Nagpur is the second capital and the third most populous city of the Indian state of Maharashtra It is the 13th most populous city and 13th largest urban agglomeration in India. Nagpur is the seat of the annual winter session of the Maharashtra state assembly, "Vidhan Sabha". It is a major commercial and political centre of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. In addition, the city derives political importance from being the headquarters for the Hindu nationalist organisation RSS and an important location for the Dalit Buddhist movement.



According to a survey by ABP News-Ipsos, Nagpur has been identified as the best city in India by topping the liveability, greenery, public transport, and health care indices. Nagpur has the best literacy rate,93.13%, among cities with more than 20 lakhs population in India. It is famous for the Nagpur Orange and is known as the "Orange City" for being a major trade centre of oranges cultivated in the region.



The city was founded by the Gonds and later became a part of the Maratha Empire under the royal Bhonsale dynasty. The British East India Company took over Nagpur in the 19th century and made it the capital of the Central Provinces and Berar. After the first reorganisation of states, the city lost its status as the capital. Following the informal "Nagpur Pact" between political leaders, it was made the second capital of Maharashtra.



History

In the 18th era, this city was created by leader of Gond tribes named Bhakt Buland( Raja Buland Shah) in the first half of the century. Human existence around present-day Nagpur city can be traced back 3000 years to the 8th century BCE. Mehir burial sites at Drugdhamna (near MHADA Colony) indicate that the megalithic culture existed around Nagpur and is still followed. The first reference to the name "Nagpur" is found in a 10th-century copper-plate inscription discovered at Devali in the neighbouring Wardha district.



The inscription is a record of grant of a village situated in the visaya (district) of Nagpura-Nandivardhana during the time of the Rastrakuta king Krsna III in the Saka year 862 (940 CE). Towards the end of the 3rd century, King Vindhyasakti is known to have ruled the Nagpur region. In the 4th century, the Vakataka Dynasty ruled over the Nagpur region and surrounding areas and had good relations with the Gupta Empire. The Vakataka king Prithvisena I moved his capital to Nagardhan (ancient name Nandivardhana), 28 kilometres (17 mi) from Nagpur.



After the Vakatakas, the region came under the rule of the Hindu kingdoms of the Badami Chalukyas, the Rashtrakutas, and finally the Yadavas. In 1296, Allauddin Khilji invaded the Yadava Kingdom after capturing Deogiri, after which the Tughlaq Dynasty came to power in 1317. In the 17th century, the Mughal Empire conquered the region. However, regional administration was carried out by the Gond kingdom of Deogarh-Nagpur in the Chhindwara district of the modern-day state of Madhya Pradesh.



Geography

Nagpur is located at the exact centre of the Indian peninsula. The city has a Zero Mile Stone locating the geographical centre of India, which was used by the British to measure all distances within the Indian-subcontinent.



Greater Nagpur Metropolitan Area

In 1999, the government of Maharashtra declared that the Nagpur Metropolitan Area shall comprise all of Nagpur city, Nagpur Gramin (rural areas near Nagpur), Hingna, Parseoni, Mauda and Kamptee Taluka and parts of Savner, Kalmeshwar, Umred and Kuhi. The boundaries of the "Metro region" around the municipal corporation limits of the city have been defined as per the notification.



Public Attractions

Nagpur is a major education centre in Central India. College of Agriculture, Nagpur is the oldest college in the country founded in 1906 by the then British Government. The college is held at the historic and heritage Victoria Building (built in 1856 for stay of Queen of England Her Highness Victoria at Nagpur) at Maharajbagh, Nagpur. Nagpur has 3 state universities. Founded in 1923, Nagpur University is one of the oldest in the country. The name has been officially changed to Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University Nagpur is the big centre for cricket in vidarbha because of vidarbha cricket association. The Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground (VCA) in Nagpur is one of the nine test venues in the country. A new stadium of VCA called Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium has been built on Wardha road with a seating capacity of 45,000 people at cost of INR75 crore (US$12 million) and was one of the venues for the 2011 Cricket World Cup. Ind vs SA match was played here. Nagpur has one more cricket stadium named as VCA, Civil Lines which also hosted international matches. Thus Nagpur is one of the few cities, having more than one international cricket stadium in India.