Dewas is the 53rd largest Hindi speaking city of India with a total population of 2.8 Lakh. Major employment in Dewas is in Food, Fabric, Automobile, Drug and Agriculture Industry. Dewas has 77% Agriculture workers, 21% Industry and other workers and 2% Household workers of the total working population. Dewas is a good agriculture belt because of the river Kshipra. Dewas was known for being a production center of retail opium in the 1800s, as noted in the UKs First Report of the Royal Commission on Opium (1895). It is situated on Malwa Plateau. The name Dewas is derived from the Devi Vaishini hill in the city, commonly known as Tekri. The hill has a temple of deity Devi Chamunda, Tulja Bhavani and Kalika Mata. The word Dewas is a combination of two hindi words “Dev” (deity) and “Vas” (adobe), thus Dewas means abode of the Deity or God. Dewas was formerly the capital of two princely states of British India (Senior and Junior). The original state was founded in the first half of the 18th century by the brothers Tukaji Rao (senior) and Jivaji Rao (junior), from the Puar clan of Marathas, who advanced into Malwa with the Maratha Peshwa, Baji Rao, in 1728. During the time of 1841, both (senior and Junior) branches ruled their own portion as separate states, though the lands belonging to each were so intimately entangled, that even in Dewas, the capital town, the two sides of the main street were under different administrations and had different arrangements for water supply and lighting which gives an amazing piece of historical evidence. After Indias independence in 1947, the Rajas of Dewas acceded to India and their land was integrated in Madhya Bharat (Madhya Pradesh).
