Madhya Pradesh GK: Rivers, Parks, Heritage and Facts

Madhya Pradesh sits in the middle of the country, which is what its name says, and it is asked in two places: in the state level papers of Madhya Pradesh itself, and in the static General Knowledge of SSC and Railway papers, where one line usually pairs a place with a river, a park with an animal or a monument with a dynasty. The state is large, landlocked and full of such pairs, so the fastest way to hold it is by groups: administration, rivers, forests, heritage and minerals.

The state at a glance

The Tropic of Cancer crosses the state, and it has no coastline at all. According to the census of 2011 it had the largest tribal population of any state, the main communities being the Bhil, the Gond, the Baiga, the Korku and the Sahariya.

Rivers and relief

The Narmada is the lifeline of Madhya Pradesh and its longest river. It rises at Amarkantak on the Maikal range and flows west through a rift valley between the Vindhya range to the north and the Satpura range to the south, which is why it does not build a delta but ends in an estuary. At Bhedaghat near Jabalpur it falls as the Dhuandhar and cuts through the marble rocks. The Son also rises at Amarkantak but flows east to join the Ganga. The Tapti rises at Multai in Betul district and is the other westward flowing river of the peninsula. The Chambal rises in the Janapav hills near Mhow in Indore district and flows north to the Yamuna, and the Betwa rises in the Vindhya range and passes Orchha. The Shipra flows through Ujjain, where the Simhastha fair is held. The highest point of the state is Dhupgarh near Pachmarhi in the Satpura range, and Pachmarhi is the only hill station of Madhya Pradesh.

Forests, parks and wildlife

• Kanha, in Mandla and Balaghat districts, is known for saving the hard ground barasingha, the state animal, and its forests are linked with the idea of the jungle book.
• Bandhavgarh, in Umaria district, has an old hill fort inside it and a high density of tigers.
• Pench, in Seoni and Chhindwara districts, lies along the Pench river.
• Satpura, near Pachmarhi, lies in the Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve.
• Panna, on the Ken river, sits beside the diamond bearing belt of the state.
• Kuno, in Sheopur district, received cheetahs brought from Africa in September 2022.
• Van Vihar lies inside the city of Bhopal, and Madhav is at Shivpuri.

The state is widely called the tiger state of India for the number of reserves it holds.

Heritage and monuments

Three sites in Madhya Pradesh are on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Khajuraho group of monuments in Chhatarpur district, built by the Chandela dynasty between the tenth and the twelfth century, was inscribed in 1986; the Kandariya Mahadeva is the largest of its temples and they are built in the Nagara style. The Buddhist monuments at Sanchi in Raisen district, where the Great Stupa was first raised by Ashoka and its carved gateways added later, were inscribed in 1989. The rock shelters of Bhimbetka, also in Raisen district, with prehistoric paintings, were inscribed in 2003.

Two of the twelve jyotirlingas stand in the state, Mahakaleshwar at Ujjain and Omkareshwar in Khandwa district. Gwalior fort, associated with Man Singh Tomar, is called the Gibraltar of India, and the tomb of the musician Tansen is in the same city. Mandu holds the Jahaz Mahal, the Hindola Mahal and the tomb of Hoshang Shah, which is the earliest marble building in India. Orchha on the Betwa was the seat of the Bundela rulers, and Maheshwar on the Narmada was the capital of Ahilyabai Holkar.

Economy and modern history

Madhya Pradesh has the only working diamond mines of India, at Panna, and the large copper deposit of Malanjkhand in Balaghat district. It also produces manganese, limestone, coal and dolomite. The black soil of the Malwa plateau carries soybean, wheat and pulses, and the state is often called the soya state for that reason. The gas leak at Bhopal on the night of 2 and 3 December 1984 remains the worst industrial disaster in the country and is asked in almost every environment paper. Among fairs and festivals, the Khajuraho Dance Festival, the Tansen Samaroh at Gwalior and the Simhastha at Ujjain are the ones named in papers.