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Women in India

Name of the State

Description

  Jharkhand

The newly created Jharkhand state is situated in the southern part of Bihar on the north, West Bengal on the seat, Madhya Pradesh on the west and Orissa on the south.  Jharkhand accounts for the 45% of former Bihar’s geographical area.  About 28 per cent of the population of this area are tribal.

Jharkhand’s economy is sustained by mining and heavy industry.  It is India’s second most important source of coal, mining 26% of the total.  Jharkhand has rich reserves of iron ore and coal.  The largest four cities are Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Ranchi, and Bokaro Steel City.

Prominent tourist centers are Belta National Park (Palaman), Ichagarh Bird Sanctuary, Nehru Zoological Garden (Bokaro), Bhagwan Birsa Zoological Gardens (Ranchi), Tata Steel Zoo (Jamshedpur), Birsa Deer Sanctuary, Tatoloi hot water system (Dumka).
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  Karnataka

Area wise, Karnataka is the eighth largest state in India.  It was formerly known as Mysore.  On Nov.1, 1973 the name Mysore was changed to Karnataka.  Karnataka is situated on the western edge of the Deccan plateau and has for its neighbors Maharashtra and Goa on the north, Andhra Pradesh on the east and T. Nadu and Kerala on the south.  On the west, it open out on the Arabian Sea.

The two important river systems of the State are the Krishna and its tributaries (Bhima, Ghataprabha, Malaprabha, Tungabhadra and Vedavti) in the north, and the Kaveri and its tributaries (Hemavati, Shimsa, Akavati, Lakshmana Thirtha and Kabini) in the south.  Both these rivers flow eastward and fall into the Bay of Bengal, the Krishna passing through Andhra Pradesh and the Kaveri traversing Tamil Nadu.

Karnataka is predominantly rural and agrarian.  It accounts for 59% of the country’s coffee production and 47% of the country’s ragi production.  There are a number of big industries.  Machine tools, aircraft, electronic products, watches and telecommunication equipment are some of the items produced.  Important public sector units are Hindustan Aeronautics, Hindustan Machine Tools, Bharat Earth Movers, Bharat Electronics, Bharat Heavy Electricals, Indian Telephone Industries and National Aeronautical Laboratory.  Peenya, the biggest industrial estate in Karnataka, is one of the largest in the country.  The State accounts for the 85% of the raw silk produced in the country.

Bangalore, capital city of Karnataka, is the most favored IT destination in the country. It accounts for one-third of the total software exports in India.

A trip from Bangalore to Mysore, the capital of the Wodeyars, via Srirangapatnam, the capital of Tipu Sultan, is quite rewarding.

Mysore city is famous for the Dasara festival during September-October.  The famous Krishnaraja Sagar dam and Brindavan gardens are nearby. Among the national parks in Bandipur Wildlife Sanctuary, 80 km south of Mysore.  Belur, on the bank of river Yagachi, was once the flourishing capital of Hoysala Empire.  Sravanabelagola where the 18-metre statue of Gomateswara, stands in a Jain Pilgrim center.  Gerosppa (Jog Falls) is also world famous.
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  Kerala

Kerala is a small state, tucked away in the south west corner of India.  It represents only 1.18 percent of the total area of India but 3.43% of the total population of the country is in Kerala.

The State has developed commercial agriculture more than food crops.  Kerala accounts for 92% of India’s rubber, 70% of coconut, 60% of tapioca, and almost 100% of lemon grass oil.  Kerala is the single largest producer of a number of other crops like banana and ginger, besides tea and coffee in abundance.  Coir and cashew are two large industries.  Handloom and bamboo-based industries are well developed.  Kerala accounts for about a third of India’s marine exports.

Cochin International Airport Ltd. (Nedumbassery), India’s first private airport, was opened in June, ’99. Kerala is the first state to have public telephones in all its villages, with long-distance call facilities.  Kottayam, in April ’98, became the first district in India to complete computerization of all taluk offices connecting them to the district headquarters.

Kerala has the highest life expectancy, literacy, and the lowest infant mortality among Indian States.  According to a study, 8 of the 10 socially most advanced districts of India are in Kerala.

Kerala is a land of rivers and backwaters.  The backwaters form a specially attractive and economically valuable feature of Kerala.  They include lakes ocean inlets which stretch irregularly along the coast.  The biggest backwater is the Vembanad lake, some 200 sq km in area, which opens out into the Arabian Sea at Cochin port.  The Periyar, Pamba, Manimala, Achenkovi, Meenachil and Moovattupuzha rivers drain into this lake.  The other important backwaters are Veli, Kadhinamkulam, Anjengo (Anju Thengu), Edava, Nadayara, paravoor, Ashtamudi (Quilon), Kayamkulam, Kodungallur (Cranganore) and Chetuva.  

Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary at Thekkady and hill station Munnar are other attractions.  Sabarimala, abode of Lord Ayyappan, is a famous pilgrim centre in Pathanamthitta Dist.  Kalady is the birthplace of Sri Sankaracharya.  Guruvayur (Thrissur) has the famous Lord Krishna shrine. Kalamandalam, the renowned Kathakali Centre in is Thrissur Dist. 
Kochi (Cochin) - the major port of Kerala is known as the ‘Queen of the Arabian Sea’.  The beautiful Willington Island with the adjoining port is a great attraction. 

The pantomime dance-drama Kathakali performed by men, “the dance of the enchantress” Mohiniyattam performed by women and Thullal, the solo dance exposition are among the classical dance forms of Kerala.

A National Geographic Society publication has listed Kerala among the world’s 50 greatest name in the list being Taj Mahal.
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