Vindhya Pradesh
Encyclopedia
Vindhya Pradesh is a former state
States and territories of India
India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...

 of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. It occupied an area of 23,603 sq. miles. It was created in 1948, shortly after Indian independence, from the territories of the princely state
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...

s in the eastern portion of the former Central India Agency
Central India Agency
The Central India Agency was a political office of the British Indian Empire, which covered the northern half of present-day Madhya Pradesh state. The Central India Agency was made up entirely of princely states, which were under native rulers...

. It was named for the Vindhya Range
Vindhya Range
The Vindhya Range is a range of older rounded mountains and hills in the west-central Indian subcontinent, which geographically separates the Indian subcontinent into northern India and Southern India.- Introduction :...

, which runs through the center of the province. The capital of the state was Rewa
Rewa, India
Rewa is formerly the capital of the princely state of Rewa and former state of Vindhya Pradesh in central India. It is an important city in the North Eastern part of Madhya Pradesh state of India bordering Allahabad, Mirzapur and Banda Districts of Uttar Pradesh and Satna and Sidhi Districts of...

. It lay between Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

 to the north and Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....

 to the south, and the enclave of Datia
Datia
Datia is a small rural town and a municipality in Datia district in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the administrative center of Datia District. It was formerly the seat of the eponymous princely state in the British Raj. Datia is situated near Gwalior and on the border with Uttar...

, which lay a short distance to the west, was surrounded by the state of Madhya Bharat
Madhya Bharat
Madhya Bharat , also known as Malwa Union was an Indian state in west-central India, created on 28 May 1948 from twenty-five princely states which until 1947 had been part of the Central India Agency, with Jivaji Rao Scindia as its Rajpramukh...

.

History

Vindhya Pradesh state was formed on 12 March 1948 and the newly formed state was inaugurated on 4 April 1948. Following 35 princely states were merged to form Vindhya Pradesh state:
  1. Rewa,
  2. Panna,
  3. Datia,
  4. Orchha,
  5. Ajaygarh,
  6. Baonee,
  7. Baraundha,
  8. Bijawar,
  9. Chhatarpur,
  10. Charkharee,
  11. Maihar,
  12. Nagod,
  13. Samthar,
  14. Alipura,
  15. Banka Paharee,
  16. Beri,
  17. Maisundha,
  18. Baihath,
  19. Bijona,
  20. Dhukhai,
  21. Garhaulee,
  22. Gaurihar,
  23. Jaso,
  24. Jagnee,
  25. Khaniadhana,
  26. Kamtarajaula,
  27. Kothi,
  28. Lugasee,
  29. Naigwan rewai,
  30. Pahraa,
  31. Paldeo,
  32. Sareela,
  33. Sohawal,
  34. Taraun Pathraulee,
  35. Tauree Fatehpur.


On 25 January 1950, 10 erstwhile princely states, namely, Baihath, Banka Paharee, Baonee, Beri, Bijona, Charkharee, Jagnee, Samthar, Sareela and Tauree Fatehpur were transferred to Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

 and Madhya Bharat
Madhya Bharat
Madhya Bharat , also known as Malwa Union was an Indian state in west-central India, created on 28 May 1948 from twenty-five princely states which until 1947 had been part of the Central India Agency, with Jivaji Rao Scindia as its Rajpramukh...

. Vindhya Pradesh, together with the states of Madhya Bharat
Madhya Bharat
Madhya Bharat , also known as Malwa Union was an Indian state in west-central India, created on 28 May 1948 from twenty-five princely states which until 1947 had been part of the Central India Agency, with Jivaji Rao Scindia as its Rajpramukh...

 and Bhopal State
Bhopal State (1949-1956)
Bhopal was the name of state of India, which existed from 1949 to 1956. The state evolved out of the princely state of Bhopal, and was merged with neighboring states to form Madhya Pradesh in 1956. Shankar Dayal Sharma served as chief minister of Bhopal state from 1952 to 1956.- History :Before the...

, was merged into Madhya Pradesh on November 1, 1956.

Divisions

After formation, the state was divided in to two Divisions, which were further divided in to 8 districts.

Bundelkhand Division with its headquarters at Nowgaon
Nowgaon
Nowgaon is a city and a municipality in Chhatarpur district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.-Demographics:As of the 2001 India census, Nowgaon had a population of 33,024. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Nowgaon has an average literacy rate of 72%, higher than the...

 comprised the following 4 districts:
  1. Panna district
    Panna District
    Panna district is a district of the Sagar Division, within the Madhya Pradesh state in central India. The town of Panna is the district headquarter.-History:...

  2. Chhatarpur district
    Chhatarpur District
    Chhatarpur District is a district of Madhya Pradesh state of central India. The town of Chhatarpur is the district headquarters.-Geography:Chattarpur district located at 24.06° & 25.20°N 78.59° & 80.26° E respectively...

  3. Tikamgarh district
    Tikamgarh District
    Tikamgarh district is one of the 50 districts of Madhya Pradesh state in central India. Tikamgarh town is the district headquarters. The district is part of Sagar Division....

  4. Datia district
    Datia District
    Datia District is in Gwalior Division in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The town of Datia is the district headquarters.-Geography:The district has an area of 2,038 km², and a population 627,818 . The population of Datia District increased by 26% from 1981 to 1991, and by 22% from 1991 to...



Baghelkhand Division with its headquarters at Rewa
Rewa
Rewa may refer to:*Rewa Province, Fiji*Rewa, Poland*Rewa's Village, a community project in Kerikeri, New Zealand, named after a Maori chief*Rewa F.C...

 comprised the following 4 districts:
  1. Rewa district
    Rewa District
    Rewa District is a district of Madhya Pradesh state in central India. The city Rewa is the district headquarters. Rewa is also known as land of white tigers.-Geography:...

  2. Satna district
    Satna District
    Satna District , was formed in 1948, is a district of Madhya Pradesh state in central India. The town of Satna is the district headquarters. The district has an area of 7,502 km², and a population of 1,868,648 , 20.63% of which was urban...

  3. Sidhi district
    Sidhi District
    Sidhi district is one of the districts of Madhya Pradesh state of India. The town of Sidhi is the district headquarters. The district is part of Rewa Division.-History:...

  4. Shahdol district
    Shahdol District
    Shahdol District is a district of Madhya Pradesh state in central India. With a total area of 5,671 square kilometers and a population of 908,148. Shahdol is an important district of Madhya Pradesh. The town of Shahdol is the district headquarters. The district is also a Division...


Politics

The nominal heads of the state were the Rajpramukh
Rajpramukh
Rajpramukh was an administrative title in India which existed from India's independence in 1947 until 1956. Rajpramukhs were the appointed governors of certain of India's provinces and states....

 from 1948–49, the Chief Commissioner from 1949-March, 1952 and the Lieutenant Governor from March, 1952-31 October 1956. The state had a Vidhan Sabha
Vidhan Sabha
The Vidhan Sabha or the Legislative Assembly is the lower house or the sole house of the provincial legislature in the different states of India. The same name is also used for the lower house of the legislatures for two of the union territories, Delhi and Pondicherry...

 comprising 60 members elected from 48 constituencies (36 single-member and 12 double-member). There were 4 Lok Sabha
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...

 constituencies in the state (2 single-member and 2 double-member).

Following the formation of the state in 1948, Martand Singh, the last ruler of the princely state of Rewa became the Rajpramukh
Rajpramukh
Rajpramukh was an administrative title in India which existed from India's independence in 1947 until 1956. Rajpramukhs were the appointed governors of certain of India's provinces and states....

 and Yadvendra Singh, the last ruler of the princely state of Panna became the Uparajpramukh. Initially Awadhesh Pratap Singh
Awadhesh Pratap Singh
Captain Kunwar Awadhesh Pratap Singh was a noted Indian politician and Indian independence activist. He was born in October 1888. He was a member of the Indian National Congress political party in Madhya Pradesh...

 became the Chief Minister of the Baghelkhand Division and Kamta Prasad Saxena became the Chief Minister of the Bundelkhand Division but soon Awadhesh Pratap Singh became the Chief Minister of the whole state. After he resigned on 14 April 1949, N.B. Bonerji, then Chief Commissioner took over on 15 April 1949. He was succeeded by S. N. Mehta. In the first general election in 1951, the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...

 won 40 seats and the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (India)
Socialist Party has been the name of several political parties in India, all of which have their roots in the Congress Socialist Party formed during the freedom struggle...

 won 11 seats. Shambhunath Shukla of Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...

became the Chief Minister of the state on 13 March 1952. He was in office till 31 October 1956.

Recent movement for separate state

A demand for "Vindhya Pradesh" has been raised by the people from the region. After the merger with Madhya Pradesh in 1956, thousands of people had protested the move and were jailed. Many lost their lives. On 10 March 2000, the state assembly unanimously adopted the resolution to carve out a Vindhya state. The resolution had been forwarded to the central government in New Delhi and the centre is yet to make a decision on this.
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