Osmanabad district is an administrative district in the Marathwada region of the state of Maharashtra, India. The district headquarters is the town of Osmanabad. The district lies on the Balaghat plateau in the southern part of Maharashtra and forms part of the Aurangabad division. In 2022, the Government of Maharashtra announced the renaming of the district to Dharashiv, reviving an older toponym associated with the region.
| Country | India |
|---|---|
| State | Maharashtra |
| Region | Marathwada |
| Division | Aurangabad division |
| Headquarters | Osmanabad (Dharashiv) |
| Renamed | Dharashiv (2022) |
| Major rivers | Manjra, Bhima, Sina, Terna |
The district takes its earlier name from Mir Osman Ali Khan, the seventh and last Nizam of Hyderabad, during whose reign the area formed part of the princely Hyderabad State. The older name, Dharashiv, is associated with the ancient Dharashiv Caves located near the district headquarters, a group of rock-cut caves of Jain and Buddhist affiliation. After the Police Action of 1948 (Operation Polo), the territory was integrated into the Indian Union as part of Hyderabad State, and on the linguistic reorganisation of states in 1956 it was assigned to Bombay State. With the bifurcation of Bombay State on 1 May 1960, the district became part of the newly formed Maharashtra.
Osmanabad district lies on a plateau between the Godavari and Bhima river basins, with elevations rising to the Balaghat range. The terrain is undulating, with black cotton soil predominant in the river valleys. The district is drained chiefly by the Manjra, Terna, Bhima and Sina rivers. The climate is semi-arid, with hot summers, a monsoon season from June to September and cool, dry winters; rainfall is variable, and parts of the district fall within the rain-shadow zone of the Western Ghats, making it drought-prone.
The district is divided into several tehsils, which include Osmanabad, Tuljapur, Omerga, Lohara, Kallam, Bhoom, Paranda and Washi. Local self-government is exercised through the Zilla Parishad at the district level, with panchayat samitis at the block level and gram panchayats in villages. Urban areas are administered by municipal councils and nagar panchayats. The district returns members to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and forms part of the Osmanabad Lok Sabha constituency.
The economy is predominantly agrarian. Principal crops include jowar, bajra, tur, soybean, sugarcane and oilseeds. Sugar cooperatives, dairying and small-scale agro-processing units form important parts of the rural economy. Owing to recurrent droughts, water conservation measures, watershed development and irrigation projects on the Manjra and Terna rivers have been significant policy concerns.
Marathi is the principal language of the district. Urdu, Kannada and Telugu are spoken in pockets, reflecting the district's location on the cultural frontier of Marathwada with Karnataka and Telangana, and its history as part of the Hyderabad State.
In 2022, the Government of Maharashtra approved a proposal to rename Osmanabad district as Dharashiv, alongside the renaming of Aurangabad as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. The change was subsequently notified following the necessary central government clearances.