India : Some states have created autonomous councils by an Act of their state legislatures. The two autonomous councils in the union territory of Ladakh was created by the state of Jammu and Kashmir (1952 – 2019). Many of the Indian states are subdivided into divisions, which have official administrative governmental status, and each division
1085-726: The ruler on 13 November 1843, but he suddenly died on 17 February 1844. Tukojirao Holkar II (1835–1886) was installed on the throne on 27 June 1844. During the Indian Rebellion of 1857 , he was loyal to the British East India Company . In October 1872, he appointed T. Madhava Rao as the Diwan of Indore. He died on 17 June 1886 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Shivajirao Holkar . Yashwantrao Holkar II (reigned 1926–1948) ruled Indore state until shortly after India's independence in 1947, when he acceded to
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1120-649: The six tiers of administrative divisions: The states of India have been grouped into six zones having an Advisory Council "to develop the habit of cooperative working" among these States. Zonal Councils were set up vide Part-III of the States Reorganisation Act , 1956. The North Eastern States' special problems are addressed by another statutory body - The North Eastern Council, created by the North Eastern Council Act, 1971. The present composition of each of these Zonal Councils
1155-495: The urban core, typically measured by commuting patterns. The metropolitan cities of India (more commonly called Tier-1 cities) are: Delhi , Mumbai , Kolkata , Chennai , Bangalore , Hyderabad , Ahmedabad and Pune . Holkars The Holkars (pronunciation: [ɦo(ː)ɭkəɾ] ) were the ruling house of the Indore State of the Maratha Confederacy , and earlier held the rank of Subahdar under Peshwa Baji Rao I . When
1190-937: Was born in the Chaundi village in Maharashtra . She moved the capital to Maheshwar , south of Indore on the Narmada River . Rani Ahilyabai was a prolific builder and patron of Hindu temples in Maheshwar and Indore. She also built temples at sacred sites outside her kingdom, from Dwarka in Gujarat east to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple at Varanasi on the Ganges . The adopted son of Malhar Rao Holkar, Tukoji Rao Holkar (r. 1795–1797) briefly succeeded Rani Ahilyabai upon her death. Tukoji Rao had been
1225-603: Was won by the Maratha force and allowed them to camp across the Khan River. In 1734, Malhar Rao established a camp later called Malharganj. In 1747, he began construction of his royal palace, the Rajwada . By the time of his death, he ruled much of Malwa, and was acknowledged as one of the five virtually independent rulers of the Maratha Empire . He was succeeded by Ahilyabai Holkar (r. 1767–1795), his daughter-in-law. She
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