Central Highlands (India)

The Central Highlands of India is a large geological structure and biogeographic region located between the Deccan plateau and the Indo-Gangetic plains consisting of number of mountain ranges, including Vindhya and Aravali ranges, and the Chota Nagpur and Malwa plateaus.^[1] It is the single most important feature of Central India. It extends over three linguistic sub-regions of the Indo-Aryan language family and the languages chiefly spoken here are, from west to east, Marwari, Malwi, Bundeli, Bagheli, Chhattisgarhi and Maithili. The population is primarily Indo-Aryan along with a large population of Aboriginal tribes.

This region is widely populated with dense woods and number of different aboriginal tribal groups live here, who practice different forms of Hinduism.^[2] Many empires and dynasties have failed to conquer or have had a hard time controlling it due to resistance from the aborigines, as early as the famed Mauryans of Magadha and even the modern-day Indian Republic. The region is a hotbed of the Naxalite-Maoist insurgency, especially the eastern part.

The region has the second largest tribal population of all regions of India, next only to North-East India. It has a significantly less population density that other parts of India such as the coastal regions and the great northern plains. It is spread over the states of Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh (northern part) and Rajasthan (eastern part).

^ Chand, Mahesh; Puri, Vinay. Regional Planning in India. The Central Highlands can be divided into North Central Highlands and South Central Highlands. As would be clear from Fig. 1, the Central High- lands separate the Great Plains of North India from the plateaus and coastal plains of the Deccan. "It forms a compact block of mountains, hills and plateaus, interspersed with valleys and basins, covering about one sixth of the total area of India."
^ Forsyth, James. The Highlands of Central India. Such seems to be the probable future of those sections of the aborigines who lie on the confines of Hinduism in the plains. But so long as the vast wildernesses of these Central Highlands remain un- cleared, which physical causes will in great measure render a permanent necessity, so long must human inhabitants of a type fitted to occupy them continue to exist.

[1] Chand, Mahesh; Puri, Vinay. Regional Planning in India. The Central Highlands can be divided into North Central Highlands and South Central Highlands. As would be clear from Fig. 1, the Central High- lands separate the Great Plains of North India from the plateaus and coastal plains of the Deccan. "It forms a compact block of mountains, hills and plateaus, interspersed with valleys and basins, covering about one sixth of the total area of India."

[2] Forsyth, James. The Highlands of Central India. Such seems to be the probable future of those sections of the aborigines who lie on the confines of Hinduism in the plains. But so long as the vast wildernesses of these Central Highlands remain un- cleared, which physical causes will in great measure render a permanent necessity, so long must human inhabitants of a type fitted to occupy them continue to exist.

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