According to some writers like Gautam Kumar Bera, there was already a distinct geo-political, cultural entity called Jharkhand even before the period of Magadha Empire. Bera’s book (page 33) also refers to the Hindu Mythological book Bhavishya Purana. The tribal rulers, some of whom continue to thrive till today were known as the Munda Rajas, who basically had ownership rights to large farmlands. During the Mughal period, the Jharkhand area was known as Kukara.
Jharkhand-a separate state:
Jharkhand state was formed on 15 November 2000 after almost half a century of people’s movements to evolve a Jharkhandi identity, which disadvantaged societal groups articulated to augment political resources and influence the policy process in their favour. It is the 28th state of India. The Jharkhandi identity and the demand for autonomy was not premised solely on the uniqueness of its tribal cultural heritage but was essentially a fallout of the failure of development policy to intervene in socio-economic conditions of the adivasis and non-adivasis in the region.
The dynamics of resources and the politics of development still influence the socio-economic structures in Jharkhand, which was carved out of the relatively under developed southern part of Bihar. According to the 1991 census, the state has a population of over 20 million out of which 28% is tribal while 12 of the people belong to scheduled castes. Jharkhand has 24 districts, 260 blocks and 32,620 villages out of which only 45% are electrified while only 8,484 are connected by roads. Jharkhand is the leading producer of mineral wealth in the country after Chattisgarh state, endowed as it is with vast variety of minerals like iron ore, coal, copper ore, mica, bauxite, graphite, limestone, and uranium. Jharkhand is also known for its vast forest resources.
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