page_title: Nagpur
section_title: Early and medieval history
hierarchical_section_title: Nagpur / History / Early and medieval history
caption_attribution_description: Statue of Bakht Buland Shah in Nagpur.
context_page_description: Nagpur is the third largest city and the winter capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the 13th largest city in India by population and according to an Oxford Economics report, Nagpur is projected to be the fifth fastest growing city in the world from 2019 to 2035 with an average growth of 8.41%. It has been proposed as one of the Smart Cities in Maharashtra and is one of the top ten cities in India in Smart City Project execution.
  Nagpur is the seat of the annual winter session of the Maharashtra state assembly. It is a major commercial and political centre of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. In addition, the city derives unique importance from being an important location for the Dalit Buddhist movement and the headquarters for the Hindu nationalist organisation RSS. Nagpur is also known for the Deekshabhoomi, which is graded an A-class tourism and pilgrimage site, the largest hollow stupa among all the Buddhist stupas in the world.
  According to a survey by ABP News-Ipsos, Nagpur was identified as the best city in India topping in livability, greenery, public transport, and health care indices in 2013.
context_section_description: In the 18th century, the city was created by the leader of Gond Dynasty named Bakht Buland Shah in the first half of the century. Human existence around present-day Nagpur can be traced back 3000 years to the 8th century BCE. Mehir burial sites at the Drugdhamna (near the Mhada colony) indicate that the megalithic culture existed around Nagpur and is still followed. The first reference to the name "Nagpur" is found in a 10th-century copper-plate inscription discovered at Devali in the neighbouring Wardha district. The inscription is a record of grant of a village situated in the Visaya (district) of Nagpura-Nandivardhana during the time of the Rastrakuta king Krsna III in the Saka year 862 (940 CE). Towards the end of the 3rd century, King Vindhyasakti is known to have ruled the Nagpur region. In the 4th century, the Vakataka Dynasty ruled over the Nagpur region and surrounding areas and had good relations with the Gupta Empire. The Vakataka king Prithvisena I moved his capital to Nagardhan (ancient name Nandivardhana), 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Nagpur. After the Vakatakas, the region came under the rule of the Hindu kingdoms of the Badami Chalukyas, the Rashtrakutas. The Paramaras of Malwa appear to have controlled the Nagpur region in the 11th century. A prashasti inscription of the Paramara king Lakshmadeva (r. c. 1086–1094) has been found at Nagpur. Subsequently, the region came under the Yadavas of Devagiri. In 1296, Allauddin Khilji invaded the Yadava Kingdom after capturing Deogiri, after which the Tughlaq Dynasty came to power in 1317. In the 17th century, the Mughal Empire conquered the region, however during Mughal era, regional administration was carried out by the Gond kingdom of Deogarh-Nagpur in the Chhindwara district of the modern-day state of Madhya Pradesh. In the 18th, century Bhonsles of the Maratha Empire established the Nagpur Kingdom based in the city.
caption: statue of Bakht Buland Shah in Nagpur
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