Banda is a city and district of Uttar Pradesh state, India. Banda lies south of the Yamuna river in the Bundelkhand region. The district is divided into four tehsils, Banda, Naraini, Baberu and Atarra. The district largely consists of irregular uplands with outcrops of rocks intermingling with lowlands, which are frequently under water during the rainy sesason. The Baghein River traverses the district from south-west to north-east. Other important rivers are the Ken River in the east and the Yamuna to the north. The town is well connected to major cities with railways and state highways.
In 1998, the tehsils of Karwi and Mau, formerly part of Banda District, became the new district of Chitrakoot.
The economy is predominantly agricultural, with the main crops being paddy rice, wheat and vegetables. Banda is famous for its Shajar stone, used for making jewellery, and the historically and architecturally significant sites Khajuraho and Kalinjar. Khajuraho is a World Heritage Site famous for its elaborately carved temples. The fortress of Kalinjar is famed for its war history and its glorious rock sculptures.
It was Banda himself who chose the name "Malawi" for the former Nyasaland; he had seen it on an old French map as the name of a "Lake Maravi" in the land of the Bororos, and liked the sound and appearance of the word as "Malawi".
Banda allowed democratic elections in 1994, and was soundly defeated by Bakili Muluzi, a Yao from the Southern Region of the country whose two terms in office were not without serious controversy.
Banda died in a hospital in South Africa in 1997, reportedly aged 101.
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