Western India – Gujarat , Maharashtra , Madya Pradesh

State	Population (millions)	Key Towns/ Cities	Literacy Rate (% of adults)
Gujarat	50.7	Ahmedabad	69.1
		Surat
Madhya Pradesh	60.3	Bhopal	63.7
		Bilaspur
Maharashtra	96.7	Mumbai	77.3
		Pune

Along most of the coast line, away from the saline swamps of the Rann of Kachchh ( Kutch ) in Gujarat, the coastal land is generally lush with some excellent beaches.

There is evidence of the Indus Valley (in what is now Pakistan ) civilisation (2800 BC to 1800 BC) having spread to Gujarat and Rajasthan to the North.

Moving east from the coast of Maharastra, the land remains flat except the Central Highlands of Madya Pradesh. The Malwa Plateau comprises the southern part of the Central Highlands and merges with the Vindhya Range where the hills border the Deccan Plateau of South India.

Lakes and reservoirs dot the landscape across Gujarat and Madya Pradesh. The main rivers that flow through the southern part of the
plain - the Narmada, the Tapti, and the Mahanadi - delineate North India from South India.

Industries
A dynamic industrial region mixing traditional chemical & manufacturing with newer sectors. Mumbai is the financial capital of India as well as the home of Bollywood and associated services.

• Automotive
• Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals
• Biotechnology
• Optical Fibre
• Engineering
• I.T. & I.T. enabled industries
• Food Processing
• Mining & minerals
• Textiles