The Ministry of Home Affairs in its Western Zonal Council Administrative division includes the states of Goa, Gujarat, and Maharashtra along with the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu,[1] while the Ministry of Culture and some historians also include the state of Rajasthan.

Later, the Maratha Empire which arose in western Maharashtra came to dominate a major portion of the Indian sub-continent.

The region became part of independent India in 1947, and the present state boundaries were drawn based on linguistic considerations in 1956.

The Deccan plains of the Vidarbha, Marathwada in central and eastern Maharashtra define the rest of the region.

The vegetation varies from tropical rainforests along the Konkan coast to thorny bushes and shrubs in northern Gujarat.

Mumbai and northern Konkan regions experience cooler winters with minimum temperatures hovering around 12 °C.

Overall, 83.66% of the population is Hindu, 10.12% Muslim, 4% Buddhist with Christians in Goa and Maharashtra making up the majority of the remainder.

[15] As in other parts of India, a high level of multilingualism is seen with English and Hindi being spoken as additional languages in urban areas.

Bollywood has had a huge impact on the lifestyle and culture of this part of India as the industry is primarily located in Mumbai.

Gujarat also saw Turkic and Mughal conquests, as well as a constant stream of back and forth migrations to and from Sindh and Rajasthan, which helped shape the unique cultural landscape of the state.

The state is popular amongst tourists for its beaches, Goan cuisine, temples, churches and architecture.

The Churches and Convents of Goa have been declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

With its distinct spices and medium of cooking as coconut oil, both vegetarian as well as non-vegetarian cuisine is equally popular.

Agriculture employs most people in the region, while services have largest share in the total GDP.