#MaharashtraDay: Interesting Facts That You Must Know

May 1, 2018

Maharashtra-Facts1 — Image used for representation only

‘Back in the 17th century, a mighty Indian warrior and military genius strode across India, winning many battles against the Mughal Empire…

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is popularly considered the founder of the modern Marathi nation.

Maharashtra, the Land of the Marathas, has a rich historical background. Here are some interesting facts about this state that you ought to know:

Bombay Presidency (1843 to 1936) was one of the four governmental divisions of British India. In 1937, the Bombay Presidency became a regular province of British India.

After Independence in 1947, India retained the territory of Bombay Presidency (after Partition) to restructure it into Bombay State. On May 1,1960, Bombay State was split into two states (on linguistic lines) of Gujarat and Maharashtra.

After the restructure of Maharashtra as a state, there were huge celebrations welcoming the move. In Mumbai, fisherman, local trains, trams and mills sounded their horns and sirens to celebrate the landmark occasion.

State Seal of Maharashtra

The first well-known rulers of Maharashtra were the Satavahanas (230 BC-225 AD), who ruled for 400 years.

There are over 350 forts in Maharashtra depicting its historic past – the largest number in any state in India.

Mumbai-Thane Train

The first train in India ran between Mumbai and Thane on April 16, 1853. It was not only India’s but also the Asian continent’s first train.

It travelled 34 km from Bombay City (Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus) to Thana (now Thane)

The Mumbai Suburban Railway is an offshoot of the first railway to be built by the British in India, and is also the oldest railway system in Asia.

The railway station of Navapur is built in two states. One half is in Maharashtra and the other half is in Gujarat. Surprisingly, even a train which halts at Navapur Railway Station is stationed half in Maharashtra and half in Gujarat.

COEP

The College of Engineering Pune, established in 1854 (and affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University), is the third oldest engineering college in Asia after College of Engineering, Guindy (1794) and IIT, Roorkee (1847).

The University of Mumbai was established in 1857 and still continues to provide quality education to thousands of students all across the country.

Shani Shingnapur

It is strange but true. In the Shani Shingnapur village in Maharashtra, none of the house has doors.

This is because the villagers believe that whoever steals anything from this place will incur the wrath of the god Shani and will have to pay for their sins.

Maharashtra’s population of 119.56 million was more than that of Philippines (100.69 million) in 2015 and equivalent to 94.46% of Japan’s population (126.57 million, 2015) or 94.13% of Mexico’s population (127.02 million, 2015).

Another key fact is that Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Bihar states of India are also the three most populous country sub-divisions in the world or the world’s top 3 sub-national entities by population.

Maharashtra’s population is also more than the total population of four neighbouring countries of India combined – Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Sri Lanka (104 million, 2015).

Lavni

The Lavni is supposed to be the identity of Maharashtra. It is the most popular dance of the state. Women wearing nine-yard saris perform this dance.

Expressway

The Mumbai-Pune Expressway is India’s first six lane concrete, high speed, access controlled tolled expressway.

Lonar Lake

Lonar Lake, a salt water lake located at Lonar in Buldhana district, Maharashtra, was created by a meteor hitting the Earth.

It is the only known hyper velocity impact crater in basaltic rock anywhere on earth.

A salt water lake is a landlocked water body that has a concentration of salts.

Elephanta Caves

Presently, Maharashtra has four UNESCO world heritage sites – Elephanta Caves, the Ajanta-Ellora Caves in Aurangabad, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai and the Western Ghats