Portal:Maharashtra
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Culture · Geography · Health · History · Mathematics · Nature · Philosophy · Religion · Society · Technology  Maharashtra (Marathi: महाराष्ट्र, literally: Great Nation) is India's third largest state in terms of area and second largest in terms of population after Uttar Pradesh. It is bordered by the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Goa and the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and is home to 96 million people. The Arabian Sea makes up the state's western coast. Mumbai, India's largest city, is the capital of Maharashtra. Maharashtra's earliest recorded history dates back to the 3rd century BC, and was once part of Ashoka's Magadha Empire. It came under Islamic influence in the 13th century before becoming the seat of the Maratha Empire lead by Shivaji in the 17th century. The modern state was created in 1960 with the Bombay State being split into Gujarat and Maharashtra. Today Maharashtra is India's most industrialised state, and its capital Mumbai is the commercial centre of India, with the majority of corporate institutions being located in the city, in addition to the Bombay Stock Exchange, India's largest. Mumbai is also home to the Hindi Bollywood, the largest film industry in the world. (more)  The BEST (Marathi: बृहन्मुंबई विद्युतपुरवठा आणि परिवहन उपक्रम / बेस्ट) or the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport is Mumbai's public transport service and electricity provider. The government-owned organisation, which was set up in 1873, operates one of India's largest fleets of buses. Originally setup as a tramway company, it branched out into supplying electricity to the city in 1905, and later into operating buses in 1926. The BEST is run by the city's municipality as an autonomous body. The bus transport service covers the entire city and also extends its operations outside city limits into neighbouring Navi Mumbai, Thane and Mira-Bhayandar. In addition to buses, it also operates a ferry service in the northern reaches of the city. The electricity division of the organisation is also one of the few electricity departments in India to garner an annual net profit. Until 1995, BEST stood for Bombay Electricity Supply and Transport. After the name of the city was formally changed from Bombay to Mumbai, this was also reflected with the adjustment to Brihanmumbai, which means "Greater Mumbai".  The Ajanta Caves are a group of caves in a wooded ravine about 3½ km from the village of Ajinthā in Aurangabad, celebrated for its cave art and monastic architecture. Believed to have been originally constructed in the 5th century CE, they were intended as Buddhist viharas and stupas which were dug into the side of the mountain. The caves contain elaborate artwork, mostly describing the life and teachings of Gautama Buddha and his preivious reincarnations as described in the Jataka tales. After being lost to the world, the caves were rediscovered through excavation over a period of three centuries, ending in 1956. Since 1983, the Ajanta Caves have been an UNESCO World Heritage Site specifically nominated for the international World Heritage program.  Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (April 14, 1891 — December 6, 1956) was a Buddhist revivalist, an Indian jurist, scholar and Bahujan political leader who is the chief architect of the Indian constitution. Born in an Untouchable community; he spent his life fighting against the discrimination system of Hindu untouchability and the Hindu Caste System. He is also credited for having sparked Dalit Buddhist movement. Overcoming numeous social and financial obstacles, Ambedkar became one of the first untouchables to obtain college education in India. He went on to pursue higher studies in the United States and England (the residents of both these countries treated him as an equal amongst them), where he earned law degrees and multiple doctorates for his studies and works in law, economics and political science. A famous scholar, Ambedkar practised law for a few years before he began publishing journals advocating political rights and social freedom for India's untouchables. Leading numerous public agitations, he would become a fierce critic of Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian National Congress. Ambedkar organized untouchable political parties and social organizations, and served in the legislative councils of British India. He would intensify his criticism of orthodox Hindu society and would oppose nationalist rebellions. Despite this, his reputation as a scholar led to his appointment as free India's first law minister, and chairman of the committee responsible to draft a constitution. Ambedkar's work would guarantee political, economic and social freedoms for untouchables and other ethnic, social and religious communities of India. His polemical condemnation of Hinduism and attacks on Islam would make him unpopular and controversial, although his conversion to Buddhism sparked a revival in interest of Buddhist philosophy in India.
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