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| Uttar Pradesh |
Land
Relief
The state can be divided into two physiographic regions: the central plains of the Ganges (Ganga) River and its tributaries (part of the Indo-Gangetic Plain) and the southern uplands. The vast majority of Uttar Pradesh lies within the Gangetic Plain, which is composed of alluvial deposits brought down from the Himalayas to the north by the vast Ganges network. Most of that area is a featureless, though fertile, plain varying in elevation from about 1,000 feet (300 metres) in the northwest to about 190 feet (60 metres) in the extreme east. The southern uplands form part of the highly dissected and rugged Vindhya Range, which rises generally toward the southeast. The elevation of that region rarely exceeds 1,000 feet.
Drainage
The state is well drained by a number of rivers originating in either the Himalayas to the north or the Vindhya Range to the south. The Ganges and its main tributaries—the Yamuna, the Ramganga, the Gomati, the Ghaghara, and the Gandak rivers—are fed by the perpetual snows of the Himalayas. The Chambal, the Betwa, and the Ken, originating from the Vindhya Range, drain the southwestern part of the state before joining the Yamuna. The Son, also originating in the Vindhya Range, drains the southeastern part of the state and joins the Ganges beyond the state borders (in Bihar).
Ghat on the Yamuna River at Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Ghat on the Yamuna River at Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India.
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Soils
Much of the area of Uttar Pradesh is covered by a deep layer of alluvium spread by the slow-moving rivers of the Ganges system. Those extremely fertile alluvial soils range from sandy to clayey loam. The soils in the southern part of the state are generally mixed red and black or red-to-yellow.
Climate
The climate of Uttar Pradesh is the tropical monsoon type, with warm weather year-round. Average high temperatures in Lucknow range from about 70 °F (low 20s C) in January to over 100 °F (38 °C) in May and June. High temperatures of about 120 °F (50 °C) have been recorded at Gonda, northwest of Faizabad.
Annual rainfall in the state ranges from 40–80 inches (1,000–2,000 mm) in the east to 24–40 inches (600–1,000 mm) in the west. About 90 percent of the rainfall occurs during the southwest monsoon, lasting from about June to September. With most of the rainfall concentrated during that four-month period, floods are a recurring problem and can cause fatalities and heavy damage to crops and property, particularly in the eastern part of the state. Periodic failure of monsoons results in drought conditions.
Uttar Pradesh: flooding
Uttar Pradesh: flooding
Man selling guavas in the town of Balrampur, flooded by heavy monsoon rains, Uttar Pradesh, India, 2007.
Plant and animal life
The vegetation of Uttar Pradesh consists mostly of scrub. Forests are generally concentrated in the southern uplands. Animals of the region include tigers, leopards, elephants, wild boars, and crocodiles, as well as pigeons, doves, wild ducks, partridges, peafowls, blue jays, quails, and woodpeckers. Several species, such as lions from the Gangetic Plain, have become extinct. To preserve its wildlife, the state has established several game sanctuaries.
People
Uttar Pradesh is the most populous state in India. In the early 21st century it had an overall population density of more than twice the national average. The Gangetic Plain supports the overwhelming majority of the state’s population.
Population composition
Some one-fifth of the state’s people are classified officially as Scheduled Castes (formerly called “untouchables”; groups that officially occupy a low position within the caste system). A much tinier proportion of the people are officially classified as Scheduled Tribes (generally applied to indigenous peoples who fall outside the predominant Indian social hierarchy). The vast majority of the people, including members of all levels of the caste hierarchy, are Hindus. Muslims are the largest religious minority. There also are relatively small groups of Sikhs, Christians, Jains, and Buddhists. Hindi is an official language of the state and the mother tongue of most of the people. Urdu, additionally an official state language, is primarily spoken by Muslims. The vernacular Hindustani is widely understood.
Badrinath, Uttar Pradesh, India: temple
Badrinath, Uttar Pradesh, India: temple
Main entrance to the Hindu temple at Badrinath, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Vidyavrata
Settlement patterns
The majority of the state’s population lives in rural areas. The rural settlements are characterized by compact villages in the western part of the state, groupings of hamlets in the eastern part, and a combination of the two in the central part. A traditional village in Uttar Pradesh is a cluster of mud huts with roofs made of thatch (such as straw) or clay tiles and few amenities of modern living. Villages near the cities, however, are likely to have cement-plastered homes, paved roads, and electricity.
The Rumi Darwaza, or Turkish Gate, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
The Rumi Darwaza, or Turkish Gate, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Most urban inhabitants live in cities with populations of more than 100,000. Among the largest cities of Uttar Pradesh are Kanpur, Lucknow, Agra, Varanasi, Meerut, and Allahabad. Kanpur, located in the central portion of the state, is the premier industrial city of Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow, the state capital, is about 30 miles (48 km) northeast of Kanpur. Agra, in the western part of the state, is the site of the Taj Mahal, a mausoleum built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahān (ruled 1628–58) in memory of his wife; it is the most famous tourist attraction in India. Varanasi, the city most sacred to Hindus, is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities. Meerut, northeast of Delhi, is an important centre of transportation, trade, and industry. Allahabad (on the site of the ancient holy city of Prayag), located at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, is another city sacred to Hindus.
Demographic trends
The population of Uttar Pradesh continues to grow at a high rate. Because of that high growth rate and a substantial reduction in infant mortality in the 20th century, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of young adults and children. The sex ratio also has improved and since the early 21st century has exceeded 900 females per 1,000 males. Toward the end of the 19th century, dire poverty and the promise of better opportunities forced many people of the region to emigrate to distant lands, such as South Africa, Mauritius, Fiji, and the West Indies. More recently, however, out-migration from Uttar Pradesh has been mainly to other parts of India, particularly to large cities such as Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), and Delhi.
Guardians of History
Economy
Agriculture
Agriculture is the mainstay of the state’s economy. The chief crops are rice, wheat, and sugarcane. Since the late 1960s, with the introduction of high-yielding varieties of seed for wheat and rice, greater availability of fertilizers, and increased use of irrigation, the state has become a major producer of food grains in the country. Many of its farmers, however, still suffer from two major constraints: small landholdings and insufficient resources to invest in the technology required for improved production. Livestock and dairy farming often provide a supplementary source of income.
Milling sugarcane in a small village near Saharanpur, northwestern Uttar Pradesh.
Milling sugarcane in a small village near Saharanpur, northwestern Uttar Pradesh.
Resources and power
Silica, limestone, and coal are found in considerable quantities in Uttar Pradesh. There also are small reserves of gypsum, magnesite, phosphorite, and bauxite. The national government has supported the development of coal fields in the southeastern area around Mirzapur.
The state often suffers from shortages of power. Installed capacity has greatly increased since Indian independence, but the gap between supply and demand remains wide. A large amount of power is generated at the Obra-Rihand complex in southeastern Uttar Pradesh, one of India’s biggest thermal stations. Other facilities include a growing number of small and large hydroelectric power plants in various parts of the state and at a nuclear power station in the western district of Bulandshahr (near Delhi).
Manufacturing
Textiles and sugar refining, both long-standing industries in Uttar Pradesh, employ a significant proportion of the state’s total factory labour. Other resource-based industries in Uttar Pradesh produce vegetable oil, jute, and cement. The Indian government established a number of large factories that manufacture heavy equipment, machinery, steel, aircraft, telephone and electronics equipment, and fertilizers. The national government has funded an oil refinery at Mathura. The state government has promoted medium- and small-scale industries.
The state’s exports include such products as footwear, leather goods, and sporting gear. Handicrafts constitute a significant portion of exports as well. Carpets from Bhadohi and Mirzapur, for example, are prized worldwide. Among other local specialities are the silks and brocades of Varanasi, ornamental brass ware from Moradabad, chikan embroidery from Lucknow, ebony work from Nagina, glassware from Firozabad, and carved woodwork from Saharanpur.
Tourism
Tourism in the state is of growing economic importance. Many visitors flock to Hindu centres such as Varanasi, Allahabad, Ayodhya, and the Mathura-Vrindavan area; Buddhist centres such as Sarnath, Kasia (site of Kushinagara, where the Buddha died), and Shravasti; and other historic places such as Agra, Lucknow, and Kannauj.
Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Transportation
The state’s cities and towns are connected by a vast network of roads, including a number of national highways, and railways. Major cities in Uttar Pradesh are connected by air to Delhi and other large cities of India. The three inland waterways of the Ganges, Yamuna, and Ghaghara rivers also are an integral part of the state’s transportation system.
Government And Society
Constitutional framework
The government of Uttar Pradesh, like that of most other states in India, is determined by the national constitution of 1950 and consists of executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The executive branch comprises the governor and the Council of Ministers (headed by a chief minister), which aids and advises the governor. The governor is appointed by the president of India; the governor in turn appoints the chief minister and the other ministers. The Council of Ministers is responsible to the legislature. The legislature consists of two chambers: the upper house, the Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad), which comprises both elected and appointed members; and the lower house, the Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha), whose members are popularly elected. The judiciary includes the High Court, headed by a chief justice, and a subordinate justice system. Below the state level, dozens of district governments are responsible for local administration.
Health and welfare
Health care in the state is provided by a number of hospitals and clinics, as well as by private practitioners of allopathic (Western), homeopathic, Ayurvedic (traditional Hindu), and Unanī (traditional Muslim) medicine. Since independence many national and state welfare programs have provided improved opportunities in education, employment, and political representation to members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
Education
Beginning in the 1950s, both the number of schools in Uttar Pradesh and the number of students enrolled at all levels grew dramatically. In 1951 less than one-eighth of the population was literate, but six decades later that figure exceeded two-thirds. The literacy rate for females, however, continued to significantly lag behind that for males. Hindi is the medium of instruction at the primary-school level (English is used at some private schools); Hindi and English are required courses for high school students; and English is generally the medium of instruction at the university level.
Aligarh Muslim University
Aligarh Muslim University
The campus of Aligarh Muslim University, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Syed Atif Nazir
The state has more than a dozen universities, hundreds of affiliated colleges, and several medical colleges. Some of the oldest universities in Uttar Pradesh are Aligarh Muslim University (1875), founded by Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan; Banaras Hindu University (1916) in Varanasi, founded by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya; and the University of Lucknow (1921). Among the state’s many institutes for specialized studies and research are the Indian Institute of Technology at Kanpur (1959), the Indian Institute of Management at Lucknow (1984), the Indian Institute of Information Technology at Allahabad (1999), and several polytechnic schools, engineering institutes, and industrial training institutes.