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Uttar
Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (UP) is the most
populous state in India, with an estimated population of about
170 million as of March 2000 and a land area of 294,411 kmē. One-sixth
of the world's population lives in India and one-sixth of India's
population lives in UP. Only three other countries of the world,
China, the United States, and Indonesia have populations larger
than that of UP.
The past boundaries of the state
came into existence with the reorganisation of the states on a
linguistic basis in 1956. For administrative purposes, the state
was divided into 83 districts, 294 tehsils, and 907 community
blocks. There were 112,803 inhabited villages, 710 statutory towns,
and 43 census towns. Nearly 19 percent of inhabited villages in
India are in UP. As per the 1991 census, about 40 percent of the
villages in UP had a population of less than 500 and another 26
percent of the villages had population in the range of 500-999.
While the average population per village in UP was only 989. Having
a large number of small villages scattered all over the state
is a major obstacle to the development of infrastructure facilities
and delivery of all types of services related to development sectors.
Uttar Pradesh state consists of seventy districts, which are grouped
into seventeen divisions: Agra, Azamgarh, Allahabad, Bijnor, Kanpur,
Ghaziabad, Gorakhpur, Chitrakoot, Jhansi,
Devipatan, Faizabad, Bahraich,
Bareilly,
Basti,
Mirzapur,
Moradabad,Mathura,
Meerut,
Lucknow,
Varanasi,
Sultanpur,
Farrukhabad,
Vrindavan, and
Saharanpur. It has 403 constituencies. The state has
a large number of village councils known as Panchayats just like
the other states of India. One of the most developed Panchayats
is Shahabad in Maharajganj District of Uttar Pradesh. The largest
district in terms of area is
Lakhimpur Kheri. The largest district in terms of population
is Allahabad followed by Kanpur Nagar (Census 2001).
The state languages of Uttar Pradesh
are standard Hindi and Urdu. Uttar
Pradesh is famous for its arts and crafts. Specific
regions such as Varanasi for its
saris and
silk,
Mirzapur and
Bhadohi for its carpets,
Agra and
Kanpur for their leather craft,
Moradabad for its metal ware,
Lucknow for its cloth work and embroidery 'chicken
work on
silk, and the entire state for its pottery are not
only famous in
India but around the world.
The State of U.P. has made investments
over the years in all sectors of education and has achieved some
success.
The female literacy situation in
Uttar Pradesh is dismal. Only one out of four in the 7+ age group
was able to read and write in 1991. This figure goes down to 19%
for rural areas, 11% for the scheduled castes, 8% for scheduled
castes in rural areas, and 8% for the entire rural population
in the most educationally backward districts. In terms of more
demanding educational attainment (the completion of primary or
secondary education), in 1992-1993 only 50% of literate males
and 40% of literate females could complete the cycle of eight
years of schooling involved in the primary and middle stages.
One other notable feature of the Uttar Pradesh education system
is the persistence of high levels of illiteracy in the younger
age group.
The problems of education system
are exacting. Due to public apathy the schools are in disarray.
While privately run schools (including those run by Christian
missionaries) are functional, they are beyond the reach of ordinary
people. The State government has taken steps to make the population
totally literate. Steps are being taken with the help of NGOs
and other organizations to raise participation.
As a result, some progress in adult
education has been made and the census of 2001 indicates a male
literacy rate of 70.23% and a female literacy rate of 42.98%.
Uttar
Pradesh is a very fertile region and a major contributor to the
national food grain stock. The major economic activity in the
state is agriculture, and in 1991, 73 percent of the population
in the state was engaged in agriculture and 46 percent of the
state income was accounted for by agriculture. UP has retained
its pre-eminent position in the country as a food-surplus state.
Yet nearly 40 percent of the total population lives below the
poverty line. Uttar Pradesh's gross state domestic product for
2004 is $339.5 billion by PPP and $80.9 billion by Nominal. Uttar
Pradesh is the second largest economy in India after Maharashtra. |
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