Gadchiroli, the forest district carved out of Chandrapur in 1982, where the new iron-ore reservation lies

Background

Gadchiroli, where land has just been reserved for iron-ore mining, was formed on August 26, 1982 by dividing the erstwhile Chandrapur district. It lies in the Vidarbha region on the North-Eastern side of Maharashtra and shares borders with Telangana and Chhattisgarh. The district has forest over close to 76 % of its area, and it is known for Bamboo and Tendu leaves. Paddy is the main crop, and there is a Tussar Silk Worm Centre in Armori taluka. As per Census 2011, the population is 10,72,942, with Scheduled Tribes making up 38.7% and a literacy rate of 74.4%. Gondi, Madiya, Marathi, Hindi, Telugu, Bengali and Chattisgadi are among the languages spoken.