Deccan Plateau covers parts of central and southern India

The Deccan Plateau ^[1] is a large plateau in India, making up most of the southern part of the country. It rises a hundred meters high in the north, and more than a kilometer high in the south, forming a raised triangle within the familiar downward-pointing triangle of the Indian subcontinent's coastline.^[2]

It extends over eight Indian states and encompasses a wide range of habitats, covering most of central and southern India.^[3]

It is located between two mountain ranges: the Western Ghats form its western boundary, and the Eastern Ghats its eastern boundary. Each rises from their respective nearby coastal plains and nearly meet at the southern tip of India. It is separated from the Gangetic plain to the north by the Satpura and Vindhya Ranges, which form its northern boundary.

The name Deccan is an anglicised form of the Prakrit word dakkhin, itself derived from the Sanskrit word dákṣiṇa, meaning "south".^[4]

Geography[link]

Hogenakal Falls, Tamil Nadu

Near Hampi, Karnataka

The Deccan Plateau lies south of the Indo-Gangetic plain. The Western Ghats Mountain Range is tall and blocks the moisture from the southwest monsoon from reaching the Deccan Plateau, so the region receives very little rainfall.^[5][6] The eastern Deccan Plateau is at a lower elevation spanning the southeastern coast of India. Its forests are also relatively dry but serve to retain the rain to form streams that feed into rivers that flow into basins and then into the Bay of Bengal.^[2][7]

Most Deccan plateau rivers flow south. Most of the northern part of the plateau is drained by the Godavari River and its tributaries, including the Indravati River, starting from the Western Ghats and flowing east towards the Bay of Bengal. Most of the central plateau is drained by the Tungabhadra River, Krishna River and its tributaries, including the Bhima River, which also run east. The southernmost part of the plateau is drained by the Kaveri River, which rises in the Western Ghats of Karnataka and bends south to break through the Nilgiri Hills at Hogenakal Falls into Tamil Nadu, then forms the Shivanasamudra Falls at the island town of Shivanasamudra before flowing into the Stanley Reservoir and the Mettur Dam that created the reservoir, and finally emptying into the Bay of Bengal.

The two main rivers which do not flow into the Bay Of Bengal are the Narmada and Tapti. They start in the Eastern Ghats and flow into the Arabian Sea. All Deccan plateau rivers depend on rains and dry up in the summers.

The climate of the region varies from semi-arid in the north to tropical in most of the region with distinct wet and dry seasons. Rain falls during the monsoon season from about June to October. March to June can be very dry and hot, with temperatures regularly exceeding 40°C.

Geology[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

The volcanic basalt beds of the Deccan were laid down in the massive Deccan Traps eruption, which occurred towards the end of the Cretaceous period between 67 and 65 million years ago. Some paleontologists speculate that this eruption may have accelerated the extinction of the dinosaurs. Layer after layer was formed by the volcanic activity that lasted many thousands of years, and when the volcanoes became extinct, they left a region of highlands with typically vast stretches of flat areas on top like a table.The volcanic hotspot that produced the Deccan traps is hypothesized to lie under the present day island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean.

Typically the Deccan Plateau is made up of basalt extending up to Bhor Ghat near Karjat. This is an extrusive igneous rock. Also in certain sections of the region, we can find granite, which is an intrusive igneous rock. The difference between these two rock types is: basalt rock forms on eruption of lava, that is, on the surface (either out of a volcano, or through massive fissures—as in the Deccan basalts—in the ground), while granite forms deep within the Earth. Granite is a felsic rock, meaning it is rich in potassium feldspar and quartz. This composition is continental in origin (meaning it is the primary composition of the continental crust). Since it cooled relatively slowly, it has large visible crystals. Basalt, on the other hand, is mafic in composition—meaning it is rich in pyroxene and, in some cases, olivine, both of which are Mg-Fe rich minerals. Basalt is similar in composition to mantle rocks, indicating that it came from the mantle and did not mix with continental rocks. Basalt forms in areas that are spreading, whereas granite forms mostly in areas that are colliding. Since both rocks are found in the Deccan Plateau, it indicates two different environments of formation.

The Deccan is rich in minerals. Primary mineral ores found in this region are mica and iron ore in the Chhota Nagpur region, and diamonds, gold and other metals in the Golconda region.

People[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

The Deccan is home to many languages and people. Bhil and Gond people live in the hills along the northern and northeastern edges of the plateau, and speak various languages that belong to both the Indo-European and Dravidian families of languages. Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language, is the main language of the north-western Deccan in the state of Maharashtra. Speakers of Telugu and Kannada, the predominant languages of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka respectively, occupy those states' portions of the plateau. Tamil is the main language of Tamil Nadu to the south of the plateau, and Malayalam that of the hills and coast to the south-west, in the state of Kerala. The city of Hyderabad is an important centre of Urdu language in the Deccan; its surrounding areas also host a notable population of Urdu speakers. The Urdu dialect spoken in this region is also known as Dakhini or as Deccani.

The chief crop is cotton; also common are sugarcane, rice, and other crops.

Apart from the states already mentioned, the state of Chhattisgarh is found in the northeast corner of the plateau. The three large cities in the Deccan are Chennai the capital of Tamil Nadu, Hyderabad the capital of Andhra Pradesh and Bangalore the capital of Karnataka. Other major cities include Mysore in Karnataka, Coimbatore and Salem in Tamil Nadu, Pune, Nagpur and Aurangabad (in Maharashtra).

History[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2010)

Of the early history, the main facts established are the growth of the Mauryan empire (250 B.C.) and the invasion (A.D. 100) of the Scythic tribes known as the Sakas, Pahlavas and Yavanas, which led to the establishment of the power of the Kshaharata satraps in western India. Prominent dynasties of this time include the Cholas (3rd c. BC to 12th c. AD), Chalukyas (6th to 12th c.), Rashtrakutas (753–982), Hoysalas (10th to 14th c.), Kakatiya (1083 CE to 1323 CE) and Vijayanagara Empire (1336–1646). Ahir Kings once ruled over the Deccan. A cave inscription at Nasik refers to the reign of an Abhira prince named Ishwarsena, son of Shivadatta.^[8][9]

In 1294, Ala-ud-Din Khilji, emperor of Delhi, invaded the Deccan, stormed Devagiri, and reduced the Yadava rajas of Maharashtra to the position of tributary princes (see Daulatabad), then proceeding southward to conquer the Telangana and Carnatic. In 1307, a fresh series of Muslim incursions led by Malik Kafur began in response to unpaid tributes, resulting in the final ruin of the Yadava power; and in 1338 the conquest of the Deccan was completed by Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq. The imperial hegemony was brief, as soon Telingana and Karnataka reverted to their former masters. These defections by the Hindu states was soon followed by a general revolt of the Muslim governors, resulting in the establishment in 1347 of the independent Muslim dynasty of Bahmani.^[10] The power of the Delhi sultanate evaporated south of the Narmada River.

Jahangir receives Prince Khurram on his return from the Deccan (10 October 1617)

In the power struggles which ensued, the Hindu kingdom of Telingana fell bit by bit to the Bahamani dynasty, who advanced their frontier to Golkonda in 1373, to Warangal in 1421, and to the Bay of Bengal in 1472. When the Bahmani empire dissolved in 1482, its dominions were distributed into the five Muslim states of Golkonda, Bijapur, Ahmednagar, Bidar and Berar, giving rise to the Deccan sultanates.^[10] South of these, the Hindu state of Carnatic or Vijayanagar still survived; but this, too, was destroyed, at the Battle of Talikota (1565) by a league of the Muslim powers. Berar had already been annexed by Ahmednagar in 1572, and Bidar was absorbed by Bijapur in 1609. Mughal interest in the Deccan also rose at this time; Ahmadnagar was partially incorporated in the Empire in 1598 and again in 1616, Bijapur in 1686, and Golkonda in 1688.

In 1674, Shivaji laid the foundation of the Maratha Empire which within 75 years of his death covered territory of over 250 million acres (1 million km²) or one-third of the Indian sub-continent. Marathas under Shivaji directly challenged the foreign rule of the Bijapur Sultanate and ultimately the mighty Mughal empire. Once the Bijapur Sultanate stopped being a threat to the Maratha Empire, Marathas became much more aggressive and began to frequently raid Mughal territory. The Marathas had conquered part of central and western India by Shivaji Maharaj's death in 1680. After Shivaji, Sambhaji defended the Maratha empire from the Mughal onslaught led by Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb did not win a single major victory against Sambhaji before he was deceitfully captured and executed. Thereafter, Peshwas began commanding Maratha armies. After 1707, the Marathas acquired the right to levy tribute in southern India. After the death of Chhatrapati Shahu, the Peshwas became the de facto leaders of the Empire from 1749 to 1761, while Shivaji's successors continued as nominal rulers from their base in Satara. The Marathas kept the British at bay during the 18th century. By 1760, with the defeat of the Nizam in the Deccan, Maratha power had reached its zenith. However, dissension between the Peshwa and their sardars (army commanders) saw a gradual downfall of the Empire leading to its eventual annexation by the British East India Company in 1818 after the three Anglo-Maratha wars.

A few years later, the Aurangzeb's viceroy in Ahmednagar, Nizam-ul-Mulk, established the seat of an independent government at Hyderabad in 1724. Mysore was ruled by Hyder Ali. During the contests for power which ensued from about the middle of the 18th century between the powers on the plateau, the French and British took opposite sides. After a brief course of triumph, the interests of France declined, and a new empire in India was established by the British. Mysore formed one of their earliest conquests in the Deccan. Tanjore and the Carnatic were soon annexed to their dominions, followed by the Peshwa territories in 1818.

In British India, the plateau was largely divided between the presidencies of Bombay and Madras. The two largest native states at that time were Hyderabad State and Mysore State; many smaller states existed at the time, including Kolhapur, Sawantwari, Travancore, and Cochin.

After independence in 1947, almost all native states were incorporated into the Republic of India. Hyderabad refused to join, and was annexed by the Indian Army in Operation Polo in 1948.^[11] In 1956, the States Reorganisation Act reorganized states along linguistic lines, leading to the states currently found on the plateau.

• 

  Deccan style

• 

  Calligraphic emblem of sculpted sandstone – 16th century

• 

  Nimmatnama-i Nasiruddin-Shahi (the Book of Recipes)

See also[link]

• Geography of India
• South India
• Mysore Plateau
• Vijayanagara Empire
• Kakatiya empire
• Bayaluseemae

Notes[link]

References[link]

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

This file is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of no more than the life of the author plus 100 years.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Deccan Plateau

• Destruction along the Deccan plateau
• Photos of Deccan Plateau
• Dynasties of Deccan
• The Deccan Peninsula
• Central Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests
• Geology of Deccan Plateau
• Deccan South Indian Online

v t e Subfields of physical geography Biogeography Climatology / Paleoclimatology Coastal geography Edaphology Geomorphology Glaciology Hydrology / Hydrography Landscape ecology Limnology Oceanography Palaeogeography Pedology/Soil science Quaternary science

v t e Godavari basin Rivers Godavari Pranhita Wardha Wainganga Painganga Indravati Sabari Manjira Dams, barrages Jayakwadi Dam Sriram Sagar Project Nizam Sagar Upper Wardha Dam Singur Reservoir Neher water system Dowleswaram Barrage Balimela Reservoir Devadula lift irrigation scheme Upper Dudhana Dam Godavari River Basin Irrigation Projects Geographical features/ regions Marathwada Vidarbha Telangana Coastal Andhra Hyderabad State Konaseema Deccan Plateau Western Ghats Eastern Ghats Riparian districts Maharashtra Nashik Ahmednagar Aurangabad Parbhani Nanded Gadchiroli Beed Amravati Bhandara Gondia Chandrapur Wardha Nagpur Yavatmal Washim Buldhana Hingoli Madhya Pradesh Balaghat Seoni Betul Chhindwara Orissa Kalahandi Koraput Malkangiri Chhattisgarh Bastar Bijapur Karnataka Bidar Andhra Pradesh Medak Nizamabad Adilabad Karimnagar Warangal Khammam West Godavari East Godavari Languages/ people Indo-Aryan languages Marathi Bhili Khandeshi Andh Banjari Oriya Bhunjia Hindi Dravidian languages Kolami Goni Telegu Kannadiga Duruwa Multani Urdu Coalfields Godavari Valley Coalfield Wardha Valley Coalfield Kamptee Coalfield Pench Kanhan Coalfield Oil/ gas fields Krishna Godavari Basin Industries Koradi Thermal Power Station Parli Thermal Power Station NTPC Ramagundam Ramagundam B Thermal Power Station Waluj MIDC Shendra MIDC Shendra – Bidkin Industrial Park Ballarpur Industries Limited HAL Sunabeda NALCO Damanjodi Transport NH 5 NH6 NH7 Godavari Bridge Old Godavari Bridge Godavari Arch Bridge Hyderabad-Godavari Valley Railways Related topics Paithani Himroo Other basins Mahanadi-Brahmani-Baitarani Damodar Kosi Son

Coordinates: 17°N 77°E / 17°N 77°E / 17; 77

This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. You can assist by editing it. (May 2011)

Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan
President, Lok Satta Party
Member, Legislative Assembly, Andhra Pradesh, India
Incumbent
Assumed office 2009
Constituency	Kukatpally, Hyderabad, India
Personal details
Born	(1956-01-14) 14 January 1956 (age 56) Naghbir, Maharashtra
Website	www.kukatpallynow.com

Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan (Telugu: జయప్రకాష్ నారాయణ ; born in 1956), known as JP, is a Indian politician, political reformer and columnist. He is the Founder and the President of Lok Satta Party and currently a Member of the Legislative Assembly from Kukatpally constituency in Andhra Pradesh.^[1] He is also a former Indian public administrator. He is well known for his role in bringing electoral reforms and the Right to Information (RTI) act. He has also written columns in Indian newspapers like Times of India, The Economic Times, Financial Express, The Hindu and Eenadu and hosted television shows covering elections and politics such as "Pratidhwani".

Early life[link]

Nagabhairava Jayaprakash Narayan was born on 14 January 1956 in Naghbir, Maharashtra and came to Godavarru Village at the age of 3 near Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh to pursue his education in Telugu Medium . Then after at age of 7, he along with his parents moved to another village Vemanda near Indupally, Krishna Dist.^{[citation needed]} He joined Andhra Loyola College in 1969 for his intermediate education. He obtained his medical degree from Guntur Medical College.He was against to "Emergency"- the dark days of Indian democracy.

His good character, willpower and simple life attracted many people. He has the chance to live luxuriously, but he is with the people and leading simple life.

Civil service[link]

Dr. Narayan joined public administration after making it to I.A.S. in 1980 as one of the top 10 in India. He worked on agriculture, irrigation, technology and youth rehabilitation projects in various capacities and in various districts of Andhra Pradesh. Some of his achievements during his 16-year-long career in government include:^[2]

• Rehabilitation of 8,000 youth from displaced families of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.
• Designed the reconstruction of drainage and irrigation network in Krishna, [Prakasam] and Godavari deltas. He successfully mobilized the farmers on a large scale to take up irrigation schemes to bring more than two lakh acres under irrigation.
• Strengthened the credit cooperatives by making them independent of government control.
• Served as a Secretary to both the Governor and the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N. T. Rama Rao.

He also has several major policy initiatives to his credit.

• Empowerment of parents in schools.
• Economic reforms and restructuring of AP.
• Development of the Infocity HITEC City (Hyderabad Information Technology Engineering Consultancy City) in Hyderabad to facilitate the growth of the software industry.
• Empowerment of local governments and stakeholders.
• Law for self-reliant cooperatives (1995).

Social reforms[link]

Dr. Narayan's experience in the government convinced him that the faulty governance process is the biggest hurdle in India’s path of progress. He resigned from the I.A.S in 1996 so that he could work on the grassroots movement for good governance.^[3][4] Dr. Narayan talked about the efficacy of reforms in the governance, Economy of Andhra Pradesh among several other issues on various platforms in educational and political institutes. He emphasizes that democracy is for the people, of the people and by the people.

Political and administrative reforms[link]

Dr. Narayan has served on the following panels:

• The National Advisory Council (NAC) for the implementation of the National Common Minimum Programme (CMP), July 2004 through August 2006.
• Vigilance Advisory Council, constituted by the Central Vigilance Commission, November 2004
• Second Administrative Reforms Commission constituted by the Government of India in September 2005
• National Rural Health Mission of India Task Force, 2005 to 2007

Foundation For Democratic Reforms[link]

Dr. Narayan is the founder member of Foundation For Democratic Reforms (FDR) and currently serves as its general secretary. FDR is one of India's leading think-tanks and research-resource centers for formulating and promoting fundamental reforms in political, electoral and governance spheres and in critical areas of state policy.

Lok Satta Movement[link]

Dr. Narayan started the Lok Satta Movement in 1997 to educate the citizens of India about voting, rights and government. Lok Satta, a non-partisan movement for democratic reforms in India, worked on various activities^[2] like election reforms, police reforms, right to information act and voter registration procedures. The movement initially started in Andhra Pradesh and later spread across the country, including Mumbai and the Vote JUHU campaigns.^[5]

Lok Satta is at the forefront of key initiatives like disclosure of candidate wealth and criminal history details, political funding reform, decriminalization of politics, improvement of electoral registration, comprehensive judicial reforms including local courts, and national judicial commission and citizen's charters.

Political career[link]

Dr. Narayan started the Lok Satta party in 2006 with clean politics, good governance and improvement of India as the main goals. When he launched the party, he stated that this party aimed to enrich the political scenario in India with its true spirit. He felt that it could be considered as an alternative to any other political party, since it aimed to create a true and faithful political picture in India without involving illegitimate money, liquor and caste in elections.^{[citation needed]}

2008 By-elections[link]

In 2008, the Lok Satta Party ran in the Assembly by-elections for the first time, and was able to secure second place in two of the four places (Khairatabad, Terlam) it contested seats.^[6]

2009 Elections[link]

The Lok Satta Party contested 234 Legislative Assembly seats in the 2009 general elections. Dr. Narayan toured Andhra Pradesh in trains similar to the way freedom fighters traveled to reach people. Dr. Narayan challenged a seat in Kukatpally, and won with a 15,000 votes majority over the nearest opponent. His victory is quoted as "the victory of people" as he won the election without distributing money or liquor.^{[citation needed]}

In this elections, Mr.J.P.Narayan won the elections witout any influences(monetary and alcohol) as traditional parties do to influence the voters.

Assembly Election Results in 2009 - DR JAYA PRAKASH NARAYAN Won with 34.84% votes

Andhra Pradesh 13th Assembly[link]

Dr. Narayan is one of the vocal leaders in assembly proceedings. Some of the major contributions to Andhra Pradesh 13th assembly are:

• Proposed the Anti Corruption Bill to amend the State's Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, to curb corruption in the state by including elected members under civil servants.^[7]
• Advanced all party resolution to elect deputy speaker from opposition.
• Opposed amendment to Andhra Pradesh Societies Act claiming that it is against the right to form unions as per the Constitution.^[8]
• Opposed populist schemes in 2009, 2010,^[9][10] and 2011^[11] Andhra Pradesh Budgets.
• Pressed the need for gas grid and industrial development.
• Condemned the demolition of statues on Tankbund.^[12]
• Demanded investigation into land and natural resource allocation scams and provided evidences.^[13]

Attack in the assembly premises by TRS activists[link]

On 17 February 2011, Dr. Narayan was attacked by members of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) on the assembly premises after he gave a media interview highlighting the degrading democratic values in the state assembly in the context of attack on the state governor E. S. L. Narasimhan inside the state assembly.^[14] TRS leaders K. T. Rama Rao, T. Harish Rao and D.Vinay Bhaskar instigated the attack. TRS continues to defend its actions, while all political parties cutting across the party lines have condemned the attack.^[15]

Development of Kukatpally constituency[link]

Dr. Narayan tours the constituency every Saturday to get a first hand look at people's problems and meets people at IMAX gardens, Road No.4 to speak with them. He has undertaken the following activities:^[16]

Traffic[link]

• The construction of the under rail bridge in Safdarnagar, which has been neglected for several months, has been completed.
• New roads in phase 9 of Kukatpally Housing Board.
• Road expansion works in Kukatpally phase 1.
• Footover bridges on proposal are sanctioned at 5 different locations at JNTU Junction, Kukatpally Village Bus Stop, Moosapet Junction, Balanagar area and Begumpet in Kukatpally Constituency.
• Road from Moosapet ‘Y’ Junction to Miyapur on NH-9 is proposed for widening and providing the service roads from both left & right sides to control heavy traffic on this route.

Water[link]

• Collected 99 samples of drinking water and showed it to water-board authorities. The samples showed that the chlorine levels are not appropriate and directed the water-board authorities to take actions.
• 300 m pipeline construction in Moosapet division for Manjeera water supply. Another 400 m pipeline construction to make use of the neglected overhead tank.
• Installed 20 bore wells in the water deprived areas of the Constituency.
• Pipeline construction from Vasantnagar to Bhagat Singh nagar to regulate drainage problems in the rainy season has been completed.
• Booster pumps in Satyanarayana Swamy colony, Parvatnagar, Motinagar divisions to complement the irregular drinking water-supply that has been there for several years.
• Arrangements have been proposed to supply at least 16 mgd water to Kukatpally circle, which receives only 9 mgd water (5% of the city) even though it has 56000 water connections (10% of the city).

Amenities[link]

• Street lighting between Vasanth Nagar/Satyanarayana Colony and highway.
• Resumed swimming pool and indoor stadium works at Kukatpally Phase 6.
• Organized free medical clinics in the constituency to diagnose eye and thyroid problems among people to provide better medical facilities. Organized a free medical camp in Balanagar colony with the help of expert doctors and distributed free medicines.
• Establishment of Citizen Help Centers to help Citizens in Government and Municipality works.
• Moving HUDA truck park from Kukatpally to Miyapur and construct an auditorium for cultural and entertainment programs and a commercial center in its place.
• Construction of Sulabh complexes in densely populated places.

Drainage[link]

• Underground drainage system: Works worth Rs. 4.4 crore have been started in 11 colonies/bastis. This helps 2 lakh people and prevents the mixing of sewage and water supply. Will be completed by December 31, 2009.
• To construct 6 sewerage treatment plants near ponds/lakes and to fence the ponds/lakes to prevent illegal occupation.

Personal life[link]

Dr. Narayan is currently married to Radha, a lawyer. They have two children, a son and a daughter.

See also[link]

• Lok Satta Party
• Lok Satta Movement

References[link]

External links[link]

• Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan on Twitter
• Lok Satta Party website
• Development in Kukatpally Assembly Constituency
• Foundation for Democratic Reforms
• Jaya Prakash Narayan Interview