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Qom

Qom is a city in the Central District of Qom County, Qom province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. The city is 140 km to the south of Tehran, and on the banks of the Qom River.

Qom is considered holy in Shi'a Islam, as it is the site of the shrine of Fatimah bint Musa, sister of Imam Ali ibn Musa Rida (Persian: Imam Reza; 789–816). The city is the largest center for Shi'a scholarship in the world, and is a significant destination of pilgrimage, with around twenty million pilgrims visiting the city every year, the majority being Iranians but also other Shi'a Muslims from all around the world.

Qom has developed into a lively industrial center owing in part to its proximity to Tehran. It is a regional center for the distribution of petroleum and petroleum products, and a natural gas pipeline from Bandar Anzali and Tehran and a crude oil pipeline from Tehran run through Qom to the Abadan refinery on the Persian Gulf. Qom gained additional prosperity when oil was discovered at Sarajeh near the city in 1956 and a large refinery was built between Qom and Tehran.

Etymology
Some researchers have considered the word "Kom" (in the ancient name of Komidan (Komiran)) to mean "city" and believe that there is a lexical connection between the words "Komiran", "Shemiran (near Tehran)", "Tehran", "Chamran (in Saveh areas)" and "Iran", and they considered the old name of Qom to be "Komiran" (in the meaning of "Iran city").

History
The present town of Qom in Central Iran dates back to ancient times. Its pre-Islamic history can be partially documented, although the earlier epochs remain unclear. Excavations at Tepe Sialk indicate that the region had been settled since ancient times (Ghirshman and Vanden Berghe), and more recent surveys have revealed traces of large, inhabited places south of Qom, dating from the 4th and 1st millennium BC. While nothing is known about the area from Elamite, Medes, and Achaemenid times, there are significant archeological remains from the Seleucid and Parthian epochs, of which the ruins of Khurha (about 70 km southwest of Qom) are the most famous and important remnants. Their dating and function have instigated long and controversial debates and interpretations, for they have been interpreted and explained variously as the remains of a Sasanian temple, or of a Seleucid Dionysian temple, or of a Parthian complex. Its true function is still a matter of dispute, but the contributions by Wolfram Kleiss point to a Parthian palace that served as a station on the nearby highway and was used until Sasanian times.

The recently published results of the excavations carried out in 1955 by Iranian archeologists have, however, revived the old thesis of a Seleucid religious building. Besides Khurha, which is already mentioned as Khor Abad at Qomi in the 9th century, the region has turned up a few other remnants from this epoch, including the four Parthian heads found near Qom, now kept in the National Museum of Iran in Tehran. Qomi names Parthian personalities as founders of villages in the Qom area. The possible mention of Qom in the form of Greek names in two ancient geographical works (the Tabula Peutingera and Ptolemy's geographical tables) remains doubtful.

The Sasanian epoch offers many archeological findings and remnants, besides the fact that various sources mention Qom. The most interesting building from an archeological point of view is the Qalʿa-ye Doḵtar in Qom itself, which was long thought to have served religious purposes, while more recent research points to an administrative use. The wider surroundings of Qom also contain numerous traces from palaces, religious, military and administrative buildings. Some of these are mentioned by Qomi, who also names many more fire temples in the urban area of present Qom and its region, of which no archeological traces are left although the location of one fire temple can probably be equated with today's Masjed-e Emām in the city. According to Qomi, the most important fire temple of the area stood in the nearby village of Dizijan.

Tāriḵ-e Qom and some other sources also speak of genuine historical figures of the Sasanian epoch in connection with Qom and its region. They shed new light on the time of the seizure of power by the first Sasanian king Ardashir I, who fought his decisive battles near Qom, and the collapse of the Sasanian empire, which is extensively reported by Ebn Aʿṯam Kufi and the Nehāyat al-Erab and names a certain Šērzād as the satrap of the region. The existence of an urban settlement in the Sasanian epoch is furthermore verified by Middle Persian sources (literary sources, inscriptions, and seals) that mention in the time of Shapur I and Kawād I the names Godmān/Gomān and Ērān Win(n)ārd Kawād, both of which could be identified as Qom. Altogether one can assume that Qom functioned as a small administrative unit throughout the whole Sasanian era. Probably the urban structure of the Sasanian settlement of Qom can be compared with the type of city of Ctesiphon (Or. Madāʾen) and consisted of several villages and little towns with Abaraštejān, Mamajjān and Jamkarān as the bigger settlements that were loosely connected by defense installations.

It is difficult to decipher the actual process of the Arab conquest of Qom from the extant Arabic sources. According to Balāḏori, the first tentative conquest of Qom took place in 23/644 by Abu Musa Ashaari after a few days of fighting (although Abu Musa's route through Western Persia, as narrated by Balāḏori, appears somewhat confusing). It remains unclear who the defenders of Qom were; probably fleeing Sasanian nobles and local soldiers returning from the great battles against the Arabs formed the core of the resistance. The area remained largely untouched for 60 years after the initial conquest and was probably administered from Isfahan.

The first permanent settlement of Arab settlers in Qom took place during the revolts of Mukhtar al-Thaqafi and Moṭarref b. Moḡira b. Šaʿba in 66–77/685–96, when small groups of refugees moved there and Qom itself was affected by the fighting between the Umayyad state power and the rebels

The decisive step for the later urban development of Qom occurred when a group of Ashaari Arabs came to the area. These Ashaaries originated in Yemen and the first important figure among them was the first conqueror of the area of Qom, the above-mentioned Abu Musa Ashaari. ʿAbd-Allāh b. Saʿd and Aḥwaṣ b. Saʿd were grandsons of Abi Musa's nephew and led the group of Ashaaries that emigrated from Kufa to the region of Qom. It is not exactly clear why they migrated, but it might have also been a general opposition to the Umayyad dynasty. A central element was the early contact with the leading local Zoroastrian Persian noble Yazdanfadar.

As the Arabs required a great deal of pasture for their large herds of cattle and were much wealthier than the local Persians, they slowly started to buy land and take over more villages. The decisive step for controlling the area was the elimination of the local Persian noble class that took place after the death of Yazdanfadar in 733.

Although a few names of governors and their tax assessments are known from the time after the administrative independence, the death of Fātimah bint Mūsā, the sister of the eighth Imam of Shias Ali al-Ridha in the city in 201/816–17 proved to be of great importance for the later history of Qom. Fātimah bint Mūsā died while following her brother to Khorasan, a region in northern Iran. The place of her entombment developed from 869–70 into a building that was transformed over time into today's magnificent and economically important sanctuary.

In 825–26, a major rebellion against the tax regulations of the caliphate broke out in Qom. It was caused by the refusal of the caliph Al-Ma'mun to lower the yearly tax assessment as he had done in Ray. The revolt was led by an Ashaari named Yahya ibn Emran, maintaining that taxes should not be paid to an unlawful ruler. Yahya was killed by troops sent by the caliph and the citizens were severely punished; the taxes were raised from 2 million to 7 million dirhams. Two years later the taxes were again raised by 700,000 dirham by the Ashaari governor Ali ibn Isa, who was subsequently deposed because he was strongly rejected by the inhabitants of Qom. But in 833 Ali returned to the post of governor (wali) and forcefully collected tax debts that were laid upon him by the caliph. He destroyed parts of Qom and handed over a wanted rebel to caliphal authorities under Al-Moʿtasem. Between 839–42 two contradicting tax assessments were carried out under turbulent circumstances which amounted to a sum of 5 million dirhams. The names of those involved have survived. The move of a Hadith transmitter from Kufa to Qom, which took place probably in the middle of the 9th century, indicates the increased importance of Qom as a center of Shia learning. At about the same time another military attack on the city occurred in 254/868, when Mofleḥ, the Turkish officer of the caliph Al-Mostaʿin, executed some of its inhabitants because of the city's refusal to pay taxes. Mofleḥ became governor of Qom and lasted in that position for at least five years. During his governorship important Alids moved to Qom and there are references to close contacts between the representative of the 11th Shia's Imam, Hassan al-Askari, in Qom and other Qomis. The representative Aḥmad b. Esḥāq was at the same time administrator of the Fāṭema sanctuary and the agent (wakil) responsible for the pensions of the Alids.

The first Friday mosque in Qom was built in 878–79 on the site of a fire temple, although there are also confusing reports concerning a possible earlier Friday mosque. In 881–82 Qom was occupied by the Turkish military leader Edgu Tegin (Arabic: Yadkutakin b. Asātakin or Aḏkutakin), who tried to collect the tax arrears for seven years which partially ruined the guarantors (some of whom are known) of these taxes. At about the same time the early orthodox Shias achieved their victory in the town. In 893–94, at the latest, all extremists (ḡolāt) were driven out of town by the leading Shia shaikh of Qom, Aḥmad b. Moḥammed b. Isa Ashaari. Probably one year later, in 1895, the famous Islamic mystic Ḥosayn b. Manṣur Ḥallaj stayed in Qom, where he was arrested.

From 895–96 onwards the history of Qom was connected with a family of Turkish military leaders from the army of the caliph Al-Mu'tadid, including the governor Berun (Birun). In the same year, Berun destroyed a big and probably still active fire temple located on the territory of the evolving city and probably opposite today's sanctuary of Fātimah bint Mūsā. In these unstable political times, Qom was visited by the vizier of Al-Moʿtazed, Obayd-Allah ibn Solayman, and two tax assessments were organized. An administrative peculiarity of Qom was put to an end at about the same time, to wit the independent appointment of judges through the Arab inhabitants of Qom until the time of al-Moktafi, which, together with the dispatch of a joint Arab-Persian delegation to the vizier Ḥamid ibn Abbas indicate the end of the elevated position of the Arabs in Qom. The period of the governor Abbas ibn Amr Ganawi (292–96/904–09) is remarkable for the presence of non-Twelver Shias in Qom and the establishment of the office of the jahbaḏ (financial officer) as the tax broker for the city, which fostered local self-determination.

In 909 Hosayn ibn Hamdan ibn Hamdun was appointed governor of Qom and Kāšān by the caliph Al-Moqtader and had to assist the caliph's army against the Saffarids in Fars. Altogether he stayed in power only for two years before he had to return to Baghdad. In the years 301/913–14 to 315/927, the people of Qom had, besides another tax assessment (meanwhile the eighth), a caliphal intervention that resulted in the appointment of a governor to stabilize the administrative grip over the region. This move caused more unrest and affected the balance of power in an area that was disputed between the powers of the time (Daylamites, Samanids). Beginning in 316/928 Qom fell into the sphere of interest of Daylami warlords and was relieved from the direct authority of the caliph, although it changed hands several times between 928 and 943. The Daylamites brutally exploited the city through harsh taxes. With the firm establishment of Buyids control from 340/951–52 on, the political circumstances were less troubled than before, although the economic situation deteriorated.

No outstanding events are reported for the relatively stable political period until 988–89, but Qom seems to have been isolated inside Persia because of its Shia creed. At the same time, the Fatima sanctuary was enlarged and the number of sayyeds residing in Qom reached a considerable number. In 373/984, Qom and its environs were impacted by the revolt of the Kurdish Moḥammad Barzikāni against the Buyid Fakr-Al-Dawla.

The population amounted to 50,000 inhabitants at the most and consisted of Persians and Arabs who had adopted the Persian of the time as their language and many social customs from the Persians, whose proportion was probably smaller than the Arabs. The Kurds lived in the countryside to the west. The Twelver Shia constituted the great majority of the population and many important Shia scholars of the time came from Qom or lived there. As many as 331 male Alids lived in Qom in 988–89, and they produced a good number of community leaders and there is also mention of one prominent female ʿAlid besides Fātimah bint Mūsā. These Alids descended from the Imams and were supported by pensions.

Apart from the Shia mainstream, other Shia sects existed in the city and one can also assume the presence of Sunnies. Ḏemmis, or followers of other revealed religions (Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians) must have lived in the city, too, as the payment of poll tax (jezya) indicates, although their number can only be very roughly estimated at a few thousand at the end of the 9th century and must have shrunk drastically in the 10th century. The majority of these non-Muslims were Zoroastrians, who made their living mostly as farmers. Jews must have lived in Qom as well, but information on them is scant. It is striking that the formerly dominant Ashaaries had lost their leading positions by the end of the 10th century. This points at a new social situation that allowed assimilated Persians to join the local establishment.

The city's topography in the 10th century still reflected the evolutionary merging of the original six villages; these were still separated by fields. The town center was located in the village of Mamajjān, which was connected to other parts of the city on the other side of the river by four bridges. There were about eight squares whose function is not clear and three mosques within the city. There is almost no information about madrasas. The sanctuary must have still been quite small as only two cupolas are mentioned. A bazaar and bathhouses must have existed, too, as well as certain administrative buildings (prison, mint). Five bigger and eight smaller roads indicate good traffic connections, which were supported by at least three or maybe even nine city gates.

Qom was then in a difficult economic and social position. Many houses inside the city as well as bridges and mills were ruined, and the roads and agriculture were suffering from an insecure situation. This has to be attributed to difficult social circumstances and excessive taxation. The water supply seems to have been satisfactory and the Ashaaries seem to have undertaken continuous renovation works on the irrigation channels between 733 and 900. The Ašʿaris were also the proprietors of the water rights, which were safeguarded in the water authority (divān-e āb) that regulated the water shares. The system made the Ašʿaris the wealthiest inhabitants of Qom and stayed in place until 347/958–59 when they were expropriated by the Buyids, which consequently brought about a decline in the whole system of irrigation. Although there were attempts at restoration in 371/981–82, only three of originally twenty-one channels had flowing water which meant enough drinking water was supplied for the population, but the available amount could not have been adequate for agricultural purposes. Altogether the state of cultivation in Qom seems to have resembled that of the other regions of Persia, although the thirty different crops and plants are only indirectly mentioned in connection with the tax assessments. The soil is reported to have good quality and produced big quantities of food. Little is known about animal husbandry in the region, but the considerable number of fifty-one mills existed, of which a fifth was in decay. Legends speak of mineral deposits and mines of silver, iron, gold and lead, while Kurds seem to have produced salt from a lake nearby (see Qom Lake). The production of chairs, textiles, and saddle equipment indicates craftsmanship.

The city's taxation has to be distinguished between the more proper rule of the Abbasid tax bureaucracy and the time of the Deylamid warlords where rules were bent arbitrarily. A stunning diversity of taxes is known (often meant to serve the Abbasid bureaucracy and the Deylamid and Buyid war machinery) but the Karaj (land tax), which was composed of many different separate sums, was the most important single tax existing in Qom at least since post-Sasanian times. Within the known 18 tax figures ranging over 160 years there are great differences and the tax figures vary from 8 million to 2 million dirhams with a mean value at around 3 million. In taxation Qom always followed the solar calendar with its own local variation, starting from the death of the Sasanian Yazdegerd III. A highly differentiated tax administration existed and is known in great detail; 24 tax collectors (ʿommāl) are listed from 189/804–05 to 371/981–82 plus two jahabaḏa who acted as mediators after the attempt to enforce collective responsibility by the taxpayers had failed. The information in the Tāriḵ-e Qom on taxation also mention by name 21 tax districts (rasātiq) in the region with 900 villages.

Little is known about the time until the period of Seljuki dominance. In 387/997, Qom became involved in internal Buyid quarrels and was subsequently unsuccessfully besieged. In 418/1027–28, Qom fell under the rule of Šahryuš from the Kakuyid dynasty and a few years later (1030–40) it became part of the Ghaznavid domain. The Seljuki did not occupy Qom at once but left the town and Jebāl in Kakuyid hands for ten years. From 442/1050–51 on, the city was under Seljuk rule and nothing is known about its fate until 487/1094. Afterwards the growing instability of the Seljuk empire involved Qom in the power struggles between the competing Seljuk factions in Jebāl and the city changed hands many times. The most stable period seems to have been the 14 years (513–27/1119–33) when Qom lay in Sanjar's sphere of power and witnessed the construction of a second Friday mosque.

Qom enjoyed relative prosperity in its economy in the Seljuk period. The rigidly Sunni Seljuks seem to have practiced a pragmatic policy and one of the main sources of this time (ʿAbd-al-Jalil Qazvini) speaks of good relations between the famous vizier Nizam al-Mulk and Seljuk sultans on the one hand, and members of the local nobility on the other. Sultans reportedly visited the sanctuary (although no specific sultan is mentioned by name) and in general no religiously motivated punitive action against Qom is known to have taken place. Under Seljuk rule a considerable number of religious buildings were erected. At least ten madrasas are known by name. Two Friday mosques seem to have existed in Seljuk times: the old one was renovated and a new one, located outside of the town area, was built in 528/1133–34 by the order of Sultan Togrel II (Persian: سلطان طغرل دوم). Qom must have expanded during this period, but precise reasons for its prosperity are not known. A family of Ḥosaynid Alids was influential and provided a number of community leaders. Another important Shia family was that of the Daʿwidār (Persian: دعوی‌دار), whose members were judges (Arabic: قاضی) in town, which indicates the transformation of Qom from a town governed by the Sunnis to a completely Shai domain.

The following epochs of the Eldiguzids and Khawrazmshahs lasted for almost 30 years and brought different systems of rule in quick succession. The two noteworthy events of this period are the execution of ʿEzz-al-Din Yaḥyā, the naqib of the Shias, by the Tekesh in 592/1196 and the work on the tiles of the sanctuary (probably in 605–13/1208–17), which indicate a certain economic prosperity at a time of unstable political conditions. From 614/1217–18 until the Mongol attack, Qom remained under Muhammad II of Khwarezm.

The Mongol invasion led to the total destruction of Qom by the armies of the Mongol generals, Jebe and Sübedei, in 621/1224 and left the city in ruins for at least twenty years, when the sources (Jovayni) tell of the levying of taxes. Twenty years later, reconstruction and repair works, probably sponsored by some wealthy inhabitants, were being done on the mausoleums of Shia saints in the city, which contradict those sources, such as Ḥamd-Allāh Mostawfi, that describe Qom as a ruined and depopulated city throughout the Ilkhanid period. Besides, the fact that the Ilkhanid vizier Šams-al-Din Jovayni took refuge in the Fātimah bint Mūsā sanctuary in 683/1284, indicates that the city must have experienced at least a modest comeback. The city walls were probably rebuilt and, moreover, four graves of saints are known to have been constructed between 720/1301 and 1365. Additionally, some fine tiles are known from this period. Nothing is known about the irrigation systems of the town, but nearby a dam was built in the Ilkhanid period and the local administration must have functioned again, as the name of a judge shows. The agricultural situation is described as flourishing with a variety of cultivated plants and a good supply of water, and legends indicate the use of deposits of mineral resources. Information exists concerning taxes for the post-Mongolian period. Qom paid 40,000 dinars, but more remarkable is the fact that some of the surrounding rural districts paid as much as Qom or even more, which suggests that the whole administrative structure of districts had also changed.

In the late 14th century, the city was plundered by Tamerlane and the inhabitants were massacred. Qom gained special attention and gradually developed due to its religious shrine during the Saffavid dynasty. By 1503, Qom became one of the important centers of theology in relation to Shia Islam and became a significant religious pilgrimage site and pivot.

The city suffered heavy damage again during the Afghan invasions, resulting in consequent severe economic hardships. Qom further sustained damage during the reign of Nader Shah and the conflicts between the two households of Zandieh and Qajariyeh in order to gain power over Iran. Finally in 1793 Qom came under the control of Agha Muhammad Khan Qajar. On being victorious over his enemies, the Qajar Sultan Fath Ali Shah was responsible for the repairs done on the sepulchre and Holy Shrine of Hæzræt Mæ'sume, as he had made such a vow.

The city of Qom began another era of prosperity in the Qajar era. After Russian forces entered Karaj in 1915, many of the inhabitants of Tehran moved to Qom due to reasons of proximity, and the transfer of the capital from Tehran to Qom was even discussed. But the British and Russians defeated prospects of the plan by putting Ahmad Shah Qajar under political pressure.

As a center of religious learning Qom fell into decline for about a century from 1820 to 1920 but had a resurgence when Shaykh Abdul Karim Haeri Yazdi accepted an invitation to move from Sultanabad (now called Arak, Iran), where he had been teaching, to Qom.

In 1964–65, before his exile from Iran, the Ayatollah Khomeini led his opposition to the Pahlavi dynasty from Qom. On 19 February 2020, the Iranian Students News Agency reported that the first two cases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran were detected in Qom.

Population
At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city's population was 957,496 in 241,827 households. The following census in 2011 counted 1,074,036 people in 299,752 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 1,201,158 people in 356,976 households.

Geography
Qom, the capital of Qom province, is located 125 kilometers south of Tehran, on a low plain. The shrine of Fatimeh Masumeh, the sister of Imam Reza, is located in this city, which is considered by Shiʿa Muslims holy. The city is located in the boundary of the central desert of Iran (Kavir-e Markazi). At the 2011 census its population was 1,074,036, comprising 545,704 males and 528,332 females.

Qom is a focal center of the Shiʿah. Since the revolution, the clerical population has risen from around 25,000 to more than 45,000 and the non-clerical population has more than tripled to about 700,000. Substantial sums of money in the form of alms and Islamic taxes flow into Qom to the ten Marja'-e taqlid or "Source to be Followed" that reside there. The number of seminary schools in Qom is now over fifty, and the number of research institutes and libraries somewhere near two hundred and fifty.

Its theological center and the Fatima Masumeh Shrine are prominent features of Qom. Another very popular religious site of pilgrimage formerly outside the city of Qom but now more of a suburb is called Jamkaran. Qom's proximity to Tehran has allowed the clerical establishment easy access to monitor the affairs and decisions of state. Many Grand Ayatollahs possess offices in both Tehran and Qom; many people simply commute between the two cities as they are only 156 km apart. Southeast of Qom is the ancient city of Kashan. Directly south of Qom lie the towns of Delijan, Mahallat, Naraq, Pardisan City, Kahak, and Jasb. The surrounding area to the west of Qom is populated by Tafresh, Saveh, and Ashtian and Jafarieh. Arak city (Industrial Capital of Iran) is in the southwest of Qom.

Climate
Qom has a hot desert climate bordering a cold desert climate based on Köppen climate classification (BWh bordering on BWk) and has an arid climate based on Trewartha climate classification (BW), with low annual rainfall due to remoteness from the sea and being situated in the vicinity of the subtropical anticyclone aloft. Summer weather is very hot and essentially rainless, whilst in winter weather can vary from warm to – when Siberian air masses are driven south across the Alborz Mountains by blocking over Europe – frigid. An example of the latter situation was in January 2008 when minima fell to −23 C on the 15th, whilst earlier similar situations occurred in January 1964 and to a lesser extent January 1950, January 1972 and December 1972.

The highest recorded temperature was 47 °C on 11 July 2010 and the lowest recorded temperature was -23 °C on 15 January 2008.

Governance
Authority for the city lies with the mayor, who is elected by a municipal board. The municipal board is periodically elected by the city's residents. The municipal central office is located on Saheli Street. The current mayor of Qom is Mohammad Delbari.

Old districts

 * Soltan Mohammad Sharif
 * Bagh Pambeh
 * Jouy Shour
 * Safaiyyeh
 * Sadough
 * Yakhchal Ghazi
 * Shah Ahmad Ghasim
 * Bagh Ashrafi
 * Darvaze Ghale'
 * Khandagh
 * Ghale Amou Hossein

 * Barassoun
 * Hammam Taalaar
 * Sang Band
 * Eshgh Ali
 * Tekyeh Agha Sayyed Hassan
 * Arabestan
 * Darvazeh Kashan
 * Sarbakhsh
 * Sar Howz
 * Alvandiyeh
 * Gozar Sadegh

 * Lab Chaal
 * Chehel Akhtaran
 * Razavia
 * Manba' Ab
 * Nikouyee
 * Nowbahar
 * Allouchou
 * Khak-Faraj
 * Haj Zaynal
 * Haj Khalil

 * Bagh Shazdeh
 * Chehel Derakht
 * Zad
 * Chahar Imamzadeh
 * Hanif Nizhad
 * Paminar
 * Qom Now
 * Maydan Now
 * Zandyan va Handyan
 * Darvazeh Choubi

Modern districts

 * Tohid
 * Shahr-e-Gha'em
 * Panzdah-e-Khordad
 * Jahan Bini
 * Talighani Town
 * Baajak Town
 * Farhangian Town
 * Tavaneer Town
 * Fatimia Town

 * Imam Hassan TownQom-Azadari-Moharram4.JPG Mourning in Bagh Shazdeh, Qom]]
 * Imam Hossein Residential Area
 * Bonyad Residential Area
 * Mahdia Town
 * Imam Khomeini Town
 * Pardisan City
 * Safa Shahr
 * Qods Town

Historical and cultural heritage
Iran's Cultural Heritage Organization lists 195 sites of historical and cultural significance in Qom. But the more visited sites of Qom are:

 * Shrine of Fatimah al-Masumah
 * Jamkaran Mosque
 * Azam Mosque
 * Imam Hassan Al-Asgari Mosque
 * Al-Ghadir Mosque
 * Atiq Mosque in Qom
 * Qom Bazaar
 * Feyzieh Religious School
 * Mar'ashi Najafi Library, with over 500,000 handwritten texts and copies.
 * Timcheh-ye-Bozorg (Grand Timcheh)
 * Paminar School
 * Jahangirkhan School
 * Fath-Ali Shah Qajar Tomb
 * Mohammad Shah Qajar Tomb
 * Shah Abbas II Tomb
 * Shah Soleyman III & Shah Safi Tomb
 * Gonbad Sabz Historical Garden
 * Ali Ibn Ja'afar Tomb
 * Shah Hamzeh Tomb
 * Seyyed Hossein Borujerdi's Historical House
 * Yazdan Panah Historical House
 * Haji Khan Historical House
 * Zand Historical House
 * Ruhollah Khomeini's House
 * Beyt-on-noor House
 * Haj Asgar Khan Historical Bath
 * The Minarets Of Risbaf Historical Factory
 * Gholi Darvish Historical Hill
 * Jamkaran Historical Castle
 * 500 year Cypress Tree in Jamkaran
 * Sirang Tourism Centre
 * Kohne Bazaar Commercial Centre
 * Kohne Mosque

Museums

 * Astaneh Moqaddaseh Museum (Qom Central Museum)QoranQomMuseum.jpg manuscript written by Ali ibn Musa in the Qom Museum]]
 * Anthropology Museum Of Qom
 * The Museum Of Traditional Arts
 * The Museum Of Natural History & Wildlife
 * The Museum Of Astronomy

Educational institutions
Qom is well known for its many religious seminaries and institutes that offer advanced religious studies, which made this city the largest center for Shia scholarship in the world. There are an estimated 50,000 seminarians in the city coming from 80 countries, including Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Pakistan. Qom has seminaries for women and some non-Shia students. Most of the seminaries teach their students modern social sciences and Western thought as well as traditional religious studies.

Hawzah 'Ilmiyya Qom (Qom Seminary)
The Hawzah (a short form of al-Hawzah al-Ilmiyya), which presently consists of over 200 education and research centres and organisations, catering for over 40,000 scholars and students from over 80 List of sovereign states. The modern Qom hawza was revitalized by Abdul Karim Haeri Yazdi and Grand Ayatollah Borujerdi and is barely a century old. There are nearly 300,000 clerics in Iran's seminaries.

Universities and seminaries

 * University of Qom
 * Mofid University
 * Qom University of Medical Sciences
 * Al-Mustafa International University
 * Al-Zahra Seminary
 * Seyyed Hassan Shirazi Seminary
 * Imam Hossein Seminary
 * Imam Baghir Seminary
 * Imam Mahdi Seminary
 * Rasoul A'zam Seminary
 * Razavia Seminary
 * Satia Seminary
 * Imam Khomeini Seminary
 * Aba-Salih Seminary
 * Al-Mahdi Seminary
 * Al-Hadi Seminary
 * Haghani Seminary
 * Janbazan Seminary
 * Resalat Seminary
 * Itrat Seminary
 * Darb-Astana Seminary
 * Seyyed Abdol Aziz Seminary
 * Toloo-e-Mehr Educational Institute
 * Shahab Danesh University
 * Pardis-e-Daneshgah-e-Tehran University
 * IRIB University Of Qom
 * Qom's Industrial College
 * Azad Islami University of Pardisan
 * Payam-Nour College of Pardisan
 * Ma'sumia University
 * Hikmat College
 * The University Of Religions & Denominations
 * Quran & Hadis University
 * Fekr-e-Eslami University
 * Ma'aref-e-Islami University
 * Computer Research Center of Islamic Sciences
 * Qom University of Technology

Fordow uranium enrichment facility
The Fordow uranium enrichment facility is located 20 miles north east of Qom. In January 2012 the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced that Iran had started producing uranium enriched up to 20% for medical purposes and that material "remains under the agency's containment and surveillance." Iranian authorities state the facility is built deep in a mountain because of repeated threats by Israel to attack such facilities, which Israel believes can be used to produce nuclear weapons. However, attacking a nuclear facility so close to a city considered so holy in Shia Islam brings concern of a potential risk of a Shiite religious response.

Transportation
The city has a number of streets and roadways.

It will be served by Qom International Airport which is under construction.

Notable people

 * Hassan-i Sabbah (1050-1124) - Leader of the Assassins and the Nizari Ismaili State
 * Gholam Ali Oveissi (1918–1984) – General and The Chief Commander of the Imperial Iranian Armed Forces
 * Farrokhroo Parsa (1922–1980) – Physician, educator and parliamentarian
 * Parviz Shapour (1924-1999) – Writer
 * Naser Kamalian (b. 1931) – Medical scholar
 * Nasrollah Soltaninejad (b. 1936) – Wrestler
 * Azartash Azarnoush (b. 1937) – Linguist and Scholar
 * Bahram Afzali (b. 1938) – Commander of Iranian Navy
 * Sadeq Tabatabaei (b. 1943) – politician
 * Mohammad Reza Nasehi (b. 1944) – weightlifter
 * Fathali Oveisi (b. 1946) – Actor
 * Mostafa Pourmohammadi (b. 1960) – Politician and Prosecutor
 * Hamid Reza Noorbakhsh (b. 1965) – Singer
 * Majid Abdolhosseini (b. 1972) – Karateka
 * Mehdi Khalaji (b. 1973) – Writer, Scholar of Islamic studies and Political analyst
 * Javad Razavian (b. 1974) – Actor
 * Mohsen Hassanzadeh (b. 1974) – Futsal coach
 * Vahid Ghiasi (b. 1975) – Futsal coach
 * Alireza Katiraei (b. 1976) – Karateka
 * Mohsen Rabbani (b. 1983) – Pole vaulter
 * Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh (b. 1987) – Futsal player
 * Saeid Taghizadeh (b. 1988) – Futsal player
 * Amir Mehdizadeh (b. 1989) – Karateka
 * Alireza Vafaei (b. 1989) – Futsal player
 * Abolghasem Orouji (b. 1989) – Futsal player
 * Hamid Naderi Yeganeh (b. 1990) – Mathematical artist
 * Mehdi Hosseini (b. 1993) – Football player
 * Elnaz Ghasemi (b. 1996) – Handball player
 * Alireza Nejati (b. 1998) – Wrestler

Twin towns
Qom is twinned with:

title: Qom


text:
West Coast offense

The West Coast offense is an offense in American football that places a greater emphasis on passing than on running.

There are two similar but distinct National Football League (NFL) offensive strategic systems that are commonly referred to as "West Coast offenses". Originally, the term referred to the Air Coryell system popularized by Don Coryell with the San Diego Chargers. Following a journalistic error, however, it now more commonly refers to the offensive system devised by Bill Walsh while he was the offensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals. The offense is characterized by short, horizontal passing routes in lieu of running plays to "stretch out" defenses, opening up the potential for long runs or long passes. It was popularized when Walsh was the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.

History and use of the term
The term "West Coast offense", though most often associated with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback coach and, later, San Francisco 49ers head coach Bill Walsh, may actually derive from a remark made by then New York Giants coach Bill Parcells after the Giants defeated the 49ers 17–3 in the 1985 NFL Playoffs. Parcells—a believer in "old-school" tough defense over finesse-oriented offense featuring frequent, high-percentage passing— derided the 49ers' offense with the statement: "What do you think of that West Coast Offense now?" In 1993, a Bernie Kosar quotation used to describe the 1993 Dallas Cowboys' offense as "West Coast offense" was publicized by Sports Illustrated writer Paul Zimmerman ("Dr. Z"). Originally, Kosar had meant a comparison with the "Air Coryell" system used by West Coast teams in the 1970s, the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders in particular. A reporter mistakenly applied Kosar's statement to the 1980s-era attack of Walsh's 49ers.

Initially, Walsh resisted having the term misapplied to his own distinct system and was especially incensed by the use of the word "finesse" in reference to his sophisticated offensive schemes. Zimmerman notes that an article of his so misapplying the term provoked a phone call from an upset Walsh: "He called me up... (saying) that wasn't his offense". Still, the moniker stuck. Now the term is commonly used to refer to a range of pass-oriented offenses that may not be closely related to either the Air Coryell system or Walsh's pass-strategy.

The origins of the offensive system devised by Walsh go back to Paul Brown, coach of the Cleveland Browns and later the Cincinnati Bengals. Under Brown's tenure, Walsh was tasked with devising an offensive plan suited to Bengal quarterback Virgil Carter, who had an accurate but relatively weak arm. In response, Walsh created a system based on short, high-percentage passes, favoring straight and direct ten- to fifteen-yard strikes over forty- to fifty-yard "bombs" - the very opposite of the thrust of the long pass oriented later Air Coryell system. This system compensated for any weakness in the quarterback's arm, as it allowed the ball to be thrown to short and intermediate routes where receivers with running ability could attempt to make up for any shortage in yards after catch.

Walsh's system immediately paid off, as Virgil Carter led the league in passing percentage in 1971. Strong-armed Ken Anderson, initially a "project" of Walsh's, replaced Carter as Cincinnati's starting quarterback in 1972 and was even more successful in his execution of Walsh's complicated, versatile patterns, leading the Bengals to a division title in his first year as starting quarterback. In 1975, he brought widespread recognition to the West Coast offense in a nationally televised Monday-night contest between the Bengals and the Buffalo Bills, whose offense was built around league-leading rusher O. J. Simpson. Anderson's 447 passing yards were enough to overshadow Simpson's 197 yards on the ground in a Bengals win that proved a milestone, providing a striking contrast between the "old" ground game of defense-oriented football and the new game envisioned by Walsh—a game of higher scores, more action, and much air travel.

At the end of the 1975 season, Bengals head coach Paul Brown would retire, and he appointed Bill Johnson as his successor instead of Walsh. Ambitious and anxious to become a head coach, Walsh resigned from the Bengals and left Cincinnati for the West Coast, taking along his films of Ken Anderson running his offensive schemes to serve as a teaching aid for quarterback Dan Fouts after Walsh had been hired as an assistant coach for the San Diego Chargers. Next, after two years of success as head coach at Stanford University, Walsh received and accepted the call to be head coach of the San Francisco 49ers. He would soon transform the 49ers from a mediocre team to a perennial league powerhouse, recalling the dominance of Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packer teams of the 1960s, and of Chuck Noll's Pittsburgh Steelers of the 1970s. His versatile offensive schemes, along with his high percentage passing game and emphasis on ball control, complemented the skills of Joe Montana, who implemented Walsh's visionary system with great success as the 49ers' starting quarterback. The West Coast offense was then passed on by Walsh's disciples, and its principles still remain in use today.

Vertical
Bernie Kosar used the term “West Coast offense” to describe the offense formalized by Sid Gillman with the AFL Chargers in the 1960s and later by Don Coryell's St. Louis Cardinals and Chargers in the 1970s and 1980s. Al Davis, an assistant under Gillman, also carried his version to the Oakland Raiders, where his successors John Rauch, John Madden, and Tom Flores continued to employ and expand upon its basic principles. This is the "West Coast offense" as Kosar originally used the term. It is now commonly referred to as the "Air Coryell" system, however, and instead the term West Coast offense is usually used to describe Walsh's system.

The offense uses a specific naming system, with the routes for wide receivers and tight ends receiving three digit numbers, and routes for backs having unique names. For example, a pass play in 3 digit form might be "Split Right 787 check swing, check V". (see Offensive Nomenclature). This provides an efficient way to communicate many different plays with minimal memorization. Conversely, the Walsh "West Coast offense" could in theory have more freedom, since route combinations are not limited by 0-9 digits, but at the price of much more memorization required by the players.

Walsh's West Coast offense
Walsh formulated what has become popularly known as the West Coast offense during his tenure as assistant coach for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1968 to 1975, while working under the tutelage of mentor Paul Brown. Bengals quarterback Virgil Carter would be the first player to successfully implement Walsh's system, leading the NFL in pass completion percentage in 1971. Ken Anderson later replaced Carter as Cincinnati's starting QB, and was even more successful. In his 16-year career in the NFL, Anderson made four trips to the Pro Bowl, won four passing titles, was named NFL MVP in 1981 (and also appeared in Super Bowl XVI that year), and set what was then the record for completion percentage in a single season in 1982 (70.66%).

Walsh installed a modified version of this system when he became head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, serving as the team's coach from 1979 to 1988. Walsh's 49ers won three Super Bowls during this period, behind the passing abilities of legendary quarterback Joe Montana. Besides the 3 Super Bowl wins, Walsh won 6 NFC West division titles and compiled a 92–59–1 regular season record, with a 10–4 mark in the NFL playoffs. As a result, Walsh's version has come to be known as the "West Coast offense". Montana thrived for many years as the starting QB for the 49ers. He captured 4 Super Bowl titles (three of them under Walsh), 3 Super Bowl MVP awards, and 2 AP NFL MVP titles while in San Francisco in the 1980s. Montana and Walsh have both been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Walsh's coaching tree
Several members of Bill Walsh's coaching tree went on to successfully implement his West Coast Offense system.

George Seifert succeeded Walsh as San Francisco's head coach in 1989, and won two Super Bowls with the 49ers; once with Joe Montana at quarterback in 1989, and later with fellow Hall of Famer Steve Young in 1994.

Paul Hackett was another former assistant coach who once served under Walsh. He served as a 49ers assistant from 1983 to 1985, coaching quarterbacks and wide receivers. During this time, Hackett helped San Francisco win Super Bowl XIX. He next served as offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys under Tom Landry from 1986 to 1988. Hackett would later teach his version of Walsh's offense to several coaches, including former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy. McCarthy, who was the Packers head coach from 2006 until December 2018, would go on to win a Super Bowl himself with the use of the West Coast offense in 2010, with the help of superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Mike Holmgren is another prominent member of Bill Walsh's coaching tree. When Holmgren first came to San Francisco as an assistant coach, he started as Walsh's quarterbacks coach from 1986 to 1988. Holmgren then served as offensive coordinator for the 49ers under Seifert from 1989 to 1991. From 1992 to 1998, Holmgren was the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. He won a Super Bowl with the Packers in 1996 behind the quarterbacking of 3-time NFL MVP Brett Favre. He then returned to the Super Bowl in 1997, but the Packers lost to the Denver Broncos, who were coached by Mike Shanahan. Holmgren later became head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, leading them from 1999 to 2008. They played in Super Bowl XL after the 2005 season. The Seahawks, however, lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Holmgren is credited for helping mold successful quarterbacks such as Montana, Young, Favre and Matt Hasselbeck. As a head coach, he compiled an overall 174–122 record in the NFL: 161–111 in the regular season, along with a 13–11 playoff record, 3 Super Bowl appearances and 1 Super Bowl title.

One of Holmgren's former assistants, Jon Gruden, has had reasonable success running the West Coast offense in his own right. He started his head coaching career with the Oakland Raiders, leading them from 1998 to 2001, and turned the Raiders into a strong playoff contender. Gruden then went on to become head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, winning Super Bowl XXXVII after the 2002 season. Gruden coached the Buccaneers from 2002 to 2008. After several years as a color commentator on ESPN Monday Night Football, he signed a deal to return to the Raiders as head coach for the 2018 NFL season. Gruden served as Raiders head coach from 2018 to 2021.

Another one-time member of Holmgren's coaching staff, Andy Reid, has successfully utilized the West Coast offense during his tenure as a head coach for both the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs. From 1999 to 2012, Reid served as Eagles head coach. Since 2013, he has served as head coach of the Chiefs. Over the course of Andy Reid's long and highly successful head coaching career, both the Eagles and Chiefs enjoyed many winning seasons under his watch. Reid coached the Eagles to 5 NFC Championship Game appearances (4 straight seasons from 2001 to 2004, and again in 2008). During his Eagles days, his teams were mostly led by QB Donovan McNabb. Then, from 2018 to 2023, Reid coached the Chiefs to 6 straight AFC Championship Game appearances. Since 2018, he has been helped by superstar QB Patrick Mahomes. Reid has appeared in the Super Bowl 5 times as a head coach: Super Bowl XXXIX with the Eagles, and Super Bowls LIV, LV, LVII and LVIII with the Chiefs. He has won all of his 3 Super Bowl titles with the Chiefs. As of the end of the 2023 NFL season, Reid has won 26 NFL playoff games, and he trails only Bill Belichick (31) for most postseason wins by an NFL head coach.

Two of Reid's former assistants, John Harbaugh and Doug Pederson, have also succeeded in both reaching and winning a Super Bowl as head coaches. Harbaugh served as an Eagles assistant under Reid from 1999 to 2007. Since 2008, Harbaugh has enjoyed a largely successful run as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens. He guided the Ravens to victory in Super Bowl XLVII. Baltimore defeated the San Francisco 49ers, who were coached by John's younger brother, Jim Harbaugh. Pederson first worked for the Eagles under Reid from 2009 to 2012, and then served as the Chiefs' offensive coordinator under Reid from 2013 to 2015. Pederson became head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2016 and installed his own version of the West Coast offense. The following year, despite losing rising star quarterback Carson Wentz to a torn ACL, Pederson was still able to guide his team to a world championship. The Eagles, with the help of backup QB and Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles, defeated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII. Pederson served as head coach of the Eagles from 2016 to 2020.

Mike Shanahan is another NFL head coach who has had success running the West Coast offense. He first started his NFL coaching career with the Denver Broncos in the 1980s, coaching receivers and then serving as offensive coordinator under Dan Reeves from 1984 to 1987. It was Shanahan's work with the Broncos offense, particularly rising star quarterback John Elway, that earned him the head coaching job of the Los Angeles Raiders for the 1988 season. His career as head coach initially got off to a rocky start, as he couldn't co-exist with the Raiders' maverick owner Al Davis. Shanahan only compiled an 8–12 record in Los Angeles, and was fired early in the 1989 season. After again serving as an assistant for the Broncos from 1990 to 1991, he rebuilt his solid reputation working as offensive coordinator of the 49ers under George Seifert from 1992 to 1994, helping the team win Super Bowl XXIX. Shanahan then enjoyed a strong, lengthy tenure as head coach of the Broncos from 1995 to 2008. During his time as head coach, he won two Super Bowls with the Broncos in 1997 & 1998, utilizing John Elway's passing skills and leadership. Shanahan's run-heavy variation of the offense, under the leadership of offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, is also known for utilizing previously unheralded running backs, including 1998 NFL MVP Terrell Davis, and developing them into league-leading rushers behind small, yet powerful, Zone Blocking offensive lines. Hall of Fame players from the Broncos' Super Bowl-winning teams in '97 & '98 that played on offense include Elway, Davis, and tight end Shannon Sharpe.

Shanahan also served as head coach of the Washington Redskins from 2010 to 2013, but his time in Washington was significantly less successful than his tenure with the Broncos. Despite guiding the Redskins to the NFC East division title in 2012, along with a trip to the NFL playoffs, he only compiled a 24–40 record over 4 seasons with an 0–1 playoff mark. Overall, Mike Shanahan accumulated an overall record of 178–144: 170–138 in the regular season, with an 8–6 postseason record that included 2 Super Bowl victories. He has also developed what seems to be a promising, impressive coaching tree.

Gary Kubiak has had a stellar career as an NFL head coach in his own right. After working as Shanahan's offensive coordinator on the Broncos from 1995 to 2005, Kubiak served as the head coach of the Houston Texans from 2006 to 2013. After serving as the Baltimore Ravens' offensive coordinator in 2014, he became head coach of the Broncos in the 2015 season, and won Super Bowl 50.

Although Mike Shanahan's tenure as Washington Redskins head coach wasn't completely successful, his tenure did produce 3 rising star head coaches: His son, Kyle Shanahan, Matt LaFleur and Sean McVay. Kyle Shanahan has been the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers since 2017. Despite often leading teams plagued by injuries, Shanahan has molded the 49ers into a physical, hard-nosed team with a potent run-first version of the West Coast offense. Matt LaFleur has been the head coach of the Green Bay Packers since 2019. LaFleur has led the Packers to 3 straight NFC North division titles, thanks to the passing skills of Aaron Rodgers. Sean McVay has served as the head coach of the Los Angeles Rams since 2017, and has already built a strong track record as a winning coach, guiding Los Angeles to 2 Super Bowl appearances. His Rams lost Super Bowl LIII to the New England Patriots. However, McVay won Super Bowl LVI, when the Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals. It was the team's first Super Bowl title since returning to Los Angeles from St. Louis.

Similar college offenses
LaVell Edwards and Dewey Warren created an offensive system similar to the West Coast offense at Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1973.

One reason for the success of this version of the offense was in its simplicity. Norm Chow said the offenses had around 12 basic pass plays and 5 basic run plays that were run from a variety of formations, with only some plays tagged for extra versatility, so that the players knew the offense by the second day of practice.

The highpoint of the BYU offense was an NCAA Division I-A national football championship in 1984 and a Heisman Trophy for Ty Detmer in 1990. BYU broke over 100 NCAA records for passing and total offense during Edwards' tenure. Several coaches and players associated with BYU's football program had success with this offense at BYU and elsewhere, including Virgil Carter, Mike Holmgren, Andy Reid, Brian Billick, Ted Tollner, Doug Scovil, Norm Chow, Jim McMahon, Steve Young, Ty Detmer, and Steve Sarkisian.

The University of Washington Huskies were among the first of the Pac-10 teams and in 1970, under coach Jim Owens and quarterback Sonny Sixkiller, used a variation of what would later come to be known as the West Coast offense with great success. Years later in 2002, under coach Keith Gilbertson and quarterback Cody Pickett, the Huskies ran a variation of Walsh's West Coast offense to a conference championship and a top four passing attack averaging 352.4 yards per game. Today, the West Coast offense no longer only resides on the west coast, but can be found in schools across the nation, including Boise State, and Vanderbilt. Former Pittsburgh and Stanford head coach Walt Harris also used a variation of the West Coast offense during his stint at Pittsburgh.

Theory
The popular term "West Coast Offense" is more of a philosophy and an approach to the game than it is a set of plays or formations. Traditional offensive thinking argues that a team must establish its running game first, which will draw the defense in and open up vertical passing lanes downfield; i.e., passing lanes that run perpendicular to the line of scrimmage.

Bill Walsh's West Coast Offense differs from traditional offense by emphasizing a short, horizontal passing attack to help stretch out the defense, thus opening up options for longer running plays and longer passes that can achieve greater gains. The West Coast Offense as implemented under Walsh features precisely run pass patterns by the receivers that make up about 65% to 80% of the offensive scheme. With the defense stretched out, the offense is then free to focus the remaining plays on longer throws of more than 14 yards and mid to long yard rushes.

Desired outcome
Walsh's West Coast Offense attempts to open up running and passing lanes for the backs and receivers to exploit, by causing the defense to concentrate on short passes.

Since most down and distance situations can be attacked with a pass or a run, the intent is to make offensive play calling unpredictable and thus keep the defense's play "honest", forcing defenders to be prepared for a multitude of possible offensive plays rather than focusing aggressively on one likely play from the offense.

Beyond the basic principle of passing to set up the run, there are few rules that govern Walsh's West Coast Offense. Originally the offense used two split backs, giving it an uneven alignment in which five players aligned to one side of the ball and four players aligned on the other side (with the quarterback and center directly behind the ball). This imbalance forced defenses to abandon their own favored, conventional formations. Although Walsh-influenced teams now commonly use formations with more or fewer than two backs, the offense's unevenness is still reflected in its pass protection philosophy and continues to distinguish it from single back passing offenses. Throughout the years, coaches have added to, adjusted, modified, simplified, and enhanced Bill Walsh's original adaptation of the Paul Brown offense. Formations and plays vary greatly, as does play calling.

Another key part of the Walsh implementation was "pass first, run later", It was Walsh's intention to gain an early lead by passing the ball, then run the ball on a tired defense late in the game, wearing them down further and running down the clock. The San Francisco 49ers, under both Bill Walsh and George Seifert, often executed this strategy very effectively.

Another key element in Walsh's attack was the three step dropback instead of traditional seven step drops or shotgun formations. The three step drop helped the quarterback get the ball out faster resulting in far fewer sacks. "WCO" plays unfold quicker than in traditional offenses and are usually based on timing routes by the receivers. In this offense the receivers also have reads and change their routes based on the coverages presented to them. The quarterback makes three reads and if no opportunity is available after three reads, the QB will then check off to a back or tight end. Five step and even 7 step dropbacks are now implemented in modern-day WCO's because defensive speed has increased since the 80's. Some modern WCO's have even used shotgun formations (e.g. Green Bay '06-present, Atlanta '04-'06, Philadelphia '04-present).

Typical plays
The majority of West Coast routes occur within 15 yards of the line of scrimmage. 3-step and 5-step drops by the quarterback take the place of the run and force the opposing defense to commit their focus solely on those intermediate routes. Contrary to popular belief, the offense also uses the 7-step drop for shallow crosses, deep ins and comebacks. For instance, past Michigan Wolverines offenses utilized the 5- and 7-step drops about 85% of the time with West Coast pass schemes implemented by then-quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler. Because of the speed of modern defenses, only utilizing the 3- and 5-step pass game would be ineffective since the defense could squat and break hard on short-to-intermediate throws with no fear of a down field pass.

The original West Coast Offense of Sid Gillman uses some of the same principles (pass to establish the run, quarterback throws to timed spots), but offensive formations are generally less complicated with more wideouts and motion. The timed spots are often farther down field than in the Walsh-style offense, and the system requires a greater reliance on traditional pocket passing.

Another aspect that makes the West Coast one of the most difficult to master is that it requires a deeper connection between quarterback and receiver, and an ability to communicate mid-play. On any given route, a receiver has as many as three options; a hitch, a slant and a fly, depending on what the defense is showing. The quarterback is responsible for recognizing the defense and the reaction of the receiver to it and adjusting the route if needed. This explains the communication mistakes that commonly occur on West Coast offensive plays where the quarterback throws to a spot that the receiver is running away from.

Scripted plays
A Walsh innovation was scripting the first 15 offensive plays of the game. Walsh went as far as to script the first 25 plays but most teams stop at 15. Since the offensive team knew that the first 15 plays would be run as scripted no matter what, they could practice those plays to perfection, minimizing mistakes and penalties. By ignoring situational play-calling and increasing the game tempo, scripted plays also served to confuse the defense and induce early penalties. Executing these plays successfully could establish momentum and dictate the flow of the game. It also gave the coaching staff an opportunity to run test plays against the defense to gauge their reactions in game situations. Later in the game, an observed tendency in a certain situation by the opposing defense could be exploited.

Requirements and disadvantages
The West Coast offense requires a quarterback who throws extremely accurately, and often blindly, very close to opposing players. In addition, it requires the quarterback to be able to quickly pick the best one of five receivers to throw to, certainly much more quickly than in previously used systems. Often, the quarterback has no time to think about the play and must act reflexively, executing the play exactly as instructed by the offensive coordinator, who calls the plays for him.

This is in contrast to the roles quarterbacks were required to perform in other systems, which were to be an adept game manager with a strong arm. Many people reasoned that Johnny Unitas, a strong-armed field general would not have fared well in being subservient to the offensive coordinator, and that his long but sometimes wobbly passes would not have worked in the West Coast system. The West Coast offense caused a split still evident today among quarterbacks; those who were more adept at the West Coast style: Joe Montana, Steve Young, Brett Favre, Tom Brady, and Matt Hasselbeck; and those more in tune with the old style: Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, and Peyton Manning. Rich Gannon is a good example of a quarterback who fared better in one system than the other. Gannon struggled in the old style system but found great success with the Oakland Raiders and the West Coast system run by head coaches Jon Gruden and Bill Callahan.

The West Coast offense requires sure-handed receivers who are comfortable catching in heavy traffic, and the system downplays speedy, larger receivers who are covered easily in short yardage situation. One result has been the longevity of receivers in the West Coast system such as Jerry Rice, because familiarity with the system and clear signalling is of greater importance than systems that require a receiver to "stretch the field" where any loss of speed is a major liability. "WCO" systems also rely on agile running backs that catch the ball as often as they run. Roger Craig was a leading receiver for the 49ers for many years and was a 1,000 yard rusher and 1,000 yard receiver in the 1985 season. Finally, receivers must follow precise, complicated routes as opposed to improvisation, making meticulous, intelligent players more valued than independent, pure athletes. Jerry Rice's unique skill-set made him a reliable and durable asset in both Walsh's and Seifert's versions of the West Coast Offense, and he was able to break numerous NFL receiving records over the course of his career. Rice, who earned induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010, recorded 1,549 receptions, 22,895 receiving yards, and 208 total touchdowns, more than any other NFL player in all three categories.

Another aspect of the West Coast offense is the use of fast running quarterbacks. In blitz or short-yardage situations, many of the West Coast offense's strengths are negated by defenses blocking running and passing lanes. A running quarterback can compensate by acting as a runner himself, paralyzing an overly aggressive defense. Quarterbacks such as Randall Cunningham and Michael Vick have been successful runners in this offense, as well as other notable scrambling quarterbacks such as Jake Plummer, Donovan McNabb, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Tyrod Taylor. The west coast offense also utilizes play-action passes to fool the defense in order to get receivers open, which is usually successful with running quarterbacks.

Although not related to the West Coast offense, the similar "dink-and-dunk" offense has also helped quarterbacks that are more adept to older systems. Kurt Warner (a disciple of a variation of Air Coryell) and Ben Roethlisberger (a traditional gunslinger) are notable examples of non-West Coast quarterbacks that found a degree of late-career success in the "dink-and-dunk" system.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: West Coast offense


text:
Central Provinces and Berar

The Central Provinces and Berar was a province of British India and later the Dominion of India which existed from 1903 to 1950. It was formed by the merger of the Central Provinces with the province of Berar, which was territory leased by the British from the Hyderabad State. Through an agreement signed on 5 November 1902, 6th Nizam Mahbub Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VI leased Berar permanently to the British for an annual payment of 25 lakhs rupees. Lord Curzon decided to merge Berar with the Central Provinces, and this was proclaimed on 17 September 1903.

The Central Provinces was formed in 1861 by the merger of the Saugor and Nerbudda Territories and Nagpur Province. Administration of the Berar region of the Hyderabad princely state was assigned to the Chief Commissioner of the Central Provinces in 1903, and for administrative purposes, Berar was merged with the Central Provinces to form the Central Provinces and Berar on 24 October 1936. After Indian Independence in 1947, a number of princely states were merged into the Central Provinces and Berar, which, when the Constitution of India went into effect in 1950, became the new Indian state of Madhya Bharat, merged with Madhya Pradesh in 1956, also meaning Central Province.

As its name suggests, the province was situated in the center of the Indian peninsula. It comprised large portions of the broad belt of hill and plateau which interposes between the plains of the Ganges and the Deccan Plateau. The Central Provinces and Berar were bounded on the north and northeast by the Central India Agency, including the Bundelkhand and Bagelkhand agencies, and along the northern edge of Saugor District by the United Provinces; on the west by the princely states of Bhopal, Indore and by the Khandesh District of Bombay Presidency; on the south by Hyderabad State, and on the east by Orissa (till 1936, a part of Bihar and Orissa Province) and the Eastern States Agency.

British India
The Central Provinces comprised 19th-century British conquests from the Mughals and Marathas in central India, and covered much of present-day Chhattisgarh with portions of Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra states. Its capital was Nagpur.

After the defeat of the Marathas in the Third Anglo-Maratha War, the territories north of the Satpura Range ceded in 1817 by the Maratha Peshwa (parts of Saugor and Damoh) and in 1818 by Appa Sahib, were in 1820, formed into the Saugor and Nerbudda Territories under an agent to the governor-general. In 1835 the Saugor and Nerbudda Territories were included in the newly formed North-Western Provinces (which later became the United Provinces of Agra & Oudh). In 1842, in consequence of an uprising, they were again placed under the jurisdiction of an agent to the governor-general. They were restored to the North-Western Province in 1853.

In 1818, the Maratha Bhonsle Maharajas of Nagpur submitted to British sovereignty. In 1853, on the death of Raghoji III without heirs, Nagpur was annexed by the British under the doctrine of lapse. Until the formation of the Central Provinces in 1861, Nagpur Province, which consisted of the Nagpur Division, Chhindwara and Chhattisgarh, was administered by a commissioner under the central colonial government. The Saugor and Nerbudda Territories were joined with the Nagpur province to constitute the new Central Provinces in 1861. on 1 October 1903 Berar was placed under the administration of the commissioner of the Central Provinces. In October 1905, most of Sambalpur and the princely states of Bamra, Rairakhol, Sonpur, Patna, and Kalahandi were transferred from the Central Provinces and Berar to Bengal, while the Hindi-speaking Chota Nagpur States of Chang Bhakar, British Korea, Surguja, Udaipur, and Jashpur were transferred from Bengal to the Central Provinces & Berar.

In 1903, the Marathi-speaking Berar region of the Hyderabad princely state was placed under the administration of the Governor of the Central Provinces, although it officially remained part of Hyderabad, leased in perpetuity by the Government of India. In 1905, most of Sambalpur district and the princely states of Bamra, Rairakhol, Sonpur, Patna, and Kalahandi were transferred to Bengal Province and the princely states of Changbhakar, Korea, Surguja, Udaipur, and Jashpur were transferred from Bengal to the Central Provinces.

The Government of India Act 1912 permitted the creation of legislative councils for provinces under a chief commissioner, and on 8 November 1913, the Central Provinces Legislative Council was formed. The Government of India Act 1919 changed the administrator of the province from a chief commissioner to a governor, and enlarged the legislative council and expanded the voting franchise.

The first elections for the Legislative Council under the 1919 Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms were in November and December 1920. The Council consisted of 71 members - 53 elected members, 2 ex-officio members (members of Executive Council), and 16 official and non-official nominated members (Zamindar owners declared as backward, Depressed Classes, Europeans and Anglo-Indians). Out of the 53 elected members, 40 came from general constituencies (30 rural and 10 urban), 7 communal constituencies and 6 special constituencies (Central Provinces & Berar Mining Association, Central Provinces & Berar Commerce & Industry Association, Berar Commerce & Industry, and Central Provinces & Berar Landholders). The Indian National Congress had decided at its Calcutta Conference to boycott the elections as part of the Non-cooperation Movement, and many prominent nationalist leaders, including Ravishankar Shukla, E. Raghavendra Rao, B. S. Moonje, Daulat Singh, Makhan Lal Chaturvedi, and Vishnudutta Shukla, either decided not to run, or withdrew their candidacies. The legislative seats went mostly to Liberals and Loyalists. Gangadhar Rao Chitnavis was nominated as the President of the Council.

The Montagu-Chelmsford reforms also introduced the principle of dyarchy, whereby certain responsibilities such as agriculture, health, education, and local government, were transferred to elected ministers but some responsibilities such as home, finance and revenue were reserved with the Members of the Executive Council of the Governor. Some of the Indians who served as members of the Governor's Executive Council were Moropant Vishvanath Joshi (Home) and E. Raghavendra Rao.

By 1923, the nationalists had decided to participate in the legislative elections, and in the November and December 1923 election, and the Swaraj Party, which advocated Indian independence, won 41 of the 54 elected seats. 4 seats went to independents who generally allied with the Swarajists, four to the Liberals, and five to independents allied with the Liberals. The Swarajists were led by B. S. Moonje from Vidarbha, E. Raghavendra Rao from Mahakoshal, and S. B. Tambe and B. G. Khaparde of Berar. S. M. Chitnavis was leader of the Liberals. Despite winning a majority of seats, the Swarajists, consistent with the party's policy of obstruction and non-acceptance of office, refused to form a government, and Governor Frank Sly selected Chitnavis and Syed Hifazat Ali, a Muslim independent, as ministers.

In the 1926 election, the Swarajists split, with one faction continuing with the policies of obstruction and non-acceptance of office, while the Responsive Cooperation Party which chose to participate in government. After the election B. S. Moonje formed a ministry by uniting Responsive Cooperation, Independent Congress, Liberal, and independent legislators into a National Party, with 33 members.

The ministry collapsed in 1933 due to infighting among the ministers and a new ministry was formed under Raghavendra Rao with Muhammad Yusuf Shareef and V. B. Choubal as ministers. This ministry collapsed in 1934 and a new ministry was formed with B. G. Khaparde as Chief Minister and K. S. Naidu as the other minister. This ministry remained in office till 1937.

In 1933, the princely states in Chhattisgarh Division were transferred to the Eastern States Agency, and Makrai to the Central India Agency. On 24 October 1936, the Central Provinces became the Central Provinces and Berar when it was fully merged with Berar Division, although it remained under the nominal sovereignty of Hyderabad.

In 1935, the Government of India Act was passed by the British Parliament. This act provided for the election of a provincial assembly, with an electorate made up of men with a minimum of financial resources, and excluding women and the poor. Supervisory powers over the enclaved and attached Princely States were reserved to the Governor and removed from the authority of the popular provincial governments. Elections were held in 1937, and the Indian National Congress took a majority of the seats but declined to form the government. A minority provisional government was formed under E. Raghavendra Rao.

The Congress reversed its decision and resolved to accept office in July 1937. Therefore, the Governor invited N. B. Khare to form the government in August 1937.

Khare resigned in 1938, and Ravi Shankar Shukla next became Premier. In 1939, along with Congress leaders from other provinces, Shukla resigned in protest of the Governor-General's declaration of war on Germany without consulting with Indian leaders, and the Central Provinces & Berar came under Governor's Rule. Another round of elections were held in 1946, yielding another Congress majority, and Shukla again became Premier.

After Indian independence
India became independent on 15 August and the Central Provinces & Berar became a province of the Dominion of India. The princely states, which were under the Central Provinces before 1936, were merged into the province, and organized into new districts. When the Constitution of India went into effect in 1950, the Central Provinces & Berar was reorganized with territorial changes as the state of Madhya Pradesh, which name also means Central Province.

On 1 November 1956, Madhya Bharat, together with the states of Vindhya Pradesh and Bhopal State, was merged into Madhya Pradesh. In 1956, strong demand due to linguistic similarity from Marathi Irredentists, the Berar and Nagpur divisions were transferred to Bombay State. In 1960, the Bombay State was partitioned into Maharashtra & Gujarat. In 2000, the eastern portion of Madhya Pradesh was split off to become the new state of Chhattisgarh.

Demographics
The 1911 census counted a population of 16,033,310 for the Central Provinces and Berar. Droughts in 1917 and 1920 caused famine in several districts, and the Central Provinces were affected by bubonic plague in 1911, 1912, 1915, 1917, and 1918, and by the 1918 influenza pandemic. In the 1921 census, the population declined by 0.3% from 1911 to 15,970,660.

The 1931 census found a total population of 17,990,937 for the Central Provinces and Berar - 12,065,885 for the British districts, 3,441,838 for Berar, and 2,483,214 in the princely states.

Administration
The 1941 Census of India counted 16,813,584 persons in the province, of which 2,093,767 were urban and 14,719,817 were rural.

Districts
The Central provinces and Berar was made up of 22 districts, grouped into five divisions :
 * Jubbulpore (Jabalpur) Division (18,950 sq. mi.), which included Jubbulpore, Saugor (Sagar), Damoh, Seoni, and Mandla districts.
 * Nerbudda (Narmada) Division (18,382 sq. mi.), which included Narsinghpur, Hoshangabad, Nimar, Betul, and Chhindwara districts.
 * Nagpur Division (23,521 sq. mi.), which included Nagpur, Bhandara, Chanda, Wardha, and Balaghat districts.
 * Chhattisgarh Division (21,240 sq. mi.), which included Bilaspur, Raipur, and Durg (created 1905) districts.
 * Berar Division, which included Amraoti (Amravati), Akola, Ellichpur, Buldhana, Basim, and Wun districts.

Princely States
The Central provinces and Berar included also 15 princely states, whose native rulers enjoyed indirect rule under British protection.

Salute states, in order of precendence :
 * Kalahandi (Karond), title Maharaja, Hereditary salute of 9-guns
 * Patna, title Maharaja, Hereditary salute of 9-guns
 * Sonepur, title Maharaja, Hereditary salute of 9-guns

Non-salute states, alphabetically :

 * Bamra, title Raja
 * Bastar, title (Maha) Raja
 * Chhuikandan (Kondka), title Mahant
 * Kanker, title Raja
 * Kawardha, title Thakur
 * Khairagarh, title Raja
 * Makrai, title Raja (from 1899, Raja Hathiya Rai)
 * (Raj) Nandgaon, title Mahant
 * Raigarh, title Raja Bahadur
 * Rairakhol State, title Raja
 * Sakti, title Rana
 * Sarangarh, title Raja

title: Central Provinces and Berar


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Indian Chimney Farm

Advertisement. The image in the article should also be deleted when this article is (disk space is cheap, but not endless).
 * Delete. —Frecklefoot 16:38, May 6, 2004 (UTC)
 * Delete unless it's a particularly notable agritourism experience. The Land 17:37, 6 May 2004 (UTC)
 * Delete. Advert. Andrewa 18:42, 6 May 2004 (UTC)
 * It's an ad. Delete. - Lucky 6.9 18:54, 6 May 2004 (UTC)
 * This stuff should be tagged for speedy delete, and not bother with this section. Alcarillo 19:54, 6 May 2004 (UTC)


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Vidarbha

Vidarbha (Pronunciation: [ʋid̪əɾbʱə]) is a geographical region in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. Forming the eastern part of the state, it comprises Amravati (earlier Berar) and Nagpur divisions. As per the 2011 Census, the region had a population of 23,003,179. The region occupies 31.6% of the total area and is home to 21.3% of the total population of Maharashtra. Situated in central India, it borders the state of Madhya Pradesh to the north, Chhattisgarh to the east, Telangana to the south and Marathwada and Uttar Maharashtra regions of Maharashtra to the west.

According to the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Rukmini, the wife of lord Krishna, was born to Bhishmaka, the king of the Vidarbha kingdom. Vidarbha was part of the Satavahana Empire during 1st to 2nd century CE). The coins and inscriptions from the period of Paramara king Jagadeva, the son of the Udayaditya (reigned c. 1060–1086) have been found in the northern parts the region. According to the Ain-i-Akbari, the region was part of Berar Subah, in the Medieval period. In 1680, the region was captured by Sambhaji, the son of Shivaji, who was the founder of Maratha empire. In 1724, Asaf Jah, who later became the Nizam of Hyderabad, declared independence and brought most of the region under his nominal rule. The administration and right of collecting taxes were held by the Marathas. In 1803, following the defeat of the Marathas, the region came under the rule of British East India Company. Later, the British Empire took control of the region from the British East India Company in 1857. After Indian Independence in 1947, the region was part of the Bombay State. After the Re-organization of Indian states, majority of the region became part of Maharashtra in 1960.

The GDP of the region is estimated to be inr 5445400000000 2022-23. The economy of the region is largely dependent on agriculture with oranges and cotton being the major crops. The region also holds considerable mineral resources and forest cover. The region is economically under developed compared to the rest of Maharashtra with considerable poverty and malnutrition. Agriculture is largely dependent on seasonal monsoons and the region receives very less rainfall due to its location in the rain shadow region of the Western Ghats. Droughts and famines are common with more than 1.4 lakh farmer suicides in the period 1997 to 2006.

The largest and major city in the region is Nagpur and other major towns include Amravati, Akola, Chandrapur and Gondia. Varhadi and Zadi dialects of Marathi is widely spoken. There have been demands for a separate state of Vidarbha, due to perceived neglect from the Government of Maharashtra. While the demand is supported by major political parties BJP and Congress, it is opposed by Shiv Sena, one of the major regional political parties in the state.

History

According to the Hindu epic Mahabharata and other Puranic scriptures, princess Rukmini considered to be an incarnation of the goddess Lakshmi and the wife of lord Krishna, was born to Bhishmaka, the king of the Vidarbha kingdom. Vidarbha was part of the Satavahana Empire during 1st to 2nd century CE), ascertained by the Satavahana coins found in Pauni.

The coins and inscriptions from the period of Paramara king Jagadeva have been found in the northern parts the region. An inscription discovered at Jainad names Jagadeva as the son of the Paramara king Udayaditya (reigned c. 1060–1086). Scholar M. H. Krishna argued that the Chalukya king Someshvara was known by the title "Jagadeva" ("Lord of the world") in the northern part of his kingdom, and it was he who issued these coins. However, all the known Chalukya coins featured Kannada script, while the coins of Jagadeva featured the Nagari script used by the Paramaras.

According to the Ain-i-Akbari, the region was part of Berar Subah, known as the Gulshan-e-Berar in the Medieval period. In 1680, the region was captured by Sambhaji, the son of Shivaji who was the founder of Maratha empire. In 1724, following a battle at Buldana, Asaf Jah defeated the Mughal governor and declared independence. Most of the region came under the nominal rule of Jah, who later became the Nizam of Hyderabad, though the administration and right of collecting chauth were held by the Marathas. In 1803, following the defeat of the Marathas, the region came under the rule of British East India Company.

Later, the British Empire took control of the region from the British East India Company in 1857. After Indian Independence in 1947, the region was part of the Bombay State. After the States Reorganisation Act, which re-organized state boundaries, majority of the region became part of Maharashtra.

Geography
Vidarbha lies in Central India on the northern part of the Deccan Plateau. It borders the state of Madhya Pradesh to the north, Chhattisgarh to the east, Telangana to the south and Marathwada and Uttar Maharashtra regions of Maharashtra to the west. It lies in the rain shadow region of the Western Ghats and the terrain is largely flat. The Satpura Range lies to the north of Vidarbha region with Melghat in Amravati district forming part of the southern offshoot of the Satpura Range. Large basaltic rock formations exists throughout the region, part of the 66-million-year-old volcanic Deccan Traps. Bhandara and Gondia district are entirely occupied by metamorphic rock and alluvium, making their geology unique in Maharashtra. The Poorna river basin lies in Western Vidarbha and comprises Akola, Amaravati and Buldhana districts. The region has extremely high innate soil and water salinity.

Administration
Vidarbha has 11 districts divided into two divisions: Amravati (earlier Berar) and Nagpur divisions.

Each district has a collector's office which is responsible for day-to-day administration. The District Collector is a Central Indian Government IAS appointee who is in charge of the governance of a district in a state.

Demographics
Vidarbha has a total population of 23,003,179 according to the 2011 India census. The region occupies 31.6% of the total area and is home to 21.3% of the total population of Maharashtra. According to the 2011 census, Hinduism was the principal religion in the state at 76.91% of the total population, while Buddhists constituted 13.08 of the total population. Vidarbha accounts for 45.91% of total Buddhists in Maharashtra.

The largest city in the region is Nagpur and other major towns include Amravati, Akola, Chandrapur and Gondia.

Language and culture
As per the 2011 census, 73.72% of the population speaks Marathi, 8.30% Hindi, 6.23% Urdu, 2.58% Lambadi, 1.83% Gondi, 1.10% Korku and 1.02% Telugu as their first language. Varhadi and Zadi dialects of Marathi is widely spoken.

Hindu festivals like Holi, Diwali and Dasara are celebrated throughout the region.

The Nagpur Central Museum (est. 1863) maintains collections from the region.

Economy

The GDP of the region is estimated to be inr 4784200000000 2021-22. The region also holds considerable mineral resources and forest cover. The region is economically under developed compared to the rest of Maharashtra with considerable poverty and malnutrition.

The economy of the region is largely dependent on agriculture with oranges and cotton being the major crops. Agriculture is largely dependent on seasonal monsoons and the region receives very less rainfall. Droughts and famines are common with more than 1.4 lakh farmer suicides in the period 1997 to 2006. Though Government of India has provided relief packages aimed at the region, with corruption rampant in the region. Columnist and journalist P Sainath opined that the relief packages were destined to fail as corruption in the government meant that little impact happened on the ground.

Nagpur is a major hub for business and healthcare. MIHAN is the major cargo hub in the region, operational out of Nagpur Airport. Nagpur also hosts Information Technology Special Economic Zone (IT SEZ). for information-technology companies. Amravati and Yavatmal are known for cotton production. Chandrapur has a thermal power station, which is one of the biggest in India. There are other heavy industries and mines in the region.

The region has mineral resources with coal and manganese, the major minerals. Iron ore and limestone have also been identified as potential mining resources. Chandrapur district contributes 29% of all mineral output of Maharashtra.

Sports and recreation
Cricket is the most popular sport in the region. Nagpur's Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground (VCA) hosted international cricket matches. In 2008, the new Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium was built in Jamtha.

The eastern part of Vidarbha consists of Maharashtra's oldest National Park, the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, one of the Project Tiger Reserves. Shegaon is a place of pilgrimage with temples attributed to the Hindu saint Gajanan Maharaj who lived there. Chikhaldara in Amravati district is a hill station and popular tourist destination.

Politics
Vidarbha has ten Lok Sabha constituencies. Nagpur district has two seats Nagpur and Ramtek, while Gadchiroli-Chimur Lok Sabha constituency is spread across districts of Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Gondia. Yavatmal and Washim districts form part of Yavatmal–Washim Lok Sabha constituency. Other seats include Akola, Amravati, Bhandara, Buldhana, Gondia, and Wardha. Amravati and Ramtek seats are reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates, while Gadchiroli-Chimur is reserved for Scheduled Tribes. In the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, the region is represented by 62 Vidhan Sabha seats.

Demand for statehood

The Vidarbha movement started in the 1930s demanding a separate state of Vidarbha. The demand has been raised at times due to perceived neglect of the region by the Government of Maharashtra. While the demand is supported by major political parties BJP and Congress, it is opposed by Shiv Sena, one of the major regional political parties in the state. Political economist Shrikant Jichkar opposed the separation of the region from Maharashtra, stating that it was not sustainable. He noted that income from available natural resources would not be able to balance the subsidies given by the government, whose cooperation would be vital to any development and that the division introduces societal risks due to dividing of the Marathi-speaking state.

title: Vidarbha


text:
User:Eric Blossom

http://www.BlossomAssociates.net/

title: User:Eric Blossom


text:
Mothers (music venue)

Mothers (formerly the Carlton Ballroom) was a club in the Erdington district of Birmingham, England, during the late 1960s and early 1970s. It opened above an old furniture store in Erdington High Street on 9 August 1968. The club, run by John 'Spud' Taylor and promoter Phil Myatt, closed its doors on 3 January 1971. Between those dates more than 400 acts performed there, many of whom went on to great success.

Well-known live recordings made in Mothers include those released by Pink Floyd on Ummagumma, recorded on 27 April 1969, and parts of "Facelift" by Soft Machine, released on Third, recorded on 11 January 1970.

Rory Gallagher's band Taste played regularly, The Who performed their rock opera Tommy there. Traffic's debut took place at the club, and fledgling heavy metal bands like Deep Purple, Judas Priest (whose vocalist Rob Halford mentions Mothers in a song on his 2000 solo album Resurrection ) and Black Sabbath played some of their earliest gigs there.

Some of the other well-known rock bands and artists to play Mothers include: Family, Fleetwood Mac, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Eclection, Edgar Broughton Band, Free, Roy Harper, Blodwyn Pig, Strawbs, Quintessence, Steppenwolf, the Deviants, Jethro Tull, Jon Hiseman's Colosseum, Skid Row (with Gary Moore), the Nice, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Elton John, King Crimson, Led Zeppelin, The Chicago Transit Authority, Moby Grape, Canned Heat (there is a reference to the club in the sleeve notes of their 1969 compilation Canned Heat Cookbook), Grateful Dead, Moody Blues and the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band.

While returning home to London from a performance at Mothers on 12 May 1969, Fairport Convention's van crashed on the M1 motorway, killing drummer Martin Lamble, 19, and Jeannie Franklyn, guitarist Richard Thompson's girlfriend. The rest of the band suffered injuries of varying severity.

Mothers was voted the number one rock venue in the world by America's Billboard magazine. John Peel, a regular DJ at the club, was quoted as saying: "People are amazed to hear that for a few years the best club in Britain was in Erdington."

Roy Harper later told Brum Beat magazine:

"That was the first club outside London that meant anything at all and that's why there's been this long association [of Harper] with Birmingham. I played there about six times between 1968 and 1970. I have always enjoyed playing here."

A Blue Plaque was unveiled at the former Mothers building on 13 July 2013.

title: Mothers (music venue)


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Ima (BT album)

Ima (stylized as 今 ima; Japanese for "now") is the debut studio album by American electronic musician BT, released on October 9, 1995, through Perfecto Records. The album is considered a major stepping stone in trance music, popularizing a more progressive approach. The album includes the 1995 single "Embracing the Future", which reached number one on the UK Dance Chart, as well as "Loving You More" featuring Vincent Covello. Following its release, Ima appeared on the UK Albums Chart for four weeks, peaking at 45. In 1996, the album was released in the United States in a double disc format, with the US Dance number one single "Blue Skies" featuring Tori Amos.

Background
Brian Transeau (BT) released his debut single, "Embracing the Future" in 1993 through MusicNow Records in the United States, where it failed to chart. However, Welsh DJ Sasha performed the song in the United Kingdom where it saw success, and he paid for Transeau to relocate to the country. Transeau brought an IBM Personal System/2 computer from the US, which the album was recorded on.

Composition
In an interview with Musik Magazine, Transeau spoke about the composition of the album. He cited that "Nocturnal Transmission" and "Quark" were inspired by nature, after he was taken hiking by British DJ  Guy Oldhams in Cumbria, North England. On the topic of the album's composition, Transeau stated: "When I came to the end of [composing "Nocturnal Transmission"], I suddenly got the idea for "Loving You More". All the chord sequences just pulled together. So, in a way, this track did the job of two"

The album's fourth track, "Sasha's Voyage of Ima", is a DJ mix by Sasha, comprising the three former tracks in addition to mixes of "Embracing the Future", "Loving You More" and "Deeper Sunshine". Explaining the inclusion of the mix on the album, Transeau stated that "I wanted some tracks to stand out for themselves, but I also wanted Sasha to show how he interprets songs. He makes every individual record more than just the sum of its parts".

"Loving You More" was composed as a challenge for Transeau to create a vocal track; of which the vocals were provided by Vincent Covello. The final track, "Divinity", was composed after Transeau recorded himself overtone singing.

Release
Ima was released on October 9, 1995, through Perfecto Records in the United Kingdom. In the United States, it was released in 1996 in a double disc format, featuring the single "Blue Skies", featuring Tori Amos, as well as its remix, "Blue Skies (The Delphinium Days Mix)". "Blue Skies" was previously featured in edited form on the soundtrack for the TV show Party of Five. This version also includes several singles released prior to the album, as well as the B-sides to "Embracing the Sunshine" and "Nocturnal Transmission". A portion of "Nocturnal Transmission" is featured in the film The Fast and the Furious, for which BT also composed the score.

The cover art is a photograph of Christ of the Abyss, a submerged bronze statue of Jesus Christ in the Mediterranean Sea.

Critical reception
Ima received positive reviews from critics.

Track listing
Track and version titles and durations listed below refer to actual contents. The releases come with some erroneous and/or incomplete details. All songs written and produced by Brian Transeau, except "Loving You More" written by Brian Transeau and Vincent Covello.

Personnel

 * Tori Amos – vocals on "Blue Skies"
 * Arun Chakraverty – mastering on "Divinity"
 * Alexander Coe (Sasha) – DJ mix ("Sasha's Voyage of Ima")
 * Vincent Covello – vocals on "Loving You More"
 * Richard Dekkard – programming and editing on "Sasha's Voyage of Ima" [uncredited]
 * Victor Imbres – mix engineer on "Loving You More"
 * Aiden Love – engineering on "Tripping the Light Fantastic"
 * Roger Lyons – engineering on "Quark"
 * Oakenfold & Osborne – remixing on "Loving You More (Oakenfold & Osborne Radio Mix)"
 * Brian Transeau (BT) – all other vocals, instruments and programming, recording, mixing, songwriter, arranger, producer

title: Ima (BT album)