In the year 1262, a Rajput prince from Rajasthan named Ram Singh established himself as the ruler of Ramnagar, the present-day Dharampur, which consisted of 8 parganas (a group of villages) and assumed the title Maharana.

In 1818, the Maratha Empire was defeated by the British in the Third Anglo-Maratha War, and the Portuguese ultimately became the effective rulers of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

The Nagar Haveli concelho was itself divided in the following freguesias (civil parishes): Silvassa, Noroli, Dadra, Quelalunim, Randá, Darará, Cadoli, Canoel, Carchonde, and Sindonim.

[8] After India attained independence in 1947, the residents of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, with the help of volunteers of organisations like the United Front of Goans (UFG), the National Movement Liberation Organisation (NMLO), and the Azad Gomantak Dal, conquered the territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli from Portuguese India in 1954.

The order in which these places lie (from east to west) is Nagar Haveli, Lavachha, Dadra, Vapi and Daman (on the sea coast).

So Portuguese officers required transit permits through the Indian territories of Lavachha and Vapi to travel between N.H., Dadra, and Daman.

On the night of 22 July 1954, 15 volunteers of the United Front of Goans under the leadership of Francis Mascerenhas and Waman Desai sneaked into the territory of Dadra and reached the police station.

On the night of 28 July, around 30 to 35 volunteers of Azad Gomantak Dal proceeded to Naroli from Karambele (Karambeli) by swimming across the rivulets.

Leaving about 50 policemen and five civilian officers posted at Silvassa, Captain Fidalgo fled to Udva passing through Rakholi, Dappada, and Khanvel and surrendered to the SRP on 11 August.

It was administered by a body called the Varishta Panchayat of Free Dadra and Nagar Haveli,[10][11] with administrative help from the government of India.

Badlani, an officer of the Indian Administrative Service was, for one day, designated the Prime Minister of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, so that, as Head of State, he could sign an agreement with the Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, and formally merge Dadra and Nagar Haveli with the Republic of India.

The Tenth Amendment of the Constitution of India was passed to incorporate Dadra and Nagar Haveli as a union territory, effective 11 August 1961.

The larger part—Nagar Haveli—spans a roughly C-shaped area upriver from the city of Daman on the coast, at the centre of which, straddling the border with Gujarat, is the Madhuban reservoir.

The stretch of the main southern area is hilly terrain especially towards the northeast and east where it is surrounded by ranges of the Sahyadri mountains (Western Ghats).

The river Damanganga rises in the Ghat 64 km from the western coast and discharges itself in the Arabian Sea at the port of Daman after crossing Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

[25] The Dadra and Nagar Haveli Wildlife Sanctuary covers 91.39 square kilometres, or about 19% of the union territory's total area.

), golden jackal (Canis aureus), nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus), four-horned antelope (Tetracerus quadricornis), sambar deer (Rusa unicolor), and chital deer (Axis axis), and birds including black drongo, bulbul, kingfisher, egret, hoopoe, mynah, heron, and red jungle fowl.

[26] The rich biodiversity makes it a habitat for a variety of birds and animals and thus a destination for inland and coastal safari and eco-tourism.

Being near the coast, all but the sparsely inhabited easternmost parts have a typical north Indian Ocean maritime climate.

[29] Dadra and Nagar Haveli's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $218 million in current prices.

Vegetables like tomato, cauliflower, cabbage and brinjal and fruits like mango, chikoo, guava, coconut and banana are also grown.

Due to heavy industrialisation in the region owing to tax sops for industries in the union territories, steady growth in employment has been observed.

The most prominent are Dhodia (16.90%), Kokna (16.85%) and Warli (62.94%), with small groups of Koli, Kathodi, Naika, and Dubla scattered across the territory, collectively representing 3.31% of the population.

They worship the primary deities of Dis (Sun) and Chand (Moon), and Narandev, Kanasari, Himai, Hirva, Veer, Rangtai and Vagdev.

Besides Gujarati persons, one can find Marathi, Rajasthani, Bihari, Udia, Tamil, Uttar Pradeshi and people from several other states.

Religion in State (2011)[39] There are 72 villages, mainly inhabited by various tribal communities like the Warly (Warlie), Kokana, Dhodia, Koli, Kathodi, Naika, Dubla and Kolgha.

A Bhagat plays the Ghangal (a musical instrument made from gourd, bamboo and iron strings) and performs the rituals.

The women wear a knee-length dark blue saree with an aanchal worn from the front and left loose at the back.

Popular accessories include colourful bead necklaces, and metal ornaments such as bangles or thick kadaas around their ankles.

[44] Kathodia The Kathodis, called Katkari in the Thane district of Maharashtra, make up 0.08% of the total tribal population of Dadra & Nagar Haveli.