Ratnagiri district forms part of the greater tract known as the Konkan. The tract is about 320 miles in length with a varying breadth of thirty to sixty miles and an area of 5,020.9 square miles. It is composed of 15 talukas and mahals viz. Mandangad, Dapoli, Khed, Chiplun, Guhagar, Sangameshvar, Ratnagiri, Rajapur, Devgad, Lanje, Malvan, Savantvadi, Vengurle, Kudal and Kankavli. This part, in early times had been a thinly inhabited forest from which character it has, till recently but partially emerged, "where beasts with man divided empire claimed though. The tract can scarcely be called historically famous, its long coast-line and convenient harbours, together with its comparative nearness to the Arabian coast, made it known to the earliest travellers, while the natural strength of the country and the character of its inhabitants gave it in later days, great importance than its wealth or extent would have justified.

The word Konkan is of Indian origin and of considerable antiquity. though the meaning, as the name of a country is not obvious and has never been sufficiently explained, even though various interpretations have been forwarded [Nilkanta Sastri, A history of South India, 2, 45. Chitgupi, Western Chalukyas of Vatapi, 2, 5.]. The seven kingdoms of the Konkan of Hindu mythology are mentioned in a Hindu History of Kashmir, and are said to have included nearly the whole of the west coast of India, of which Ratnagiri district forms a part. But the district thus known appears to have had very different limits at different periods.

Ratnagiri is located at 16.98° N 73.3° E. It has an average elevation of 11 metres (36 feet).Ratnagiri the city of virgin beaches about 330 km from Mumbai along the western coast in the Konkan region is the sleepy town of Maharashtra, Ratnagiri. Konkan is a narrow coastal belt covering about 720km from north to south and about 50km wide. The strip is sandwiched between the Arabian Sea in the west and the Sayhadri or the Western Ghats range to the east.

Being a coastal district the variation of temperature during the day and through the seasons is not large.In the hot season temperature rises slowly from March, and May is the hottest month. With the onset of the monsoon, temperature drops by three to four degrees. Day temperatures during the monsoon are lower than those in the cold season. In the post monsoon months of October and November, day temperatures increase and days in November are as hot as in May. Night temperatures are the lowest in January. Areas within 20 to 25 kilometres of the coast are the most pleasant particularly in the hot months with the sea breeze blowing, nearly throughout the day.

Further inland during the hot months both days and nights can be oppressive and more so in the tract at the foot of the Western Ghats. Along the coast the maximum temperature rarely goes beyond 38°C (100.4°F) but in the interior may reach 40° or 41°C (104°0 or 106°0 F).

The precedings chapters have given the account of progress achieved in the major departments of economic life in the district. In the present chapter an attempt has been made to give a broad out- line of the possibilities of economic development in the years to come in the context of resources available. In spite of the successful execution of the two five year plans, Ratnagiri district continues to be a backward region. The peculiar geographical position accounts for its comparatively poor development in the spheres of agriculture, trade, industry and transport.

The rocky and rugged soil, lack of rich and fertile land and major irrigation facilities, absence of adequate means of transport and communications, non-availability of adequate electric power, lack of capital resources and so many other factors have come in the way of its development. The district continues to be a deficit tract as regards food grains.

Ratnagiri’s warm and humid weather is most suitable for horticulture, especially for mango, cashew and jackfruit. It has been declared as the Horticulture District in Maharashtra. The world-famous King of Mangoes Alphanso is grown here. Ratnagiri’s cashew nuts are famous for earning ‘Dollars’ for Konkan. The other occupation is fishing.