Karnataka History, Geography, Economy, Polity and Districts

Through this chapter, we will know the detailed and important information of Karnataka, in which important and interesting information like history, geography, economy, education, culture and world famous tourist places located in the state have been added. Apart from this, the recent developments and changes in the state of Karnataka have also been explained in detail. This chapter is full of interesting facts for the competitive aspirants as well as the readers.

Quick General Knowledge

State Level	State
Capital	Bengaluru
Statehood	1 November 1956
Largest City	Bangalore
Total Area	1,91,791 sq km
Districts	31
Current Chief Minister	Siddaramaiah (INC)
Current Governor	Thawar Chand Gehlot
State Bird	Indian roller
State Flower	Lotus
State Animal	Indian elephant
State Tree	Indian sandalwood
Languages	Kannada
State Dance	Yakshagana, Huttari, Suggi, Kunitha, Karga, Lambi, Veergasse and Bhootkola

Karnataka (कर्नाटक)

Karnataka is a state located in South India. Karnataka was earlier called the State of Mysore, in 1973 it was renamed Karnataka. The capital of Karnataka is Bangalore. Karnataka is the ninth largest state in India by population. Maharashtra is located in the north of Karnataka, Goa and Andhra Pradesh in the northwest and Telangana in the east. Kerala is located in the southwest of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in the south east. The state is surrounded by the Arabian Sea and Lakshadweep Sea from the west.

Karnataka History

About 2,000 years of written history of Karnataka state is available. Karnataka was ruled by kings named Nanda, Maurya and Satavahana. From the middle of the fourth century, the dynasties of the same region remained the Kadambas and Gangas of Banavasi. The remains of Stone Age axes and large daggers found in this area prove how old the history of this state is. Evidence of megalithic and neolithic culture has also been found in Karnataka. Gold found in Harappa was also imported from this state. These facts convinced scholars and researchers that there were connections between the Indus Valley Civilization and ancient Karnataka. The state of Mysore was created in 1953 after independence, in which Mysore state was formed in 1956 taking the Kannada dominated areas and it was renamed Karnataka in 1973.

Karnataka Geography

The state has three major geographical regions, including the coastal region of Karavali, the hilly region of Malenadu which includes the Western Ghats, and the Bayalusimi region which comprises the Deccan plateau. The highest mountain of the state is Mulayanagari mountain which is located in Chikkamagalur district. Its height is 6329 feet or 1929 meters. Most of the area of the state falls in Bayalusimi and its northern region is the largest arid region of India. Important rivers of Karnataka are Kaveri, Tungabhadra River, Krishna River, Malayaprabha River and Sharavati River. Jog Falls, the highest waterfall in India, is located in Karnataka. The state bird of Karnataka is the 'Indian Roller'. The state tree of Karnataka is 'Chandan'. The state flower of Karnataka is 'Kamal'. Elephant is the state animal of Karnataka.

Karnataka Climate

The state has four major seasons. Winter in January and February, followed by summer from March to May, followed by rainy season from June to September and finally October to December monsoon. The second highest annual average rainfall in India is Agumbe located in Shimoga district.

Karnataka Politics and Government

The state has a bicameral parliamentary government. The Karnataka Legislative Assembly has 24 members, elected for a term of five years, the Legislative Council has a permanent body of 75 members and one-third of its members (25) retire from service every two years.

Currently, there is a government of the Indian National Congress in Karnataka. The Current Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah. He took oath as the 24th Chief Minister of Karnataka on 20 May 2023. He is currently the leader of the Indian National Congress for Shiggaon, having previously been a member of several Janata Parivar parties. As a member of the Janata Dal (Secular), he has also served as the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka twice. The First person to become the Chief Minister of Karnataka. C. Reddy. He was sworn in as the first Chief Minister of the state on 25 October 1947.

The current Governor of Karnataka is Thawar Chand Gehlot. He was sworn in as the Governor of Karnataka on 07 July 2021.

Karnataka Economy

Several large public sector industries of India have been established here, such as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, National Aerospace Laboratories, Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Indian Telephone Industries, Bharat Earth Movers Limited and Hindustan Machine Tools etc. which are located in Bangalore itself. Seven of India's leading banks, Canara Bank, Syndicate Bank, Corporation Bank, Vijaya Bank, Karnataka Bank, Vaishya Bank and State Bank of Mysore originated from this state.

Karnataka Agriculture

About 56% of the population of Karnataka is engaged in agriculture and allied activities. 64.6% of the total land of the state, ie 1.231 crore hectare land is engaged in agricultural work. The major food crops here are rice and sugarcane. Other crops include jowar, ragi, cashew, cardamom, betel nut and grapes. Karnataka ranks fifth in the production of oilseeds.

Karnataka Education System

The literacy rate in Karnataka is 75.36%. The literacy rates of males and females are 82.47% and 68.08% respectively. The Hindu population in the state is 83%.

Karnataka Industries

Karnataka hosts the country's 78% vanadium ore, 73% iron ore (magnetite), 42% tungsten ore, 37% asbestos, 28% limestone, 22% gold, 20% granite, 17% dunite, and 14% corundum resources.

Karnataka Population

According to the 2011 census, the state has a population of 61,095,297. The population of males and females in the population is 30,966,657 and 30,128,640 respectively. The density of population in the state is 319 per sq km. In addition, the urban area has 34% of the population. Apart from this, other religions here are Muslim, Christian, Jain and Buddhist.

Karnataka Traditional Dresses

The women of Karnataka generally wear saris, while men generally prefer to wear dhoti and kurta. The predominant traditional dress of men in Karnataka is 'Panch' which is worn below the waist and has a shirt on top. It is otherwise called Lungi, Dhoti or Veshti etc.

Karnataka Culture

The women of Karnataka usually dress in sarees, while men usually prefer to wear the dhoti and Kurta. The principal Traditional Dress of the men in Karnataka is 'Panche' which is worn underneath the waistline accompanied by a shirt on top. It is otherwise called Lungi, Dhoti or Veshti and so forth. Traditional folk arts of Karnataka include music, dance, drama, nomadic narrators etc. There are two main types of drama in Karnataka, Yakshagana and Coastal.

Karnataka Offical Languages

The official language of Karnataka is Kannada, the Kannada language is spoken by about 65% of the people of the state. The Tulu language is mainly spoken in the coastal districts of the state and some areas of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi. Other languages of the state are Konkani and Kodava tuck, Urdu is also spoken by the Muslim population here.

Karnataka Cuisines

Bis Belle Bhat, Upma, Spicy Meat (Pandi (Pork) Curry, Chicken, Mutton), Kadumbutta (made of rice), Papput, Thaliyaputta, Mysore Pak, Idli and Vada Uddina, Chow Chow Bath, Jolda Roti and Akki Roti, B.C. Belle Bath, Udupi and Sambhar Gojju, Ragi Mudde and Sopinna Saru, Maddur Vada, Dosa, Obbatu etc.

Karnataka Festivals

The Hampi Festival, celebrated in November, is one of the most important festivals in Karnataka celebrated on a grand level. This cultural extravaganza is organised in Hampi which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site popular for its ancient temples. Ganesh Chaturthi, Gowri, Jallikattu Karga, Pattadakal Dance Festival, Mahamashtakaviswasi (Shravanabelagola) and Kambala are among the main festivals of Karnataka.

Karnataka Tribes

Various multilingual and religious castes are settled in the state of Karnataka. The Kannadigas, Tuluva, Kodava, Konkani, Solig, Yerva, Toda and Siddhi castes are found here.

Karnataka Tourist Places

Karnataka is a popular place in India for tourism. Karnataka ranks second in India after Uttar Pradesh in terms of nationally protected monuments. Below is a list of famous tourist places in Karnataka:-

Srirangapatna
Mysore Palaces
Nagarhole National Park (Kabini)
Hoysala Architecture
World Heritage 'Shravanabel Gola, Belur, Halebid
Hampi', Badami, Pattadakal
Aihole Virupaksha Temple
Raghunath Temple
Narasimha Temple
Sugriva Cave
Vithalaswamy Temple
Krishna Mandir
Prasanna Virupaksha
Hazar Ram Mandir
Lotus Mahal and Mahanavami Box

Karnataka Districts

The following 29 districts in Karnataka are: -

Bagalkot, Bangalore (Bangalore) Rural, Bangalore (Bangalore) Urban, Belagavi (Belgaum), Ballari (Bellary), Bidar, Vijayapura (Bijapur), Chamarajanagar, Chikkaballapur, Chikkamgoluru (Chikmagalur), Chitradurga, Dakshina Kannada, Dharwad, Gadag, Kalaburugi (Gulbarga), Hassan, Haveri, Kodagu, Kolar, Koppal, Mandya, Mysore (Mysore), Raichur, Ramnagar, Shivamogga (Shimoga), Tumkuru (Tumkur), Uttara Kannada, Udupi and Yadgir.

Karnataka Developments

The Revised Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of Karnataka stood at Rs 18.03 trillion in 2020-21. The state's GSDP grew at a CAGR of 8.47% between 2015-16 and 2021-22. The export of goods from the state had reached US$ 16.64 billion in 2019-20 and US$ 15.14 billion in 2020-21.
Karnataka has vibrant automobile, agriculture, aerospace, textile and apparel, biotech and heavy engineering industries in progress. Karnataka is the IT hub of India and the fourth largest technology cluster in the world. It has 34 operational SIZs as of October 2020.
Karnataka boasts of diverse flora and fauna and 320 km of natural coastline, which makes it a nature tourist's paradise. Karnataka as of March 2021, the third highest in India after Gujarat and Maharashtra, and accounts for 14% of India's cumulative FDI inflows.
Karnataka offers a wide range of financial and policy incentives for businesses along with simplified procedures for investment under the Karnataka Industrial Policy, 2020-25.
In June 2021, the Karnataka government amended the policy to give more impetus to the electric mobility sector. As per the amendment, 15% subsidy on capital expenditure was announced on land value (fixed value property up to a maximum limit of 50 acres of land).
Karnataka is the first state which has brought an aerospace policy in the country. The Karnataka Aerospace Policy has identified investment potential of US$ 12.5 billion in this sector during 2013-23 and plans to develop aerospace clusters in various regions of the state.