Chhattisgarh
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INDIA 2012
A REFERENCE ANNUAL
Compiled by
RESEARCH, REFERENCE AND TRAINING DIVISION
PUBLICATIONS DIVISION
MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
CHHATTISGARH
Area : 1,36,034 sq km
Population : 2,55,40,196 (Census 2011) Capital : Raipur
Principal Language : Hindi
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY
Chhattisgarh, carved out of Madhya Pradesh came into being on 1 November 2000 as the 26th State of the Union. It fulfils the long-cherished demand of the people. In ancient times the region was known as Dakshin-Kausal. This finds mention in Ramayana and Mahabharata also. Between the sixth and twelfth centuries Sarabhpurias, Panduavanshi, Somvanshi, Kalchuri and Nagvanshi rulers dominated this region. Kalchuris ruled in Chhattisgarh from 980 to 1791 AD. With the advent of the British in 1845, Raipur gained prominence instead of capital Ratanpur. In 1904 Sambalpur was transferred to Orissa and estates of Sarguja were transferred from Bengal to Chhattisgarh.
Chhattisgarh is bounded by southern Jharkhand and Orissa in the east, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra in the west, Uttar Pradesh and western Jharkhand in the north and Andhra Pradesh in the south. Areawise Chhattisgarh is the ninth largest state and population-wise it is seventeenth populous state of the nation.
AGRICULTURE
Agriculture and allied activities account for nearly 80 per cent of the workforce in the state. Out of the geographical area 13,790 thousand hectare, gross cropped area is about 35 per cent. Kharif is the main cropping season. Rice is the predominant crop of the state; other important crops are maize, Soyabean, niger, groundnut and pulses. The State has one of the biggest collections of rice germplasm. Horticulture crop are grown in an area of about 540 thousand hectares. Chhattisgarh was recently awarded "Krishi Karman Award" for first position in Paddy Production in India for the year 2010-11. Paddy Production increased from 50 lakh MT to 91 lakh MT in 2011.
IRRIGATION AND POWER
When the state came into being, the total irrigation capacity was 13.28 lakh hectares which has now increased to 18.09 lakh hectare. Major completed projects are Mahandai Reservoir project, Hasdeo Bango Project, Tandula, Kodar, Jonk D/S, Kharung, Maniyari Tank and Pairy (Sikasar) project, Jonk project, Kharang project, Mariyani project.
Installed capacity of state sector is 1924.70 MW out of which 1786 MW is thermal and 138.7 MW is hydro electric. By December 2012 Power from 500 MW Korba west TPS and 1000 MW Madwa TPS shall be available. In Chhattisgarh 97% of villages and 67.5% of Majra/Tola (hamlets) are electrified. Per capita electricity consumption has increased from 317 unit in 2001 to 1547 units in 2011.
MINERAL RESOURCES
Chhattisgarh has the perfect geological set up to host a number of economically crucial minerals. Large deposits of coal, iron ore, limestone, bauxite and dolomite are found in various parts of the state. Districts of North Chhattisgarh such as Surguja, Raigarh, Koriya and Bilaspur are known for huge coal deposits. The state has 46682 million tones reserve in coal. In 2009-10 the state produced 110 million tones of coal. In fact Chhattisgarh ranks first among states in production of coal. The rich deposits of coal has attracted huge investment in power sector and in the coming years the state will emerge as major power supplier to the national grid.
INDUSTRY
The economy of Chhattisgarh is largely natural resource driven and it leverages the state's rich mineral resources. The key sectors where Chhattisgarh has a competitive advantage include cement, mining, steel, aluminium and power. One of the most of mineral-rich states in India, Chhattisgarh provides a lucrative opportunity for cement production at the most competitive prices.
TRANSPORT
==ROADS==: The total length of the roads in the State under PWD is 33448.80 kms. The length of National Highway is 2226 kms; State highways 5240 kms; 10,539.80 kms; main district roads; and 15443 kms other district and rural roads. The length of roads in Chhattisgarh has increased from 17.75 kms to 21.40 kms per 100 kms. 984 kms of roads have been constructed and the work of 265 km roads is in progress under Chhattisgarh State Road Development Project.
18,906 kms of roads have been constructed under Pradhan Mantri Grameen Sadak Yojna. To connect interior areas of State, not covered under PMGSY, State Government has started Mukhya Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana and 4000 kms of roads worth Rs. 2000 crores is under construction.
RAILWAYS : Raipur, Bilaspur, Durg, Rajnandgaon, Raigarh and Korba are important railway stations.
TOURIST CENTRES
Chhattisgarh situated in the heart of India, is endowed with a rich cultural heritage and attractive natural diversity. The State is full of ancient monuments, rare wildlife species, carved temples, Buddhist sites, palaces, water falls, caves, rock paintings and hill plateaus. Bastar, with its unique cultural and ecological identity; Chitrakote Falls, a spot where the river Indravati has an abrupt fall of 96 ft in the form of steps; Keshkal valley; Kangerghati National Park; Kailash caves; Sita Bongara and Kutumbsar caves are rich in natural beauty. In Bilaspur, Mahamaya temple at Ratanpur, Bambleshwari Devi Temple at Dongargarh, Danteshwari Devi Temple at Dantewada, Sirpur an important centre of Buddhism from 6-10th century, Champaran the birth place of Mahaprabhu Vallabhacharya, Khutaghat waterfall, Dindneswari Devi temple of Malhar and the Achanakmar sanctuary, Udanti sanctuary near Raipur, Pali and Kendai waterfall of Korba district are important places of tourist interest. The Sabari temple of Kharod Janjgir-Champa; Nar Narayan temple of Sheorinarayan; Vishnu Temple of Janjgir are important religious places. The state has set up a State Tourism Promoting Board as the nodal agency for the sustained development of interrelated sectors in tourism.
GOVERNMENT
Governor : Shri Shekhar Dutt
Chief Secretary : Shri P. Joy Oommeh
Chief Minister : Dr. Raman Singh
Jurisdiction of : Chhattisgarh High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS
S.No. District Area (in sq km) Population Headquarters
(prov. census 2011)
1 Bastar 10,376 14,11,644 Jagdalpur
2 Bilaspur 8,569 26,62,077 Bilaspur
3 Durg 8,702 33,43,079 Durg
4 Raigarh 6,528 14,93,627 Raigarh
5 Raipur 13,445 40,62,160 Raipur
6 Rajnandgaon 8,023 13,37,520 Rajnandgaon
7 Sarguja 16,034 23,61,329 Sarguja
8 Koria 5,978 6,59,039 Baikunthpur
9 Jashpur 6,457 8,52,043 Jashpur
10 Janjgir-Champa 4,467 16,20,632 Janjgir
11 Korba 5,769 12,06,563 Korba
12 Kanker 6,434 7,48,593 Kanker
13 Dantewada 9,055 5,32,791 Dantewada
14 Mahasamund 4,963 10,32,275 Mahasamund
15 Dhamatari 4,081 7,99,199 Dhamtari
16 Kabirdham 3,958 8,22,239 Kawardha
17 Narayanpur 6,640 1,40,206 Narayanpur
18 Bijapur 6,555 2,55,180 Bijapur
Developmental indicators
2015-21
From: [From the archives, Oct 10, 2023: The Times of India]
See graphic:
Developmental indicators, Chhattisgarh, 2015-22
