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Uttar Pradesh
Area : 2,40,928 sq km
Population : 166,052,859
Capital : Lucknow
Principal Languages : Hindi and Urdu
History and Geography
The history of the State of Uttar Pradesh is very
ancient and interesting. It is recognised in the later
Vedic Age as Brahmarshi Desha or Madhya Desha. Many
great sages of the Vedic times like Bharadwaja, Gautam,
Yagyavalkya, Vasishta, Vishwamitra and Valmiki
flourished in this state. Several sacred books of the
Aryans were also composed here. Two great epics of
India, Ramayana and Mahabharata, appear to have been
inspired by Uttar Pradesh.
In the sixth century BC, Uttar Pradesh was associated
with two new religions - Jainism and Buddhism. It was at
Sarnath that Buddha preached his first sermon and laid
the foundations of his order, and it was in Kushinagar
in Uttar Pradesh, where Buddha breathed his last.
Several centres in Uttar Pradesh like Ayodhya, Prayag,
Varanasi and Mathura became reputed centres of learning.
In the medieval period, Uttar Pradesh passed under
Muslim rule and led the way to new synthesis of Hindu
and Islamic cultures. Ramananda and his Muslim disciple
Kabir, Tulsidas, Surdas and many other intellectuals
contributed to the growth of Hindi and other languages.
Uttar Pradesh preserved its intellectual excellency even
under the British administration. The British combined
Agra and Oudh into one province, and called it United
Provinces of Agra and Oudh. The name was shortened to
the United Provinces in 1935. In January 1950, the
United Provinces was renamed as Uttar Pradesh.
The State is bounded by Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh
in the north, Haryana in the west, Madhya Pradesh in the
south, and Bihar in the east. Uttar Pradesh can be
divided into two distinct regions, (i) Southern hills
and (ii) Gangetic plain.
Agriculture
Agriculture is the main occupation of 66 per cent of
the population of the state. The net cultivated area in
the state is 167.50 lakh hectares. In the year 2003-04
the state produced 255.67 lakh metric tonnes of wheat,
130.22 lakh metric tonnes of rice, 23.80 lakh metric
tonnes of pulses and 6.44 lakh metric tonnes of oilseeds
and 1127.54 lakh tonnes sugar cane. Total foodgrains
production during 2003-2004 was 442.58 lakh metric
tonnes.
Industry and Minerals
During the year 2004-2005 there were 521835
small-scale industrial units involving a total
investment of Rs. 5131 crore and employment
opportunities for 2001000 persons. About 45.51 lakh
tonnes of sugar was produced in the state during the
year 2003-2004. There were 68 textile units. Thirty-two
automobile units with an investment of Rs. 5,740 crore
provided jobs to 20280 persons.
It is planned to develop 102 sectors of New Okhla
Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA) by th year
2011. The Authority includes industrial sectors,housing
sectors,group housing sectors, residential buildings,
commercial assets and institutional sectors. Steps have
been taken to develop other industrial areas in the
state on the pattern of Noida and Greater Noida. A
Software Technology Park has been set up in Kanpur while
five more Software Parks are proposed to be set up.
Under the public sector, mining of limestone, magnesite,
phosphate, dolomite and silicon-sand is carried out. The
bulk minor and some of the major minerals like
limestone, silica-sand, pyrophyllite and diaspore is
mostly with the private sector. Important based
industries include large cement plants in Sonebhadra.
Irrigation and Power
UP Power Corporation, UP State Power Generation and
UP Hydel Power Corporation had been formed by
reorganising UP State Electricity Board on 14 January
2000. During 2004-05 an expenditure of Rs 98715 crore
was made to raise the irrigation potential to a level of
319.17 lakh hectares. At the time of inception the total
installed capacity of UPSEB, including thermal and
hydro, was 2,635 MW which has now been raised to 4621
MW.
Transport
Roads : The total road length in the State is
1,04,137 km. This includes 3,912 km of national
highways, 9,098 km of state highways, 87,248 km of
important district roads, 91,127 km of other district
roads, and 72,931 km of rural roads.
Railways : Lucknow is the main junction of the
northern network. Other important railway junctions are
Agra, Kanpur, Allahabad, Mughalsarai, Jhansi, Moradabad,
Varanasi, Tundla, Gorakhpur, Gonda, Faizabad, Bareilly
and Sitapur.
Aviation : There are airports at Lucknow, Kanpur,
Varanasi, Allahabad, Agra, Jhansi, Bareilly, Hindon
(Ghaziabad), Gorakhpur, Sarsawa (Saharanpur), and
Fursatganj (Rae-Bareli).
Festivals
The biggest congregation, perhaps of the world,
Kumbha Mela is held at Allahabad every twelfth year and
Ardh kumbh Mela every sixth year. Magh Mela is also held
at Allahabad in January when the people come in large
number to have a dip in the holy Sangam. Among other
fairs is the fortnight long Jhoola fair of Mathura,
Vrindavan and Ayodhya, when dols are placed in gold and
silver jhoolas or cradles. A dip in the Ganga on Kartik
Poornamasi is supposed to be the holiest and there are
big congregations at arhmukteshwar, Soran, Rajghat,
kakora, Bithur, Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi and Ayodhya.
A famous cattle fair is held at Bateswar in Agra
district. Dewa in Barabanki district has became famous
because of the Muslim saint Waris Ali Shah. Besides,
important festivals of the Hindus, Muslims, etc., are
widely celebrated in the state.
Tourist Centres
Uttar Pradesh has varied attractions for all kinds of
tourists. Besides ancient places of pilgrimage like
Varanasi, Vindhyachal, Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, Prayag,
Naimisharanya, Mathura, Vrindavan, Dewa Sharief, Dargah
of Sheikh Saleem Chishti in Fatehpur Sikri, Sarnath,
Shravasti, Kushinagar, Sankisa, Kampil, Piprahwa and
Kaushambi, places like Agra, Ayodhya, Sarnath, Varanasi,
Lucknow, Jhansi, Gorakhpur, Jaunpur, Kannauj, Mahoba,
Devgarh, Bithur, and Vindhyachal have rich treasures of
Hindu and Islamic architecture and culture. |
