Parbhani district, earlier also known as Prabhavatinagar , is one of the eight districts in the Marathawada region of the state of Maharashtra. This entire Marathwada region was a part of the erstwhile Nizam State. It later became a part of the Hyderabad state. After reorganization of states in 1956 it became a part of the then Bombay state, and from 1960 onwards it is part of the present Maharashtra state. Parbhani has been described as the land of saints, as several saints have been associated with Parbhani including saint Namdeo from Narsi and Janabai from Gangakhed. The famous mathematician Bhaskara was from Bori in Parbhani district. Further details about the district are furnished below.
Location of Parbhani District
Parbhani district lies between 18.45 and 20.10 North Latitudes and 76.13 and 77.39 East Longitudes. The district is bounded on the north by Hingoli district, on the east by Nanded district, on the South by Latur and on the west by Beed district and Jalna district. The state capital of Mumbai is to the west. Parbhani is well connected by road to other major towns in Maharashtra and also to the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh.
Geography of Parbhani District
The district of Parbhani covers a total area of 6250.58 Sq.Km. It is at an average height of 357 m from mean sea level. The hills on the north east form part of the Ajanta Hill ranges which passes through Jintur Tahsil. The hills on the southern side are the Balaghat Hill ranges. According to the last Census reports of 2001, the district had a population of 1,527,715 of which 31.76 percent are urban. Jowar is produced in plenty in the region, and for this reason it is also known as the storehouse of Jowar in the Marathwada region.
Administration of Parbhani District
The district is divided into 9 administrative Sub-units (Tahsils)-Parbhani, Gangakhed, Sonpeth, Pathri, Manwath, Palam, Selu, Jintur, and Purna. The Collectorate is headed by the District Collector who is in charge of the Revenue administration within the district and co-ordinates the functioning of all other state Government departments within the district. The office of the Collector has several branches or departments which are supervised by various officers of the rank of Deputy-Collector or Tahsildars. The District Collector is supported by the Additional Collector who looks after certain branches of the Collectorate.
Education in Parbhani District
Parbhani district is well known for its contribution in the field of Education. It has the Marathwada Agriculture university (MAU) offering courses ranging from Under-Graduate to Ph.D. and Doctorate in various disciplines of agricultural sciences. Apart from this, various colleges affiliated to Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University, established in the year 1994 are available. Further, different vocational, industrial and other courses are also available. Among the prominent educational institutions in the district are Dnynopasak College of Arts, Commerce and Science; the Shivaji College of Arts, Commerce and Science; Devgiri College of Arts and Commerce, etc.