Situated on the River Nag, Nagpur is the second capital city of Maharashtra and derives its name from the River. This Orange-growing capital of India was once the capital of the Central Province, but was later incorporated into Maharashtra. Nagpur is almost at the geographical centre of India (approx. 79 E, 21 N). In fact the zero milestone of India is in this city. Nagpur is very centrally located on the crossroads of the intersection of NH7 and NH6, i.e. the north-south and east-west road and rail corridor.

The adjoining districts are Bhandara on the east, Chandrapur on the south, Amaravati and Wardha on the west and in the north shares the boundary with Madhya Pradesh.

Nagpur has a mean altitude of 310 meters above sea level. Climate is dry or mildly humid as Nagpur is located at centre of Indian peninsula far from Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea.

Winter lasts from November to January with temperatures dropping below 10°C (50°F). Monsoons last from June to September with a fairly good amount of rainfall.

Roads : Nagpur is a major junction for roadways as India's two major national highways (Kanyakumari-Varanasi (NH-7) and Hajira-Kolkota (NH-6)) pass through the city. One more highway number 69 connects Nagpur to Obaidullaganj near Bhopal. Moreover, Nagpur city has come in the national spotlight recently for its good roads, which were developed as part of the up gradation and renewal works under Integrated Road Development Project (IRDP), spearheaded by the erstwhile Commissioner of the Corporation Dr. T Chandrashekhar.

Railways : Due to its central location, Nagpur is a very important railway junction and a transit for almost all the trains that connect the country lengthwise and breadthwise, especially trains connecting India's four major metropolises (Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, and Kolkota) located in the four corners of the country. The main railway station in Nagpur city is the Nagpur Railway Station, while the much smaller Ajni, Itwari, Kalamna, Kamptee, and Khapri are the other railway stations in the city's vicinity.

Air : Nagpur's Air Traffic Control (ATC) is the busiest in India, with more than 300 International flights flying over the city every day in 2004. Domestic airlines such as Indian Airlines, Jet Airways, Indigo, Kingfisher Airlines, GoAir, connect Nagpur with major cities like Mumbai, New Delhi, Ahemdabad, Pune, Bangalore, Indore , Hyderabad and Kolkata.

International Airlines like Air Arabia, Qatar Airways, Air India, Indian Airlines have direct flights to Dubai, Bangkok, Sharjah and Doha. Flights to Singapore are expected to start in the month of May 2008.

Nagpur is set to be a prominent destination on India's aviation map as the country's first ever Multi-modal International Cargo Hub and Airport has begun to take shape on the outskirts of the city since 2006.

Nagpur is a major education centre of Central India. Students from all over the country get attracted to this city for its wide range of educational institutions.

Almost all the fields of education are available for students at the Under Graduate, Graduate and Post Graduate levels.

Nagpur is an important city for the scientific community as it is home to the headquarters of a number of national level scientific and governmental establishments like the National Environmental Engineering and Research Institute (NEERI), Central Institute of Cotton Research (CICR), National Research Centre for Citrus, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, the Jawaharlal Nehru National Aluminium Research and Development Centre, the Indian Bureau of Mines, India's Intellectual Property Training Institute, the National Academy of Direct Taxes, the Chief Controller of Explosives of the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation, and the South Central Zone Cultural Centre in addition to a regional office of the Indian Meteorological Department.

Nagpur is also an important city for the Indian armed forces as the headquarters of Maintenance command of the Indian Air Force and an Ordinance factory and Staff College for the Indian Armed Forces are located in the city. In addition, the Nagpur suburb named Kamptee is home a neatly laid out cantonment of the Regimental Centre of Indian Army's Brigade that is made up of the National Cadet Corps' Officers' Training School, Institute of Military Law, and other establishments of Indian Army. Furthermore, Nagpur's National Civil Defence College provides civil defence and disaster management training to pupils from all over India and abroad. The city is also the home for Indian Air Force's giant IL-76 transport planes nicknamed "Gajraj."