By Imperial Decree in 1780 a namestnichestvo was established in Saratov which since 1782 began to be called a province. In 1796 the province was dissolved, but on March 5, 1797 it was restored and remained until 1928.
In 1928, the Nizhnevolzhskiy region with Saratov as the main city was formed and in the same year it was renamed into the Nizhnevolzhskiy krai.
By Order of the RSFSR Central Executive Committee of January 10, 1934 the Saratov krai was separated form the Nizhnevolzhskiy krai and after adopting the USSR Constitution on December 5, 1936 it began to be called the Saratov region.

Snowy winter and dry, hot summer are typical of the favorable continental climate.
The Saratov region is the only one in Russia which is located in three natural zones: forest-steppe, steppe, and semidesert. Mixed forests, groves of leafy trees, steps, coppices and desert stretch for 200 km from the north to the south of the region.
The region is rich in oil, gas, chalk, phosphorites, clays, sands and other natural resources.

The Saratov region is situated in the south-east of the European part of Russia. The region extends 575 km from the west to the east and 240 km from the north to the south. Its area is 101.2 th.sq.m. The administrative center is Saratov. The distance from Saratov to Moscow is 858 km. The Volga River divides the region into the Left-bank region and Right-bank region. The region borders on West Kazakhstan, Orenburg, Samara, Penza, Voronezh and Volgograd regions.

The region consists of 42 municipal entities, 18 towns, 5 of which are of district subordination, 30 urban settlements, 614 rural regions, 1752 rural settlements.
Population of the region as of January 1, 2006 amounted to 2643.6 thousand people, including urban population - 1944.3 thousand people and rural population - 699.3 thousand people. Average density of population in the region amounts to 26.5 people per 1 sq.km. Rich cultural traditions of the Saratov region allow the cities of Saratov, Balashov, Khvalynsk, Marx, Pugachyov, Petrovsk be listed among historic places of Russia.



Saratov is the administrative center of the Saratov region which is a part of the Volga economic area in the Russian Federation.

Area of the city is 381.97 sq.km. Saratov climate is continental.

The river junction includes passenger port with a river station and mooring. Vessel communication along the Volga with ways through shipping canals to basins of other rivers and areas of port allows river and sea vessels to moor.

The air junction includes civil and military airdromes, as well as an airdrome of the aircraft plant. All branches of the transportation field are able to meet the need of the city in cargo and passenger transportation and have a sufficient potential for development. Saratov is a large railway junction and has its main passenger station Saratov-1, a range of sorting and cargo stations. The junction of Saratov motor roads has six directions of federal importance - to Syzran, Penza, Tambov, Voronezh, Volgograd and Uralsk.

In Saratov there are 9 independent state higher education institutions, including Saratov State University, Saratov State Technical University, Saratov State Medical University, Saratov State Social and Economic University, Saratov State Agrarian University, Saratov State Law Academy and others. Besides, 2 independent private higher education institutions and 3 branches operate in the region.

Saratov has a great scientific potential. On the territory of the region there are 6 institutes of the Academy of Sciences of the Russian Federation, 21 scientific research institutes, 19 design institutes which carry out development of new technologies in various branches of science and economy.

28.4 thousand organizations, including 1445 large and middle-scale ones, are registered in the Uniform Register of Saratov Enterprises and Organizations. Trade and catering companies prevail in the economic sector - 35.7%, construction - 12.2%, industry - 10.6%. Enterprises and organizations of public housing make up 3.2%, educational institutions - 2.4%, scientific institutions and scientific services organizations - 2.5%, public associations - 6.3%. Enterprises and organizations of the city by patterns of ownership: private- 82.8%, public - 8%, state - 3.4%, municipal - 2.5%, of other patterns of ownership - 3.3%.

In 2005, 9,487.3 mln roubles of investments were spent for development of economic and social field by large and middle-scale enterprises and organizations, it is 11.2 % more than in the previous year. 56.8 % in the total amount of investments fall to assets of enterprises and organizations, 6.6 % - bank credits and loans of other enterprises, 23.2 % - budget funds, 13 % - other sources.

Saratov is a large industrial center. In the last year the industrial sector of the city economy gave products at the sum of 58.2 bn roubles, including production of large and middle-scale enterprises - 54. 3 bn roubles. The index of physical industrial production volume made 96.2 %. In the structure of the industrial complex the dominant branches are the fuel industry (39.3%), electric power (17.6%), machine engineering, and metal-working (16.3%). There are 1479 large and middle-scale industrial enterprises in the city. The highest production development rate was registered in the food industry (131.2%), chemical and petrochemical industry (129.8%), machine engineering (115.5%), fuel industry (113.7%), wood, and wood-working industry (100.3%). Oil production made 118.7%, electric power - 103.1%, and thermal power - 102.5%. Demand for industrial production in the city is characterized by the ratio of dispatched products to produced ones, it is 99%.

The basic products of the chemical and petrochemical industry are fibers and filaments, sulphur, synthetic phenol, mineral fertilizers, unmoulded and moulded rubber items. Machine engineering products: low power engines, metal-cutting machines, rolling bearings, accumulators, and storage batteries. The building materials industry produces wall panels, brick, reinforce concrete constructions and parts, window glass, tightened glass, and non-ore building materials. The basic products of the food industry are macaroni, animal oil, cereals, vodka and alcoholic beverage, animal feed, cigarettes, and confectionary.

Large and middle-scale enterprises performed the work at the sum of 2.3 bn roubles on a contract basis in the previous year, it is 95.8 % as compared to the previous year. The total area of built dwelling houses amounted to 192 th.sq.m. or 85.7 % as compared to the previous year. Individual builders built 127 dwelling houses of the total area of 35.8 th.sq.m. or 99% as compared to 2003.

By beginning of the year 14 independent commercial banks had been registered on the territory of the region. The number of registered branches of credit institutions of other regions in the city, taking the regional branch of Savings Bank of Russia as a unit, amounted to 17.

By beginning of the year 5.379 small businesses, where 49.4 thousand people were employed on a constant basis, had been registered. Over 25 thousand people were engaged in business without registering a legal entity.

Small businesses of the city produced goods and rendered services at the sum of 9059 mln roubles. By the end of 2005 the share of taxes paid to the city budget by small businesses had made about 16 %.

Municipal Unitary Industrial Enterprise "Saratovgorelectrotrans", State Unitary Enterprise "Saratovtransavto" and 9 bus companies are a basis of the passenger transportation complex.

All these enterprises are responsible for 132 city routes, including 12 tram, 12 trolleybus and 180 bus lines (71 of them are serviced by private enterprises, 26 by State Unitary Enterprise "Saratovtransavto" and 11 lines are serviced jointly).

In 2005, 171.5 thousand passengers or 108.6% as compared to 2004 were transported by air. Depot - 12 air vessels, flights to Germany, Armenia, Tajikistan, Moscow, Surgut.

In 2005, river vessels carried 117.1 thousand passengers or 100.8 % as compared to the previous year.

In 2005, 360 trucks (21.5 thousand tons of goods) or 108.9% as compared to 2004 were transported by railway monthly. 12 electric trains carried passengers, 8.3 mln people took them in 2004.

There are 7096.5 th.sq.m. of motor roads, 16 bridges and viaducts in the region.

All modern communications are available. Telephone communication is an important part of the city communication system. At present, it is one of the most dynamically developing sectors of the city economy.

The major amount of land-line phone services are provided by the State Telephone Network, division of the Saratov branch of Open Joint-Stock Company "Volgatelecom". Alongside the State Telephone Network, phone services are rendered to citizens and enterprises by Limited Liability Company "Saratov Digital Telephone Network" (capacity of 29450 lines, 25197 telephones installed) and Closed Joint-Stock Company "Konversia -svyaz" (capacity of 51065 lines, 43032 telephones installed).

All the operators installed 257545 telephones.

Besides organizations rendering traditional land-line phone communication services, seven companies provide cell phone communication services. The total number of cell phone users in the city is over 250 thousand people.

In the structure of the Saratov consumer market the turnover of retail amounted to 74 %, paid services - 24 %, public catering - 2 %. .

In 2005, the number of public catering companies increased by 55. Availability of seats for citizens of the city reached the standard and amounted to 44.1 seats per 1000 citizens.

Public housing services prevail in the structure of paid services - 27 %, communication services - 16.6 %, passenger transportation services - 15.2 %.