Parbhani

Parbhani (, IPA ) is a city in Maharashtra state of India. It is the administrative headquarters of Parbhani District. Parbhani is one of the largest cities in Marathwada region. Parbhani is around away from regional headquarters of Aurangabad while it is away from the state capital Mumbai. Along with the entire Marathwada region, Parbhani was a part of the erstwhile Nizam State; later a part of Hyderabad State; after reorganization of states in 1956 it became a part of the then-Bombay state; since 1960, it has been part of the present Maharashtra state. Parbhani is home to Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Agricultural University, which is one of only four agriculture universities in Maharashtra. Moreover, Parbhani also has an annual festival at Turabul Haq Dargah, which attracts lakhs of tourists each year. Parbhani is named after Goddess Prabhavati. In ancient times, Parbhani was known as "Prabhavati nagari" (प्रभावतीनगरी) on account of the existence of a massive temple of Goddess Prabhavati. The name "Prabhavati" means goddess Lakshmi and Parvati. Present name Parbhani is a corrupt form of Prabhavati. Parbhani was for over 650 years under Muslim rule, under the Deccan sultanates, the Mughals and later the Nizam of Hyderabad. The town remained a part of the Princely State of Hyderabad under the rulership of the Nizam until Operation Polo of the Indian Army in 1948. Thereafter it became part of the independent Republic of India. Until 1956 the town remained a part of Hyderabad State within India. Under the administrative reforms that year and the break-up of the State of Hyderabad, Parbhani and the adjacent towns were transferred to the multilingual Bombay State. Since 1960 it has been a part of State of Maharashtra. According to the 2011 census, the population of Parbhani city is 307,170. Male and female populations are 157,628 and 149,563 respectively, a ratio of 949 females per 1000 males. The average literacy rate of Parbhani city is 84.34 per cent (225,298 people), with male literacy at 90.71 per cent and female at 77.