Madhu Tea Estate

Madhu Tea Estate a picturesque tea garden, at the edge of Madhu Forest in Kalchini block of Dooars Jalpaiguri district in West Bengal.

History

The estate was planted by the Roy family of Jalpaiguri, who had more than twelve tea estates in Dooars and Darjeeling districts. Madhu Tea Estate was named after the sudden death of Dr.Madhu Guha, a beloved neighbour of the Roy family. Before that the place was known as Patabari. It is 17km away from Phuntsholing, the border town of Bhutan and hardly 1.5km from Air Force Station Hasimara. It is 8km from Kalchini B.D.O. Office. A broad gauge rail line and Pucca road crossed along the side of Madhu Tea Estate. The nearest railway station, Hasimara, is 3km. There is a medium-sized tea factory, a Dakbungalow, a small hospital, a post office, and a Bengali medium high school at Madhu Tea Estate.

There is a small stream between Madhu Forest and Madhu Tea Estate called Pataijhora or Madhu River. Though it is small it has flooded the entire area many times. A forest basty, named Dalbadal basty is situated between the estate and forest. The population of Madhu Tea Estate is about ten thousand.

Overview

The majority of population are Jharkhandi (Oraon, Munda, Kharia, Lohara, Chik Baraik), Bengali and Nepali. The chief lingua franca is Sadri language. General public also speak Bengali and Nepali. However, Oraon speak Kurukh, Munda speak Mundari and Kharia speak Kharia language. The literacy percentage is only 10 percent. There is a big football playground. There is a Bengali-medium higher secondary school. Buses and taxis are available at Madhu Choupathi.