Kalpi is the birthplace of Ved Vyas, who was the author of Mahabharata. Today, Kalpi is a centre of local trade of grain, ghee and cotton. Government of India has declared Kalpi as an Industrial Belt. Kalpi is famous for its hand made paper.

History of Kalpi
In the ancient times Kalpi was known as Kalpriya Nagari. As time passed the name of the city was abbreviated to Kalpi. It was in 4th century that King Vasudeva founded Kalpi. In 1196, the kingdom fell into the hands of Qutb-ud-din Aybak who was the viceroy of Mohammed Ghori.

During the reign of Akbar Kalpi had a mint for copper coinage. In the middle of 18 century Kalpi fell into the hands of Marathas. In 1803 Kalpi was dominated by the British. In 1858, Lord Strathnairn defeated 10,000 freedom fighters under Rani of Jhansi. Kalpi was one of the commercial centers of the British East India Company. It remained under their clutches until India was independent in 1947.

In the early 1980's Kalpi was one of the areas in Central India that was affected by dacoits under the leadership of Phoolan Devi.

Geography of Kalpi
Kalpi is located at 26.12° N 79.73° E. The city has an elevation of 367 feet.