Wardha district (Marathi pronunciation: [ʋəɾd̪ʰaː]) is in the state of Maharashtra in western India. This district is a part of Nagpur Division. The city of Wardha is the administrative headquarter of the district. Hinganghat, Pulgaon, Arvi and Wardha are the major cities in the District. The District had a population of 1,300,774, of which 26.28% were urban as of 2011.

Officer

Members of Parliament Amar Sharadrao Kale (NCP - Sharad Pawar)

Guardian Minister

list of Guardian Minister Name Term of officeSachin Ahir11 November 2010– 26 September 2014 Sudhir Mungantiwar 5 December 2014 - 8 November 2019 Sunil Chhatrapal Kedar9 January 2020 - 29 June 2022Devendra Fadnavis24 September 2022- 4 October 2023Sudhir Mungantiwar4 October 2023 - 17 January 2025Pankaj Rajesh Bhoyar https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/wardha-mla-bhoyar-appointed-as-bhandara-guardian-minister/articleshow/123533485.cms Wardha MLA Bhoyar Appointed As Bhandara Guardian Minister]18 January 2025 - Incumbent

District Magistrate/Collector

list of District Magistrate / Collector Name Term of office Rahul Kardile (IAS) March 2021 - December 2024 Smt. Vanmathi C (IAS) December 2024 - Incumbent

History The history of the Wardha district dates back to ancient times. It was included in the empires of the Mauryas, Shungas, Satavahanas and Vakatakas. Pravarpur, now modern-day Pavnar, was once the capital of the Vakataka dynasty. Vakatakas were contemporaries of the Imperial Guptas. The daughter of Chandragupta II, Prabhavatigupta, was married to the Vakataka ruler Rudrasena II. The Vakataka Dynasty lasted from the 2nd to the 5th centuries AD. Their state stretched from the Arabian Sea in the west to The Bay of Bengal in the east and from The Narmada River in the north to The Krishna-Godavari Delta in the south.

Later on, Wardha was ruled by the Chalukyas, The Rashtrakutas, The Yadavas, The Delhi Sultanate, The Bahamani Sultanate, The Muslim ruler of Berar, The Gonds and The Marathas. Raja Buland Shah of Gond and Raghuji of Bhonsale were the prominent rulers in the medieval period.

Ashti town in Wardha district was ruled by the Mughals in the guidance of Nawab Muhammad Khan Niazi who was Subedar and Mansabdar in the Mughal empire in the reign of Emperor Akbar he got Ashti as a Jaageer. Nawab Ahmad Khan Niazi was the elder son of Nawab Muhammad Khan Niazi who also served as Mansabdar and Jagirdar in the Mughal court in the reign of Emperor Jahangir he got Ashti as Pergana as his ancestral property. Ahmad Khan Niazi defeated Rahim Khan Dakhni and captured Ellichpur from the Berar empire for the Mughals.

In the 1850s, Wardha, then a part of Nagpur, fell into the hands of the British. They included Wardha in the Central Province. Wardha is a sister city for Sevagram and both were used as major centers for the Indian Independence Movement, especially as headquarters for an annual meet of the Indian National Congress in 1934 and Mahatma Gandhi's Ashram.

The existing Wardha district was a part of Nagpur district till 1862. Further, it was separated for convenient administrative purposes and Kawatha near Pulgaon was the district headquarters. In the year 1866, the district headquarters moved to Palakwadi village which was rebuilt as Wardha city.

Central Ammunition Depot in Pulgaon city of Wardha District is the second-largest ammunition depot in Asia.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, Wardha district has a population of 1,300,774, roughly equal to the nation of Mauritius or the US state of New Hampshire. This gives it a ranking of 377th in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of . Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 4.8%. Wardha has a sex ratio of 946 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 87.22%. 32.54% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 14.52% and 11.49% of the population respectively.

Census yearTotalMaleFemaleChangeReligion (%)HinduMuslimBuddhistJainOther2001Census India 20011236736638990597746 -81.3623.84913.7120.4840.5932011Census India 2011.13007746683856323895.17881.2674.14013.4860.4350.672

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 87.78% of the population in the district spoke Marathi, 6.88% Hindi and 1.26% Urdu as their first language. A form of the Rajasthani-Malvi language, known as Bhoyari/Pawari, was once exclusively spoken by members of the Bhoyar-Pawar caste in the district, but this dialect is now endangered, as only a few people in the community speak it, while most have switched to Marathi or Hindi.

Politics Lok Sabha Seat Wardha = Amar Kale (NCPSP)

Assembly Seats Wardha = Pankaj Rajesh Bhoyar (BJP) Deoli = Rajesh Bakane (BJP) Arvi = Sumit Wankhade (BJP) Hinganghat = Samir Trambakrao Kunawar (BJP)

Prominent people

Abdul Shafee, Senior Politician of Indian National Congress Baba Amte, India's Social and moral leader (born 26 December 1914) at Hinganghat Vinoba Bhave, Freedom fighter and social worker Jamnalal Bajaj, Freedom Fighter Abhay and Rani Bang, Social Workers, rendering medical services to the poor adiwasi people of Gadchiroli district. Sindhutai Sapkal, A Social Activist and Social Worker, working for orphans.

Geographical indication Waigaon Turmeric was awarded the Geographical Indication (GI) status tag from the Geographical Indications Registry, under the Union Government of India, on 3 June 2016 (valid until 25 March 2034).

Waigaon Halad Utpadak Sangh from Samudrapur, proposed the GI registration of Waigaon Turmeric. After filing the application in March 2014, the Turmeric was granted the GI tag in 2016 by the Geographical Indication Registry in Chennai, making the name "Waigaon Turmeric" exclusive to the Turmeric grown in the region. It thus became the first Turmeric variety from Maharashtra before Sangli Turmeric and the 21st type of goods from Maharashtra to earn the GI tag.

References

External links

Wardha district website Wardha Zilla Parishad