Vidarbha’s Treasure: Drifting West in Maharashtra

thenewsdirt
Apr 2, 2025
4 min read

Picture a coal mine’s dark edges in Chandrapur or the orange groves stretching near Nagpur. These scenes reveal a region rich in natural wealth, yet a closer look at the villages nearby shows muddy tracks where paved roads fade away.

Something feels uneven here, a subtle thread running through eastern Maharashtra that invites curiosity about the flow of its bounty.

Digging into Mineral Wealth

Vidarbha, covering eastern Maharashtra, boasts a hefty share of the state’s natural resources. Coal lies thick beneath Chandrapur, iron ore runs through Gadchiroli, and manganese peppers the landscape.

The Hindu BusinessLine pegged the value of minerals extracted across Maharashtra at ₹16,036 crore in a single year, with coal and iron ore leading the pack.

According to a 2014 Directorate of Geology report from Nagpur, Vidarbha holds two-thirds of this mineral wealth. Much of this output appears to feed industries beyond the region’s borders.

Steel plants in western Maharashtra, such as JSW Steel’s operations in Tarapur and Dolvi near Mumbai, rely on iron ore to produce tonnes of steel annually. Given their scale and location, Vidarbha's deposits likely supply these facilities.

A 2013 Times of India article highlighted Surjagarh in Gadchiroli as a “gold mine” of iron ore yet noted the lack of local processing plants.

Some stay closer to home, though. The Chandrapur Ferro Alloy Plant, managed by SAIL, turns manganese into alloys right in Vidarbha. Its output, however, remains modest compared to the industrial hubs westward.

Coal follows a similar path. Chandrapur’s mines power local thermal plants, like the Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station, but the energy grid stretches across the state, lighting up Mumbai’s towers and Pune’s tech parks.

Vidarbha has been flagged as a key contributor, with firms like Lloyds Metals boosting local efforts since 2021. Even so, the broader reach of this coal suggests a westward pull, though hard data on its final destinations remains elusive.

Funding Flows and Priorities

Financial resources offer another angle. Vidarbha’s mines and fields generate income through royalties, taxes, and jobs, yet the spending patterns lean elsewhere.

The Maharashtra Economic Survey 2022-23 showed infrastructure funding favouring western Maharashtra, with Mumbai and Pune securing 35% of the state’s allocation, while Vidarbha received 15%.

This disparity stands out, given Vidarbha’s vast area, nearly a third of Maharashtra, and its population, over a fifth of the state’s total, per the 2011 Census.

The state’s 2020 Industrial Policy sharpens this focus. Western Maharashtra claimed 40% of industrial development funds, earmarked for ports and factories, while Vidarbha’s 20% went mostly to agriculture and mining.

Mumbai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, handling 60% of Maharashtra’s exports, likely ships out Vidarbha’s minerals, as noted in a 2024 NITI Aayog report. Meanwhile, Vidarbha’s cotton farmers and orange growers often call for better irrigation, a need that seems to carry less weight in state planning.

This trend stretches back decades. Since the 1960s, Mumbai’s growth as a financial hub has drawn investment westward.

In 2015, the Economic and Political Weekly article traced regional imbalances to this period, pointing to Vidarbha’s slower industrial rise despite its raw assets.

Recent budgets, like the 2023-24 plan, maintain this tilt, with the western projects absorbing funds while Vidarbha’s calls for rail or power upgrades wait. Nagpur’s metro and airport improvements buck the trend, yet the broader region feels the pinch of uneven allocation.

Roads, Rails, and Gaps

Step into a village in Gadchiroli, and the nearest paved road might lie miles away. The 2011 Census recorded all-weather road access at 58% for Vidarbha’s villages, compared to 78% in western Maharashtra.

By 2023, the Public Works Department reported that western regions were taking 60% of new road projects, while Vidarbha trailed at 25%. Good roads move goods and people, driving progress, yet the contrast here remains clear.

Railways mirror this divide. Mumbai’s suburban lines and Pune’s freight routes hum with activity, while Vidarbha’s tracks, crucial for coal and ore, often connect to western hubs rather than linking the east internally.

The NITI Aayog in 2018 tied Vidarbha’s infrastructure lag to a policy emphasis on urban west over rural east. Nagpur stands apart, with its expanding airport and metro, but beyond this centre, the region’s network feels thin, roads wear down, and bridges remain on wish lists.

Policy plays a role here. Western Maharashtra’s ports and cities attract tax breaks and land deals, while Vidarbha’s farming base gets attention but less action.

Governance tilts west too, with Mumbai hosting the state’s decision-makers. Calls for statehood reflect this frustration.

Nagpur’s MIHAN projects and logistics push signal eastern growth. Yet western Maharashtra’s steel plants, ports, and tech parks dominate, their need for resources unmistakable.

Roads, funding, and policy favour the west, but local efforts like Chandrapur’s ferro alloy plant show retention. The 2011 Census and 2023 PWD reports highlight infrastructure gaps, while Vidarbha’s voice, through farmer protests and political demands, grows louder. History points westward, yet recent steps tug east.

Coal dust settles on Vidarbha’s hands, oranges ripen under its sun, and iron ore glints in the morning light. Far off, western towers glow, steel beams rise, and ships glide from polished ports.

Faint lines, budget sheets, rail tracks, and policy notes tie these worlds together, stretching across Maharashtra’s wide plains. Some see a balance forming, others a gap widening.

Each village path, each tonne of ore, each pound spent carries a fragment of the tale. The land keeps speaking, and its words drift on the wind, waiting for listeners.