Selected State  >>  RAJASTHAN

Rajasthan is a state in the northwest of India.  It is the second largest state in the country.  Rajasthan means "the land of the rajahs (or kings)".  It was also called Rajputana, "the country of the Rajputs" (a group of clans).  The state has a long border with Pakistan, and contains a large area of desert. 
People & Government   Economy
Transportation & Communication Land
Climate History

City  
Ajmer           Alwar   Badmer  Bikaner
Bundi    Banswara   Bharatpur Chittorgarh
Jaisalmer    Dungarpur  Jaipur Jodhpur
Mt. Abu          Kumbhalgarh Kota  Sikar
Nagaur      Shekhawati Udaipur Swaimadhpur
Pushkar   Dhaulpur Sirohi Dausa
Churu    Baran Pali Rajasmand
Jalor Jhalwar Tonk Jhunjunun
Karauli Bhilwara

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People and Government  

People:  For Rajasthan's total population, see the Facts in brief table with this article.  Today, tribal people make up more than 12 per cent of the state population.  The main tribes are the Bhils and Minas.  The smaller ones include the Sahariyas, the Damariyas, the Garasias, the Gadia Lohars, and the Bhil-Minas.  The tribes share common characteristics, which seem to link their pasts together.  But differences in costumes, jewellery, gods, and festivals set them apart from one another.  

The Bhils form an important group in the southern part of the state around Dungapur, Udaipur, and Chitorgarh.  Their stronghold is Banswara.  Their name derives from bil (bow) which describes their original talent and strength.  The Hindu epic the Mahabharata mentions the Bhils and their archery skills.  

The Minas are Rajasthan's largest and most widely spread tribal group.  In the north, they inhabit the Sikar belt of Shekhavati.  In the southwest, the Mina settlements mix with the Bhils of Bundi-Kota-Jhalawar.  

The Gadia Lohars are nomadic blacksmiths, who travel from place to place.  Their name derives from their beautiful gadis (bullock carts).  The Garasias are probably descendants of the Chauhan Rajputs of Jalore in southwest Rajasthan.  The Sahariyas are jungle dwellers.  

The Rajputs are an important section of the population, though they only represent a small percentage of the people of the state.  The Rajputs claim to be the original kshatriyas (warriors) of the ancient varna system (Hindu division of society).  They are probably descendants of the Huns and Scythians who entered India in the 500's.  The Jats are people living in the north and west of Rajasthan and are primarily an agricultural people.  They are prominent in Bharatpur and Dholpur.  The Gujars are mostly cattle breeders and are found in the eastern part of the state.  The Kathodis inhabit the forest tract of the Aravalli range.  The Sahariyas lead a primitive life while the Rebaris are cattle breeders.  

The state's main language is Rajasthani, which comprises a number of Indo-Aryan dialects.  The four most important of these are Marwari (west), Jaipuri (east), Malwi (southeast) and Mewati (northwest).  Hindi is rapidly replacing Rajasthani as the main language.  

Hinduism is the religion of most people in Rajasthan.  Jainism is also significant.  Islam extended into the region with the conquest by Ajmer in the 1100's, and is still widely practiced.  Sikhs and Christians form extremely small minorities.  

Rajasthan is one of the least densely populated states in India.  It is also one of the poorest.  Large numbers of people, especially women, are unable to read or write.  

The state's economy depends mainly on agriculture.  However, the state also has good mineral resources.  Tourism makes a large contribution to the regional economy.  

Government:  The head of state is the governor, who is appointed by the president of India for a five-year term.  The legislative assembly in Jaipur, the state capital, has 200 members.  They include representatives of the tribal groups.  

Rajasthan has 25 elected members of the Lok Sabha (lower house) and 10 nominated representatives in the Rajya Sabha (upper house) of the Indian national parliament.  

The state is divided into 27 districts.  The district collector is the principal administrator and coordinates the activities of various departments.  Rajasthan was the first state to experiment with the panchayat raj (village council) system of government.

 

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Economy   

Agriculture:  The total cultivated area of Rajasthan is about 19 million hectares, of which only about 20 per cent is irrigated.  Most of the farmed area depends on rainfall, which is low and unreliable.  In the drier areas, the main crops are bajra (millet), oilseeds, tobacco, and wheat.  Elsewhere, jowar (sorghum), maize, and pulses, such as peas, beans, and gram (lentils) are grown.  Cotton is an important cash crop.  

Rajasthan receives water from the Punjab rivers in the west and the Narmada in the south.  The Gurgaon canal supplies water from Haryana and the Agra canal brings water from Uttar Pradesh.  The state shares the Bhakra Dam project with Punjab.  The Chambal Valley project (Do Kota Barrage and Rana Pratap Sagar) is shared with Madhya Pradesh.  The largest canal within the state is the Indira Gandhi (formerly Rajasthan) Canal.  

Farmers graze livestock in some areas that are too dry for cultivation.  Rajasthan has a large livestock population, including camels.  It is India's largest wool producing state.  

Manufacturing:  The main products are dyes, textiles, rugs and woollen goods, and vegetable oil.  Heavy industry includes the construction of railway rolling stock, and copper and zinc smelting.  The chemical industry produces calcium carbides, caustic soda, and sulphuric acid.  Chemical plants also manufacture fertilizers, insecticides, and pesticides.  There is a rapidly expanding light industry, which includes assembling television sets.  Precision instruments are manufactured at Kota.  The main industrial complexes are at Jaipur, Kota, Udaipur, and Bhilwara.  

Traditional handicrafts include pottery, jewellery, marble work, embossed brass, block printing, embroidery, and decorative painting.  They are now popular with foreign buyers.  

Mining:  Rajasthan accounts for the country's entire output of emeralds, garnets, and zinc concentrates.  It also produces about 84 per cent of India's asbestos, 68 per cent of its feldspar, 94 per cent of its gypsum, 12 per cent of its mica, and 76 per cent of its silver ore.  The state has rich salt deposits at Sambhar and other places.  There are copper mines at Khetri and Dariba.  The white marble used to build the Taj Mahal was mined at Makrana near Jodhpur. 

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Transportation and Communication

Rajasthan has about 50,000 kilometres of road, of which 15,000 kilometres is national highway.  The rail system extends to Jaisalmer and Barmer on the edge of the Thar desert and provides good connections with Bombay and Delhi.  It also serves the neighbouring states of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.  Ajmer, Bikaner, Jodhpur, Jaipur, and Kota are the main junctions.  Air services link the major centres and connect them with the neighbouring states.  They also serve Bombay and Delhi.  

Tourism:  Rajasthan is one of India's most popular tourist destinations.  Its attractions include temples, forts, palaces, and nature reserves.  There are camel safaris from Jaisalmer.  Visitors can also travel on the Palace on Wheels luxury train, which was once the property of various princes. 

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Land                          

Location and Description:  Rajasthan shares an international border on the west and northwest with Pakistan.  Punjab and Haryana border it to the north, Uttar Pradesh to the east, Madhya Pradesh to the east and southeast, and Gujarat to the south and southwest.  South of Banswara, Rajasthan lies within the Tropic of Cancer.  

Land Features:  The Aravalli hills run from Mount Abu in the southwest to Khetri and beyond in the northeast.  They divide the state in half and rise to 1,700 metres.  To the northwest is the Thar desert.  This region is arid, sandy, and far less productive than the land to the southeast.  Around Mewar the land is hilly.  It is flat around Bharatpur and forms part of the Jumna (Yamuna) drainage basin.  There is a plateau near Kota and Bundi.  

The soils in the northwest of the state are dry, and sandy.  They are more fertile on the eastern and northeastern margins.  In Jaipur and Alwar, in the centre and west of the state, the soils are sandy and loamy.  Only around Kota and Bundi are there good, black, deep, and well drained soils. 

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Climate    

The climate varies widely in Rajasthan.  Except in the hills, the summer temperatures are extremely high, with a maximum of 46 °C and an average from May to August of 38 °C. The daily summer minimum is 25 °C. In winter, the daily maximum in most low-lying areas is between 22 and 28 °C, and the minimum between 8 and 14 °C. 

Rainfall varies over the state.  Parts of the western desert receive only 10 centimetres a year.  Jaisalmer has an annual rainfall of 21 centimetres, 90 per cent of which falls during the monsoon, between July and September.  Jaipur receives 65 centimetres of rain annually, 80 per cent of which falls during the monsoon.  Jodhpur, midway between these two places has 38 centimetres of rainfall a year.  The Aravalli Range receives a higher rainfall and experiences lower temperatures throughout the year.  To the southwest there is a higher rainfall and high humidity.  

Plants and Animals:  The natural vegetation of most of the state is scrub jungle.  Trees are scarce, except in well wooded areas such as Kumbhalgarh in the southeast and in the eastern parts of the state.  Tamarisk and arid zone plants grow in the west. 

The natural jungle is ideal territory for chital (small spotted deer), leopards, sambhar (large brown deer), sloth bear, and tigers.  These animals are now only rarely found outside game reserves.  Black buck, nilgai (blue bulls), and ravine deer are fairly numerous on the plains.  

The birdlife of the region is varied.  Bikaner is famous for its sand grouse.  Bharatpur and other low-lying swampy areas in the southeast of the state are popular winter grounds for migratory birds from Siberia and northern Europe.  

Rivers and Lakes:  The Aravalli hills form the watershed (the divide between two river systems).  The only major river in the northwest is the Luni, which rises in the Pushkar Valley and flows southwest to the Rann of Kutch.  All the other rivers have their source in the Aravalli hills and flow to the north before joining the Luni.  On the southern side of the range the Bandi, Dhund, and Mashi rivers rise between Kishangarh and Jaipur and join the Berach, flowing northeast from Eklingi to form the Banas River.  The Banas is the main tributary of the Chambal River.  Farther north, the Banganga flows eastward from its source near Jaipur to join the Jumna River.  

Nearly all the lakes in the state are artificial reservoirs.  The most famous is the Pichola Lake at Udaipur, in the middle of which is the former summer palace of the Maharanas.  It is now a luxury hotel. 

 

 

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History                                                  

Prehistoric human groups lived along the Banas River 100,000 years ago.  Archaeologists have found evidence of the Harappan and post-Harappan cultures, which flourished around 2500 B.C. Some of the pottery at Kali Banga dates from 2700 B.C. 

Rock inscriptions discovered near Bairat reveal that the Maurya emperor Asoka controlled part of the state in about 250 B.C. The Mauryas were followed by the Bactrian Greeks, the Scythians, the Guptas, and the Huns.  

Rajput dynasties rose to political supremacy between the 600's and the 1200's.  The Rajputs were a heroic warrior caste who lived by a strict code of chivalry and ritual.  Upon the arrival of Islam in India, the Rajasthan region became a Hindu stronghold.  Rajput strength reached its peak in the early 1500's before the Mughal Babur defeated armies of Rajputana.  

Akbar, in a move to make peace with the Rajasthanis, married a Rajput princess and enlisted the services of Rajput nobles in his imperial service.  Those kings who did not serve Akbar were conquered.  

In the 1700's, Marathas, Pathans, and Pindaries all threatened Rajasthan.  The Rajput rulers appealed for aid to the British East India Company.  In the 1800's, British influence gradually extended into the state.  The British allowed the princes of the independent states to run the internal affairs of their territories as they wished.  But a British representative controlled external matters.  He was responsible to the political officer for the whole province, who in turn answered to the governor.  British troops helped the native rulers put down peasant rebellions during the period.  

Ajmer became one of the centres of nationalist activity.  When India gained independence in 1947, Rajasthan was an important part of the newly independent country.  The princes gradually surrendered their powers to the central government and became ordinary citizens in 1971.  The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) controlled the state in the early 1990's. 

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