Madhya Pradesh

The Parshvanatha Temple in the central Indian village of Khajurāho in Madhya Pradesh. It is a Jain temple, built in the 10th century.

State of central India, the second largest of the Indian states; area 296,480 sq km/114,472 sq mi; population (2001 est) 60,385,100. The capital is Bhopal, and other towns and cities are Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, and Ujjain. The state is land-locked and mainly upland. The Narmada River originates in the famous holy place, Amarkantaka, in the Shahdol district, and flows westward where it eventually falls into the Arabian sea. Vindhya and Satpura mountain ranges (rising to 600 m/2,000 ft) are found in the state, which is heavily forested. Industries include textiles, engineering, iron ore, steel (at Bhilai complex), coal, bauxite, manganese, paper, aluminium, limestone, diamonds, and cement. Hydroelectric power comes from the Chambal and Narmada rivers. Main agricultural products include cotton, millet, wheat, oilseed, sugar, groundnuts, and soya.

The language in the state is predominantly Hindi, and Marathi is also spoken. The state was formed in 1950 from the former British province of Central Provinces and Berar and the princely states of Makrai and Chhattisgarh. It lost some southwestern districts in 1956, including Nagpur, and absorbed Bhopal, Madhya Bharat, and Vindhya Pradesh. As part of the Madhya Pradesh Reorganization Act, the region was split in November 2000 to form the new state of Chhattisgarh.

Communications and development The communications infrastructure has been mainly limited to the western north-south corridor, hindering the fuller exploitation of the state's considerable mineral reserves. There is potential for further hydroelectricity generation, and irrigation schemes to increase agricultural production.