Maldah district

Maldah district মালদহ জেলা
District of West Bengal
Location of Maldah district in West Bengal
Country	India
State	West Bengal
Administrative division	Jalpaiguri
Headquarters	English Bazar
Government
• Lok Sabha constituencies	Maldah Uttar, Maldah Dakshin
• Assembly seats	Habibpur, Gazole, Chanchal, Harishchandrapur, Malatipur, Ratua, Manikchak, Maldah, English Bazar, Mothabari, Sujapur, Baisnabnagar
Area
• Total	3,733 km2 (1,441 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	3,997,970
• Density	1,100/km2 (2,800/sq mi)
• Urban	240,915
Demographics
• Literacy	62.71 per cent
• Sex ratio	939
Major highways	NH 34
Website	Official website

Maldah district (Pron: ˈmʌldə or ˈmældə) (Bengali: মালদহ জেলা) (also spelled as Malda or Maldaha) is a district in West Bengal, India. It lies 347 km (215 miles) north of Kolkata, the state capital. Mango, jute and silk are the most notable products of this district. The special variety of mango produced in this region, popularly known by the name of the district, is exported across the world and is acclaimed internationally. The folk culture of gombhira is a feature of the district, being a unique way of representation of joy and sorrow of daily life of the common people, as well as the unique medium of presentation on national and international matters.

District headquarters is English Bazar, also known as Malda, which was once the capital of Bengal. The district maintains the traditions of the past in culture and education. Old Maldah, the town which lies just east of the confluence of the Mahananda and Kalindi rivers, is part of the English Bazar urban agglomeration. The town rose to prominence as the river port of the old capital of Pandua. During the 18th century it was the seat of prosperous cotton and silk industries. It remains an important distributing centre for rice, jute, and wheat. The area between the historical monument of Jame Masjid (1566) and the landmark of Nimasarai tower across the river Mahananda, constituted a municipality in 1867. Rice, jute, legumes, and oilseed are the chief crops in the surrounding area. Malda is the largest producer of excellent quality of jute in India. Mulberry plantations and mango orchards occupy large areas; mango trade and silk manufacture are the main economic activities. The Independence Day of Malda is 17 August 1947.

History

Pre-Gour Era

Pāṇini mentioned a city named Gourpura, which by strong reason may be identified as the city of Gouda, ruins of which are situated in this district. Examples are legion of the relics of a predecessor kingdom being used in the monuments of the successor kingdoms.

It had been within the limits of ancient Gour and Pandua (Pundrabardhana). These two cities had been the capital of Bengal in ancient and medieval ages and are equidistant, north and south, from English Bazar town (once known as Engelzavad established by the British rulers).

The boundary of Gour was changed in different ages since the 5th century BC, and its name can be found in Puranic texts. Pundranagara was the provincial capital of the Maurya Empire. Gour and Pundravardhana formed parts of the Mourya empire as is evinced from the inscriptions, Brahmi script on a seal discovered from the ruins of Mahasthangarh in the Bogra District of Bangladesh. Hiuen Tsang saw many Asokan stupas at Pundravardhana.

The inscriptions discovered in the district of undivided Dinajpur and other parts of North Bengal, along with the Allahabad pillar inscriptions of Samudragupta, clearly indicate that the whole of North Bengal as far east as Kamrup formed a part of the Gupta Empire.

After the Guptas in the beginning of 7th century AD Sasanka, the king of Karnasubarna as well as the king of Gauda ruled independently for more than three decades. From the middle of 8th century to the end of 11th century the Pala dynasty ruled Bengal, the kings were devoted to Buddhism. It was during their reign that the Jagadalla Vihara (monastery) in Barindri flourished paralleling with Nalanda, Vikramshila and Devikot.

Gour Era

The Pala empire yielded to the emergence of Sen Dynasty, the Sen rulers were Tantrik Bauddha's, and in the habit of moving from place to place within their kingdom. During this time, Buddhism went on the defensive. It evantually disappeared from the demographic map of Bengal. At the time of Lakshman Sen Goud was known as Lakshmanabati. The Sen kings ruled Bengal till Bakhtiyar Khalji conquered Bengal in 1204 AD.

Thereafter the Muslim rule started. The name Mal Daha was coined (Mal= riches, Daha= lake). Sultan Ilyas Shah, Firuz Shah, Sikandar Shah, Raja Ganesha, Alauddin Hussain Shah and Nasiruddin Nasrat Shah are the notable rulers of medieval age. Afghan warrior Sher Shah Suri invaded Gour and was repelled by Mughal emperor Humayun. Humayun loving the mango of Gour named the place as Jannatabad (garden of heaven). Firuz Shah Tughlaq, Ghiyasuddin and Mughal army invaded Gour to suppress rebellion several time. Relics of Muslim structures are present as Firuz minar, Adina Mosque (the largest mosque of South Asia then), Qutwali gate etc. During the Mughal rule, the capital was removed to Dhaka due to a course change of the river Ganges. Muslim rule ended in 1757. Koch army invasion increased during the downfall of Gour.

Post-Gour Era

The British rule started in 1757. The English traders settled in the southern bank of the river Mahananda. Some indigo plant chambers, trade center and offices were established. William Carey worked here. But the glorious days were gone.

This district was formed out of some portions of outlying areas of Purnia, Dinajpur and Rajshahi districts in 1813. At the time of Dr. B. Hamilton (1808–09), the present thanas of Gazole, Malda, Bamongola, and part of Habibpur were included in the district of Dinajpur and the thanas of Harischandrapur, Kharba, Ratua, Manikchak, and Kaliachak were included in the district of Purnia. In 1813, in consequence of the prevalence of serious crimes in the Kaliachak and Sahebganj thanas and also on the rivers, a Joint Magistrate and Deputy Collector was appointed at English Bazar, with jurisdiction over a number of police stations centering that place and taken from the two districts. Thus the district of Malda was born. The year 1832 saw the establishment of separate treasury and the year 1859 the posting of a full-fledged magistrate and collector.

Up to 1876, this district formed part of Rajshahi Division and between 1876 and 1905, it formed part of Bhagalpur Division. In 1905, it was again transferred to Rajshahi Division and until 1947, Malda remained in this division. During the first Partition of Bengal of 1905, this district was attached with the newly created province of Eastern Bengal and Assam. Malda has a history of Indigo movement led by Rafique Mondal. The santhals got insurgent and captured historic Adina Mosque in support of Jeetu. Again in August 1947 this district was affected by partition. Between 12–15 August 1947, the fate of the district as to which side it should go, to Pakistan or to India, was undecided because the announcement of the partition award of Sir Radcliffe did not make this point clear. During these few days the district was under a Magistrate of East Pakistan. When the details of the Radcliffe Award were published, the district came over to West Bengal on 17 August 1947. However, the sub-division of Nawabganj was severed from Malda and was given to East Pakistan as a sub-division of the Rajshahi district.

Modern Maldah

Maldah has been a long neglected district since independence of India, but it became a prominent place in West Bengal after the late A. B. A. Ghani Khan Chowdhury, one of the prominent personality of eastern India, took steps within his various capacities being minister of different portfolios from state to national ministries of India to develop Malda.

For 28 years, West Bengal was ruled by the opponents of Mr. Khan Chowdhury, who succeeded to establish a unique relation with him, and the district witnessed the fruit of this coalition in industrial sector. Sukhjeet Starch Ltd, East End Silk Ltd. and lots of other enterprises have increased. East India Agro at Rishipur Anchal, which Deals with MANGO PULP & RAW JUTE. There is also a GO-NGO partnership on the card, especially artisan-based business cluster development and SME establishment is within the mission. Malda has good potential in Agro Products like mango, jute and silk .

Maldah is the one of two Muslim majority districts (Murshidabad, the other Muslim majority district) in West Bengal. Due to Political differences till date Maldah is still a neglected district.

Geography

The latitude range is 24°40’20" N to 25°32’08" N, and the longitude range is 87°45’50" E to 88°28’10" E. The district covers an area of 3,733.66 square kilometres (1,441.6 sq mi). The total population (as of 2001 Census) was recorded as 3,290,160.

Malda is called the gateway of North Bengal. It was once the capital of Gour-Banga with its 3,733 square kilometres (1,441 sq mi) lay of the land classified into Tal, Diara, and Barind.

To the south is Murshidabad district, to the north are North Dinajpur district and South Dinajpur district. To the east is the international border with Bangladesh. To the west is Santhal Parganas of Jharkhand and Purnea of Bihar.

Malda City

Malda, the district headquarters which lends its name to the district, during its early days grew up only near the side of the river Mahananda, and now the place is known as Phulbari. Some of the oldest houses can be found here. The city started to grow since 1925-1930. Now nearly a half-million people live in this city, and it is one of the biggest cities of West Bengal. It is a part of the former Gour. The town is recognized as the English Bazaar municipality. Its notable railway station is named as Malda Town.

Economy

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Malda one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640).^[1] It is one of the eleven districts in West Bengal currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).^[1]

Divisions

Administrative Subdivisions

The district comprises two subdivisions: Chanchal and Malda Sadar. Chanchal consists of six community development blocks: Chanchal–I, Chanchal–II, Ratua–I, Ratua–II, Harishchandrapur–I and Harishchandrapur–II. Malda Sadar subdivision consists of Old Maldah municipality, English Bazar municipality and nine community development blocks: English Bazar, Gazole, Habibpur, Kaliachak–I, Kaliachak–II, Kaliachak–III, Manickchak, Old Maldah and Bamangola.^[2] English Bazar is the district headquarters. There are 11 police stations,^[3] 15 development blocks, 2 municipalities, 146 gram panchayats and 3,701 villages in this district.^[2][4]

Other than municipality areas, each subdivision contains community development blocs, which in turn, are divided into rural areas and census towns.^[5] In total there are 10 urban units, 2 municipalities and 3 census towns. English Bazar and Old Maldah form an urban agglomeration.

Chanchal subdivision

• Chanchal I (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (8 gram panchayats).
• Chanchal II (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (7 gram panchayats).
• Ratua I (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (10 gram panchayats).
• Ratua II (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (8 gram panchayats).
• Harishchandrapur I (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (7 gram panchayats).
• Harishchandrapur II (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (9 gram panchayats).

Malda Sadar subdivision

• English Bazar: municipality
• Old Maldah: municipality
• English Bazar (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (11 gram panchayats).
• Gazole (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (15 gram panchayats).
• Habibpur, Malda (Community development block) consists of rural areas (11 gram panchayats) and three census towns: Kachu Pukur, Kendua and Aiho.
• Kaliachak I (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (14 gram panchayats).
• Kaliachak II (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (9 gram panchayats).
• Kaliachak III (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (14 gram panchayats).
• Manikchak (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (11 gram panchayats).
• Old Malda (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (6&nbsiooip;gram panchayats).
• Bamangola (Community development block) consists of rural areas only (6 gram panchayats).

Demographics

According to the 2011 census Malda district has a population of 3,997,970,^[6] roughly equal to the nation of Liberia^[7] or the US state of Oregon.^[8] This gives it a ranking of 58th in India (out of a total of 640).^[6] The district has a population density of 1,071 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,770 /sq mi) .^[6] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 21.5%.^[6] Maldah has a sex ratio of 939 females for every 1000 males,^[6] and a literacy rate of 62.71%.^[6]

Nearly 32,90,160 people live in Malda. Malda has a large diversity of demographics. Various classes and tribes like Polia, Shersabadia, Khotta, Panjhra, Santhals live here.

Northern part of the district has dominantly Hindu 53% population; Muslims are 46%. Tribesman and Christian people also live here. Old Maldah has a number of Shikh population who suffered in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Southern Malda is dominated by 59% Muslim population. Sujapur Idgah is one of the largest in India. Hindus are 40% in this part.

Over all Malda district (North Malda & South Malda together) Muslims are 52%, Hindus are 47%, Others are 1%.

Some local forms of Bengali, Maithili, Hindi and Urdu language are spoken along with original forms. Some regional languages are Pabnai, Nawabganji, Kamtapuri, Shershahabadia, Santali, Khotta, etc.

Culture

Malda has special cultural sorts like Gombhira, Alkap, Kavigan etc.

Festivals

Almost all of the major religious festivals are clebrated, like

• Durga puja
• Kali Puja
• Id-ul-Fitr
• Id-uz-Zoha
• Guru Nanak Jayanti, Especially in Old Maldah
• X-mas

Fairs

Some of the mostly reputed cultural fairs of the district are

• Ramkeli Fair, Gour
• Gazole Utsab
• Kartik puja Fair
• Charu Babu Mela
• Charak Fair
• Piran-e-Pir fair
• Chobbish (24) Prahor at Shingabad and Rishipur

Book fair and Expo are organized yearly.

Places of interest

• Adina Relics

1. Adina Mosque
2. Gol ghar
3. Eklakhi mosque
4. Adina deer park

• Relics of Gour

1. Firoz minar
2. Chika Masjid
3. Qutwali Gate
4. 12-gated mosque
5. Qudm-e-Rasul, shrine believed to contain footprint of the Prophet

• Nimai Sarai Tower
• Jami Masjid
• Pandua Shrine
• Piran-e-Pir Shrine.
• Lost monastery of Jagjivanpur
• Temple of Ramakrishna Mission
• Temple of Jahura Kali (Local avatar of Goddess Chandi)
• Chanchal palace
• Aquatic Bengal
• Naimouza Idd-Gah at Sujapur NH34.
• Sujapur Jame Masjid

Notable personalities

• Shibram Chakraborty, Bengali satirist
• A. B. A. Ghani Khan Chowdhury, former railways minister of India (1982–84)
• Benoy Kumar Sarkar, Economist
• Asim Dasgupta, former finance minister of West Bengal and a former student of Malda Zilla School
• Ramesh Chandra Ghosh, Lawyer and Politician.
• Ramhori Roy, former MLA
• Dr. Jayanti Kumar Ghosh, reputable physician in Northumberland, England, UK
• Subhashis Sen, Independent Historical Researcher, Special Educator & Freelance Journalist.
• Professor Ajit Kumar Ghosh, former principal of Bijoy Krishna Girls' College, Howrah
• Professor Santosh Kr. Chakroborty
• Professor Durga Kinkar Bhattacherjee, former principal of Malda College.
• Dr. Pinaki Ranjan Roy. famous Eye Specialist
• Pt. Vishnu Sewak Misra, famous artist of classical music
• Niren Chandra Sinha, former MLA and Head Master, Kahala NKBB High School (HS).
• Sourindra Mohon Misra, former Dy. Minister of Education, West Bengal
• Professor Santosh Ghosh, former Chief Architect, CMDA, Calcutta
• Subhas Bhowmick, former Indian national footballer
• Dr Ranajit Kumar Ghosh, General Physician of Malda Town

Flora and fauna

The flora of Malda district is merely a small portion of that extending from Kose to the Brahmapurtra. Alteration of beels and village shrubbery with the drier jungle of the Barind region, where the ground is not occupied by the usual crops, it is covered by an abundant natural vegetation excepting the sandy beds of rivers. Old river beds, ponds, marshy land and other watery regions have a copious vegetation of vallisneria and other plants. The areas which are subject to frequent inundation usually cover themselves with seedy grasses, and in marshy parts the Rosainvolucrata is plentiful. Some portions of the Barind area are covered by jungles, which consist chiefly of thorny scrub-bush jungles mixed with Pipal, Bat, Simul and Pakur trees and Nepal Bamboos. Species of thorny bamboos are also seen in Pandua areas near villages and embankment areas of Gour thickets or shrubberies, ordinary Neem, Jackfruit trees, tamarind, bamboo, pipul and mango trees are seen in plenty. The soil of the western region of the district is particularly suited to the growth of mulberry and mango, for the production of both of which Malda has become famous.

Though about a century ago, Malda was a well-known place for the unusual quantity of large game animals, at present the district has lost its charm in this respect. Earlier, the breeding grounds of the animals were the thorny jungles of the Barind area and jungles covering the Gour and Pandua ruins. Malda was often described as the "best sporting ground of north Bengal". Many European travellers witnessed crocodiles on wetlands of Gour. In 1919 the last-known tiger, and in 1965 the last leopard of Malda was killed.

But the jungles have mostly been cleared and their inhabitants exterminated by the Santals and Paharias, who have crossed the Ganges in large number to settle in Barind and other areas. It is a time when the people become aware of the dangers of ecological imbalance.

The rivers, beels, and ponds of Malda produce considerable quantities of various categories of fishes, including Rohu, Katla, Chital, Boal, Magur, Shol, Hilisha, Pabda and varieties of crabs, prawns, turtles, etc. Pisciculture has been undertaken under various projects according to modern scientific methods.

Education

Though Maldah is one of the least educated districts of West Bengal, it contains some of the élite schools of the state. Malda Zilla School, Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Vidyamandir, Barlow Girls' High School, A.C. Institution, Lalit Mohan Shyam Mohini High School, Malda Town High School, C.C. Girls' High School, The St. Xavier's School (English medium), St. Mary's School (English medium), Jingle Bell School (an English medium preparatory school), Usha Martin School(English medium), Holy Child English Academy and North Point English Academy are also some of the most reputed schools of the district.

Malda Zilla School is the oldest school in the town and also one of the oldest schools in West Bengal. It was established in 1858 on recommendation of the Hunter commission after the mutiny. Also, there is a Kendriya Vidyalaya (Central School) in the outskirts of Malda located at Maliha, the only school with English and Hindi as medium of studies. This was established in the year 1982-83 by then Union railway minister from Malda, A. B. A. Ghani Khan Choudhury. This is the only school in Malda where Bengla is not a medium of studies and is affiliated to C.B.S.E.. It was established for the education of children of Indian Railways, BSF, PowerGrid and other central govt. employees who are mostly in transferable jobs across India. Usha Martin group is coming up with its flagship chain of schools "Usha Martin School" with all the ultra modern facilities and an air-conditioned hostel facility on main NH-31.

Malda College was also in the top league among the North Bengal University affiliated colleges. Now it has its own university, the University of Gour Banga with several affiliated colleges of the district and the neighboring districts of South and North Dinajpur. The district also has an engineering college, a few private technical institutions (mostly for computer-related professional courses), and an medical college.

Among the important persons of Maldah district, Benoy Sarkar who was a professor of Calcutta University and a former student of Malda Zilla School; Ramesh Chandra Ghosh, MABL was a former student of Malda Zilla School and a lawyer practiced at Chapai Nawabganj and Malda. He was a politician and imprisoned by British during independence movement. He was a Colleague of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. His house "Shital Kutir" stands in Mahesmati, Rabindra Avenue of the town; Professor Ajit Kumar Ghosh was the principal of Howrah Girls College (Bejoy Krishna Girls College) near Kolkata. He was the secretary of "Malda in Calcutta Society" with Benoy Sarker as Chairman. He wrote a book "Federation of Half of Europe", published on 1948 based on his lecture at Asiatic Society of Calcutta in 1947. Other distinguished sons of Maldah district are: Dr Ranajit Ghosh, well-known medical practitioner; Professor Santosh Ghosh, M.Arch. (USA), became the chief architect of Calcutta, and Dr Jayanti Kumar Ghosh, medical doctor worked in British National Health Service and was the principal in General Medical Practice of Bondicar Medical Group of Blyth Northumberland, UK and Fellow of The Royal Society of Medicine London and now settled in England in the UK.

Also, there were the trams plying through the roads in Malda, during the British period, but was gradually removed for the sake of convenience. The population of the people consists mainly of Hindus, and some minorities of Muslims, Christians, etc.

Colleges and Universities

• University of Gour Banga
• Malda College
• IMPS College of Engineering and Technology, established - 2003
• Malda Polytechnic
• Malda Medical College and Hospital, established - 2011
• Ghani Khan Choudhury Institute of Engineering & Technology (GKCIET), established - 2010
• Malda Women's College
• Gour Mahavidyalaya
• Gazole Mahavidyalaya
• Sultanganj College
• Chanchal College
• Samsi College
• South Malda College
• Pakuahat college

A foundation stone was laid on January 29, 2011 for a new polytechnic college at Samsi named Ratua Satyendranath Bose Govt. Polytechnic College.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• List of rulers of Bengal
• History of Bengal
• Pala dynasty
• Gour

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Maldah district.

• Official Site
• A travel article on Gour by Rangan Datta

	Katihar district, Bihar	North Dinajpur district	South Dinajpur district
	Sahebganj district, Jharkhand		Bangladesh
	Malda district
		Murshidabad district

v t e Cities, towns and locations in Maldah district Cities, municipal and census towns Chanchal subdivision Chanchal Malda Sadar subdivision Aiho English Bazar Kachu Pukur Kendua Old Maldah Locations other than cities and towns Gaur Kharba Pandua Singhabad Related topics Maldah topics Villages in Malda district People from Malda district

v t e Maldah district topics General Alkap Farakka Barrage Gombhira Gauda History Hussain Shahi dynasty Ilyas Shahi dynasty Pala Empire Raja Ganesha Subdivisions Chanchal Malda Sadar Municipalities English Bazar Old Maldah Community development blocks Malda Sadar subdivision Bamangola English Bazar Gazole Habibpur Kaliachak I Kaliachak II Kaliachak III Manikchak Old Malda Chanchal subdivision Chanchal I Chanchal II Harishchandrapur I Harishchandrapur II Ratua I Ratua II Rivers Ganges Mahananda Tangon Transport NH 34 Eastern Railway (India) Railway stations Eklakhi Malda Town Singhabad Lok Sabha constituencies Maldaha Dakshin Maldaha Uttar Malda – now defunct Vidhan Sabha constituencies Habibpur Gazole Chanchal Harishchandrapur Malatipur Ratua Manikchak Maldaha English Bazar Mothabari Sujapur Baisnabnagar Former Vidhan Sabha constituencies Kaliachak Kharba Araidanga See also Cities, towns and locations in Malda district People from Malda district Villages in Malda district

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v t e Minority Concentrated Districts in India Andaman & Nicobar Islands Nicobar Arunachal Pradesh East Kameng Lower Subansiri Changlang Tirap Tawang West Kameng Papum Pare Assam Kokrajhar Dhubri Goalpara Bongaigaon Barpeta Darrang Marigaon Nagaon Cachar Karimganj Hailakandi Kamrup North Cachar Hills Bihar Araria Kishanganj Purnia Katihar Sitamarhi Pashchim Champaran Darbhanga Delhi North East Haryana Gurgaon Sirsa Jammu & Kashmir Leh Jharkhand Sahibganj Pakaur Ranchi Gumla Karnataka Gulbarga Bidar Kerala Wayanad Madhya Pradesh Bhopal Maharashtra Parbhani Buldana Washim Hingoli Manipur Thoubal Senapati Tamenglong Churachandpur Ukhrul Chandel Meghalaya West Garo Hills Mizoram Lawngtlai Mamit Orissa Gajapati Sikkim North Uttar Pradesh Bulandshahar Budaun Barabanki Kheri Shahjahanpur Moradabad Rampur Jyotiba Phule Nagar Bareilly Pilibhit Bahraich Shrawasti Balrampur Siddharthnagar Bijnor Lucknow Saharanpur Muzaffarnagar Meerut Baghpat Ghaziabad Uttaranchal Udham Singh Nagar Hardwar West Bengal Uttar Dinajpur Dakshin Dinajpur Maldah Murshidabad Birbhum Nadia South 24 Parganas Barddhaman Koch Bihar Haora North 24 Parganas Kolkata Source: "Press Information Bureau English Releases". Pib.nic.in. Retrieved 2014-01-14.

Coordinates: 25°00′N 88°09′E / 25.00°N 88.15°E / 25.00; 88.15