Rajasthan

Rajasthan (Hindi: Rājasthāna, pronounced [ɾaːd͡ʒəsˈtʰaːn] ; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northwestern India. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It covers 342,239 square kilometres (132,139 mi2) or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is on India's northwestern side, where it comprises most of the wide and inhospitable Thar Desert (also known as the Great Indian Desert) and shares a border with the Pakistani provinces of Punjab to the northwest and Sindh to the west, along the Sutlej-Indus River valley. It is bordered by five other Indian states: Punjab to the north; Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to the northeast; Madhya Pradesh to the southeast; and Gujarat to the southwest. Its geographical location is 23°3' to 30°12' North latitude and 69°30' to 78°17' East longitude, with the Tropic of Cancer passing through its southernmost tip. Its major features include the ruins of the Indus Valley civilisation at Kalibangan and Balathal, the Dilwara Temples, a Jain pilgrimage site at Rajasthan's only hill station, Mount Abu, in the ancient Aravalli mountain range and eastern Rajasthan, the Keoladeo National Park of Bharatpur, a World Heritage Site known for its bird life. Rajasthan is also home to five national tiger reserves, the Ranthambore National Park in Sawai Madhopur, Sariska Tiger Reserve in Alwar, the Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve in Kota, Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger reserve and Karauli Dholpur tiger reserve. The State of Rajasthan was formed on 30 March 1949 when the states of the Rajputana Agency of the erstwhile British Empire in India were merged into the new Indian Union. Its capital and largest city is Jaipur. Other important cities are Jodhpur, Kota, Bikaner, Ajmer, Bhilwara, Sawai Madhopur, Bharatpur and Udaipur. The economy of Rajasthan is the seventh-largest state economy in India...