Know Your State ‘Uttar Pradesh’ – History, Environment, Education, Economy (Part 2)

In the last blog, we learnt about the Cultural, Political and Geographical Aspects of Uttar Pradesh. If you haven’t read that blog till now, just click on the link Know Your State ‘Uttar Pradesh’ (Part 1) and check it out. Now, we’ll proceed towards the Historical, Economic and Environmental Aspects etc.

Do you know what is the rank of UP in terms of GDP? From where did The Revolt of 1857 got started? Which National Park is famous for its significance in the state?

If not, then all your queries will be resolved in this blog. So let’s start-

HISTORY

To understand something we need to know its background/ history so it’s better to throw some light on the history of UP. The state was created on 1 April 1937 but there are some elements which clearly prove the presence of human habitation dating back to ancient times. So let’s start with the ancient history of UP

ANCIENT HISTORY-

• The evidence that copper stone age existed in UP can be seen at Meerut and Saharanpur.
• Moreover, the proofs of Paleolithic civilization have been found at the Belan Valley in Allahabad, Singrauli Valley of Sonabhadra and Chakia of Chandauli.
•  The archeological site “Lohdanala” of the Belan Valley gave us the statue of a bone-built goddess.
•  Going on to the Neolithic age, the tools and weapons have been found in excavation by Sarai Nahar Rai (Pratapgarh), Mirzapur, Sonabhadra and Bundelkhand.
•  The remains of Harappan civilization have been discovered at Alamgirpur.
• Out of 16 Mahajanapadas, 8 were in Madhya Desh (Modern UP). They were Kuru, Panchal, Kashi, Koshal, Shurasen, Chedi, Vats and Malla.
• In the sixth century B.C., UP was associated with two new religions- Jainism and Buddhism.
• Buddha preached his first sermon at Sarnath whereas he breathed his last at Kushinagar. Most of the life of Gautam Buddha was spent in UP. Therefore, UP is called the “Cradle of Buddhism”.
• The state is home to a number of Jain monuments, such as Jain Temples and Jain Tirths. According to 2011 census of India, there are around 213,267 Jains in UP. Out of 24 Tirthankara, four belong to Varanasi and five to Ayodhya.
•  Two rock inscriptions of Kumar Gupta and Skanda Gupta have been found at Garhwa (Allahabad).
• There is a lion pillar at Sarnath built by Ashoka. The lions of this pillar have been adapted as the national symbol.

MEDIEVAL HISTORY-

• The medieval history starts with Sultan Sikandar Lodi discovering Agra in 1506.
• After Sikandar Lodi, Ibrahim Lodi ascended to the throne of Agra, who was defeated by Babur in the first Battle of Panipat in 1526 and Babur established Mughal Empire.
• Akbar, the Mughal ruler, built the Agra fort.
• Noorjahan got built the tomb of his father Itimad-ud-Daulah in Agra.
• Taj Mahal, Deewane Aam, Deewane Khas and Moti Masjid of Agra was built during rein of Shah Jahan.
•  The founder of slave dynasty, Qutubuddin Aibak captured Kalpi (Jalaun district) in 12th century and made it part of Delhi sultanate.
• Birbal and Todarmal, who were among the nine Navratna’s of Akbar, belonged to UP. Birbal belonged to Kalpi, where evidences of Birbal’s Rang Mahal and the Mughal Mint have been found.
• Jaunpur was established by the Firoz Shah Tughlaq, a ruler of Tughlaq dynasty. Later, Jaunpur was known as Shiraz-e- hind during the reign of Sharqi Dynasty.
• Rani Lakshmibai, wife of Gangadhar Rai, was the ruler of independent state of Jhansi, who died while fighting against the British in the freedom struggle of 1857, was also from UP.
• The last Nawab of Lucknow was Wajid Ali Shah, who was removed from Lucknow in 1856 by order of Lord Dalhousie, General of the East India Company.
• Mughal Emperor Akbar got his own tomb built in Sikandara (A suburb or peripheral area of Agra) which was later completed by Emperor Jahangir in 1613.

These were some of the significant facts of medieval history. Now let’s look at the Modern History or 1857’s Freedom of struggle in UP.

MODERN HISTORY-

• The rise of Mangal Pandey starts from this time period. Mangal Pandey (resident of Ballia of UP), 34th Indian Army of Barrackpore, near Calcutta, rebelled on March 29, 1857 and fired on his lieutenant. He was hanged on April 8, 1857 in Barrackpore.
• On April 24, 1857 the native infantry of Meerut refused to touch the new cartridges, as a result British officers dismissed soldiers on 9th May 1857, On 10 May 1857, the soldiers of the whole camp rebelled.
• The area not affected by this rebellion of 1857 was Awadh and Bundelkhand.
• In the rebellion of 1857, the rebel soldiers and landowners had established their government at Aligarh, Bareilly, Lucknow, Kanpur, Allahabad, etc.
•  Begum Hazrat Mahal of Awadh led the Rebellion in Lucknow. Begum made her son Birzis Qadir Nawab of Awadh. Lucknow was recaptured by Colin Campbell on March 21, 1858.
• The great warrior Tatya Tope (original name- Ram Chandra) of the rebellion of 1857 A.D. had frightened the British with his Guerrilla Strategy. He was arrested on April 7, 1859 and was tried in the civil court of Shivpuri and was hanged on 18 April, 1859.
• By June 1858, the rebellion in the United provinces (now UP) was completely exhausted. On 1 November 1858, Lord Kennan read out the declaration of Queen Victoria in Allahabad. In 1858, the Delhi division was separated from the northwestern part of the state and the capital of state shifted from Agra to Allahabad.

Modern Period of UP-

In 1867, Bharatendu Harishchandra published Kavi Vachan Sudha and Harishchandra Magazine in 1872 from Varanasi. In 1916, the session of Congress and Muslim League was held simultaneously in Lucknow. This conference was the famous ‘Congress- League Agreement’. This Congress convention was chaired by Ambika Charan Majumdar. Till 1947, 9 sessions of Indian National Congress took place, which was established in 1885. Out of 9, three took place in Allahabad and three in Lucknow and the rest three in Kanpur, Banaras and Meerut.

Post-Independence (Change in the structure of the state)-

• UP was created on 1 April 1937 as the united provinces of Agra and Oudh during the British rule.
• After the independence, on 12 January 1950, United Province was renamed as UP.
• Uttarakhand state was formed on 9 November 2000, by separating 13 hill districts of the state.
• To this date, UP has given 9 PMs to the country. The only state to produce maximum Prime ministers.

Let’s start with the next aspect i.e.

ECONOMY

The economy of UP is vast and from the very beginning, it has been maintaining it. Let’s look at some key points:

• Per Capita GDP is Rs.61,000(US $ 880)
• Third largest state by economy in terms of GDP with Rs. 15.80 lakh crore( US $ 230 Billion)
• Largest Producer of food grains and oil seeds in India because of the availability of plenty of water due to Ganga River.
• UP has ample reserves of coal, dolomite and gems. Other important minerals include diaspore, sandstone, etc.
• With a daily earning of nearly Rs. 10 crores, MEERUT is the largest jewellery market in UP and among the top in the country. It is also the biggest exporter of sports related items and music instruments in the country.
• Handlooms and Handicrafts are a very important source of income in UP. The state produces about 15% of the total fabric production of the country.
• UP ranks 28 in the Human Development Index.
• The GDP growth rate was 7% in 2018-19.
• GDP  by sector-

Agricultural Sector- 27%

Industrial Sector- 26%

Service Sector- 47%

• UP is one of the leading Leather Producersof the country. Moreover, it is India’s largest producer of Milk, Hydel Power and Thermal Power.
• The state is also a leader in the production of multiple food and horticulture crops such as wheat, sugarcane, potato and mango. 
• UP is also the largest producer of food grains. Major food grains produced in the state include wheat, rice, maize, millet (bajra), gram, pea and lentil.
• Cottage Industry highly supports UP economy.
• Prayagraj is the major industrial centre including the most reputed industries such as ITI Limited, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), Food Corporation Of India (FCI), Triveni Structural Limited and many more.
• The Diesel Locomotives Works (DLW) in Varanasi, India, is a production unit of Indian Railways that manufactures diesel-electric locomotives and its spare parts. It is the Largest Diesel-Electric Locomotives manufactured in India.
• UP contributes 6% of the total production of chemicals in India. In Cement Production, UP ranks 9^th.
• MORADABAD is renowned for Brass Work and Handicraft Industry throughout the world. Iron sheet metal wares, Aluminium artworks, wood works and glasswares, etc. are famous. On an average, Moradabad exports goods worth Rs 30-40 Billion each year.
• There are 25 special Economic Zones and 40 IT Parks in UP. Noida is one of the main IT sector area of India.

The state of UP covers a major portion of the northern part of India. The area is covered largely with fertile plains and has many rivers flowing through it. The state has more than 15 National Parks that can be visited for a vacation in the wilderness. Let us look up at another aspect i.e.

ENVIRONMENT

• The Dudhwa National Park is very significant in the state because it is the only National Park and Tiger Reserve representative of Terai-Bhabar biogeographic subdivision of the Upper Gangetic Plains. In 1987, the park was declared as a Tiger Reserve.
• Pilibhit Tiger Reserve is located in Pilibhit district. Its northern border lies along the India-Nepal border in the foothills of the Himalayas and the plains of the ‘Terai’ in UP while the southern boundary is marked by the river Sharada and Khakra.
• Important Wildlife Sanctuary:
• Hastinapur WLS (Meerut)
• Ranipur WLS (Banda)
• Sohagi WLS (Maharajganj)
• Sur Sarovar WLS (Agra)
• Chandraprabha WLS (Chandauli)
• National Chambal WLS (Agra)
• Mahavir Swami WLS (Lalitpur)
• Vijai Sagar WLS (Mahoba)
• Parvati Aranga WLS (Gonda)
• Okla Bird WLS (Ghaziabad)
• Important Rivers:
• Ganga
• Ramganga
• Yamuna
• Gomti
• Ghagra
• Gandhak
• Chambal
• Betwa
• Son
• Sarayu
• Rapti

The two major rivers of the state, the Ganga and the Yamuna join at Allahabad and then flow as the Ganga further east.

• Major DAMS:
• Rihand/Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar Dam: Rihand tributary of Son: Pipri, Sonbhadra
• Parichha Dam: Betwa River: Jhansi- Kanpur NH-25
• Matalita Dam: Betwa River: Lalitpur
• Jamini Dam: Jamini River: Mahrauni, Lalitpur
• Shahzad Dam: Shahzad River: Lalitpur
• Govind Sagar Dam: Shahzad River: Lalitpur
• Sarda Sagar Dam: Sharda River: Puranpur, Pilibhit
• Important Lakes:
• Barua Sagar Lake: Jhansi
• Keetham Lake: Agra-Delhi highway
• Moti Jheel: Kanpur
• Ramgarh Tal Lake: Gorakhpur
• Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar (Artificial Lake): Sonbhadra.
• Shekha Jheel: Aligarh

Education gives us knowledge of the world around us and changes it into something better. So let’s start with the next aspect-

EDUCATION

Some of the renowned universities in UP are-

• Aligarh Muslim University- It is a public central university. It was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan as Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College in 1875. It became Aligarh Mualim University in 1920. AMU is located in the city of Aligarh. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan also launched the “Aligarh Movement” to improve the status of Muslims.
• Indian Institue of Technology (BHU) – This University is in Varanasi, commonly known as IIT (BHU), is a public engineering institution located in Varanasi. Founded in 1919 as the Banaras Engineering College, it became IIT, BHU in 1968. It was designated as Indian Institute of Technology in 2012. Its founder was Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya.

Some famous Stadiums in UP are-

Now let’s come to some of the Interesting Facts of UP –

• Sucheta Kriplani, the first CM of India (INC), was from this particular state. Her tenure was from 2 October 1963 to 13 March 1967.
• The High Court of UP is located at Allahabad, but a bench is located at Lucknow. It was established on 17 March 1866 in Agra but was shifted to Allahabad in 1869 and its Principal Seat is Prayagraj. The First Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court was Sir Walter Morgan (1866-1871).
• Yash Bharti Award is the highest Award of Government of Uttar Pradesh, instituted in 1994.
• UP topped the list of states with most number of crimes against women, according to the annual report of the NCRB (National Crime Records Bureau).
• Lakhimpur Kheri is the largest district in UP in terms of area.
• In 2018, the city Allahabad was renamed to its original name Prayagraj by the state government. It is said that Akbar was so impressed by its strategic site after visiting it in 1575 that he ordered that a fort be constructed and renamed as llahabas or “Abode of God” by 1584, later changed to Allahabad under Shah Jahan.
• The present i.e. 32nd CM of UP was appointed as the CM on 26th May 2017 after the BJP won the 2017 State Assembly Elections, in which he was a prominent campaigner.

So this was all about this state. We’ll keep updating you with such interesting blogs in future as well so that you don’t face any difficulty while appearing for competitive exams such as SSC CHSL, NET JRF, etc.

In the next blog, we would be discussing some interesting facts and trivia about the state of Uttarakhand. Click here for Know your State – ‘Uttarakhand’.

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