West Singhbhum
West Singhbhum or Pashchimi Singhbhum is one of the 24 districts of Jharkhand state, India. It came into existence on 16 January 1990, when the old Singhbhum district (then in Bihar) was bifurcated. Chaibasa is the district headquarters.
The dis ...
district in the state of
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . It ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. It is the railway divisional headquarters of Chakradharpur (CKP) division of the South Eastern Railway. The city stands at an elevation of 227 metres (745 feet) and has urban area of 10 square kilometres bounded on the east by
Jamshedpur
Jamshedpur (, ) or Tatanagar is the largest and most populous city in Jharkhand and the first planned industrial city in India. It is a Notified Area Council and Municipal Corporation and also the headquarter of the East Singhbhum district. It ...
(Tatanagar), on the west by
Rourkela
Rourkela is a planned city located in the northern district Sundargarh of Odisha, India. It is the third-largest Urban Agglomeration in Odisha after Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. It is situated about west of state capital Bhubaneswar and is surro ...
(Odisha), on the north by
Ranchi
Ranchi (, ) is the capital of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Ranchi was the centre of the Jharkhand movement, which called for a separate state for the tribal regions of South Bihar, northern Odisha, western West Bengal and the eastern area ...
(state capital of Jharkhand) and on the south by Chaibasa (district town of
West Singhbhum district
West Singhbhum or Pashchimi Singhbhum is one of the 24 districts of Jharkhand state, India. It came into existence on 16 January 1990, when the old Singhbhum district (then in Bihar) was bifurcated. Chaibasa is the district headquarters.
The dis ...
). Chakradharpur is close to boundaries of two neighbouring states,
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
and
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
.
Chakradharpur is one of the
divisions of Indian Railways
Indian Railways divides its operations into zones, which are further sub-divided into divisions, each having a divisional headquarters. There are a total of 19 zones (including Metro Railway, Kolkata) and 70 Divisions on Indian Railway System. E ...
.
Geography
Chakradharpur is located at . It has an average elevation of 227 metre (745 ft). It is covered by mountains on most sides, and the river Sanjay running in the south-eastern periphery. Chakradharpur is believed to have been a quasi-hill station in the mid-1900s.
Demographics
As of
2011 Indian Census
The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...
, Chakradharpur nagar parishad had a total population of 56,531, of which 28,932 were males and 27,599 were females. Population within the age group of 0 to 6 years was 6,467. The total number of literates in Chakradharpur was 42,940, which constituted 75.9% of the population with male literacy of 81.0% and female literacy of 70.7%. The effective literacy rate of 7+ population of Chakradharpur was 85.8%, of which male literacy rate was 91.6% and female literacy rate was 79.6%. The
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
population was 4,972 and 8,648 respectively. Chakradharpur had 11,472 households in 2011.
In the 2001 India
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
, Chakradharpur had a population of 38,352. Males constituted 52% of the population and females 48%. 5,102 persons were in the age range of 0 to 6 years. The total number of literates were 27,666 which is 72.1% of the total population. the effective literacy rate was Chakradharpur had an average literacy rate of 56.93%. The effective literacy of 7+ population was 83.2%.
Languages
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
is the official language of the town and also the language of the majority of the people. It is followed by
Odia
Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to:
* Odia people in Odisha, India
* Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family
* Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
,
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
South Eastern Railway. The first rail line on Chakradharpur Division was opened on 22 January 1890 with the laying of the long Purulia-Chakradharpur rail line. The rail network on the main trunk route passing through Chakradharpur division was completed on 18 February 1891 when the Goilkera-Jharsuguda section was opened. With the opening of this section the main line route of
Bengal Nagpur Railway
The Bengal Nagpur Railway was one of the companies which pioneered development of the railways in eastern and central India. It was succeeded first by Eastern Railway and subsequently by South Eastern Railway.
History
The opening of the ...
(BNR) was completed. The official opening ceremony of the main line from
Asansol
Asansol is a (Tier-II) metropolitan city in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the second largest and most populated city of West Bengal and the 33rd largest urban agglomeration in India. Asansol is the district headquarters of Paschim Bar ...
to
Nagpur
Nagpur (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, aːɡpuːɾ is the third largest city and the winter capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the 13th largest city in India by population and according to an Oxford's Economics report, Nag ...
, presided over by the
Viceroy of India
The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...
, Lord Lansdowne, was held at Chakradharpur station on 3 March 1891.
It is located on the
Tatanagar–Bilaspur section
The Tatanagar–Bilaspur section is part of the Howrah–Nagpur–Mumbai line and connects in the Indian state of Jharkhand and in Chhattisgarh. Part of one of the major trunk lines in the country, it passes through an industrial-mining area ...
of the Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line. Chakradharpur division serves the mineral and industrially rich areas of Jharkhand and
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
. It is spread over East and West Singhbhum, Saraikela-Kharsawan, Simdega of Jharkhand and Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Sundargarh and Mayurbhanj districts of Odisha. In this division lies the main corridor of freight and passenger traffic between eastern and western parts of the country. This region is aptly called the Heart of the South Eastern Railway. The development of the rail network in the area presently forming Chakradharpur division dates back to the original of the Bengal-Nagpur Railway, the precursor of the South Eastern Railway. The first rail line in the area serving Chakradharpur division was laid in 1890. Presently Chakradharpur division extends over a length of 741.705 route-km, of which 335.798 route-km are located over the state of Jharkhand and 405.907 km. The main line portion of the division extends over the Salgajhari-Jharsuguda portion covering a distance of 270.38 km.
In addition to the main line the division has a large number of branch lines covering Tatanagar-Badampahar, Gamharia-Kandra-Chandil, Sini-Kandra, Rajkharswan-Banspani, Padapahar-Bolani-Barbil, Bondamunda-Bimlagarh, Barsuan-Kiriburu and Rourkela-Birmitrapur sections. The importance of the route covered by the division stems from the fact that it serves six major steel plants located in the region:
Rourkela Steel Plant
Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP), in Rourkela, Odisha is the first integrated steel plant in the public sector in India. It was set up with West Germany collaboration with an installed capacity of 1 million tonnes in the 1960s. It is operated by Stee ...
Bokaro Steel Plant
Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL) is located in the Bokaro district of Jharkhand. It is the fourth integrated public sector steel plant in India built with Soviet Union, Soviet help. It was incorporated as a limited company in 1964. It was later merged ...
;
Tata Steel
Tata Steel Limited is an Indian multinational steel-making company, based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand and headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is a part of the Tata Group.
Formerly known as Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited (TISCO), Tata ...
,
Jamshedpur
Jamshedpur (, ) or Tatanagar is the largest and most populous city in Jharkhand and the first planned industrial city in India. It is a Notified Area Council and Municipal Corporation and also the headquarter of the East Singhbhum district. It ...
and
IISCO
IISCO Steel Plant of Steel Authority of India Limited is an integrated steel plant located at Burnpur, a neighbourhood in Asansol city, in the Asansol subdivision of Paschim Bardhaman district, West Bengal, India.
Overview
IISCO Steel Plan ...
,
Burnpur
Burnpur is a captive township of SAIL, the area covered by IISCO Steel Plant and its surroundings in Asansol of Paschim Bardhaman district, in the heart of the mining-industrial belt in the western periphery of the state of West Bengal, India. It ...
. It also serves the cement belt of Bilaspur division and the heavy traffic in general merchandise on the Howrah-Mumbai trunk route. The division covers some of the most difficult and picturesque terrains of the South Eastern Railway, passing through the verdant forest of Saranda including the two Saranda tunnels on the main line between Mahadevsal and Posoita stations. The division loads bulk requirement of iron and manganese ores, dolomite, limestone and other raw materials for all major steel plants of the country. Two steel plants, Rourkela steel plant and TISCO at Jamshedpur, are located within the division. It serves the Sponge Iron Plant at Manikui and other ancillary industries spread around the two plants, as well as the cement factories located at Jhinkpani, Rajgangpur, Tatanagar, Dhutra and mini cement plants and sponge-iron manufacturing industries around Rourkela. The main commodities loaded on the division comprise raw material for steel plants, cement and other general merchandise. The Chakradharpur division has 86 stations.
Chakradharpur railway station is one of the important stations since its foundation.
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
visited here to inspect the facilities during the British Rule, which he mentioned in his book ''Third class in Indian Railways''.
From the history
Justice Harihar Mahapatra mentioned his visit to Chakradharpur around 1916, in his book ''My Life, My Work''.
The rich mineral deposits around the Sanjay-Binjay valley was mentioned in the book ''Prehistoric India'' by Panchanan Mitra. The book also tells about the cave paintings and natural belongings of the adjoining region, including facts from Mr. Anderson's collections and their visit during the early 20th century.
The rich presence of the Anglo Indian Community in Chakradharpur Railway Colony was mentioned in the book ''Pagan Love: Anglo Indian Story'' by Mervyn Rupert Welsh. The book also tells about the Burton Lake, which is now a hangout zone.
The Geological Survey of India says there is a rich deposit of a composite batholith of a banded trondhjemitic material intruded by tonalite, granodiorite, granite and alkali-feldspar granite which was metamorphosed and deformed by a F3 event, which they named "Chakradharpur Granite Gneiss".
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
mentioned his visit to Chakradharpur Railway Station in his book ''Third Class in Indian Railways''.
Notable people
*
Sailesh Kumar Bandopadhyay
Sailesh Kumar Bandopadhyay (born 10 March 1926) is an Indian social activist and Gandhian, who was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi. The Government of India honoured him in 2010, with the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award, for hi ...
, Indian activist, Gandhian and recipient of
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...
Anna Kashfi
Anna Kashfi (born Joan O'Callaghan; 30 September 1934 – 16 August 2015) was a British film actress who had a brief Hollywood career in the 1950s but was better known for her tumultuous marriage to film star Marlon Brando and the controversie ...
, British Indian film actress who had a brief Hollywood career in the 1950s and Marlon Brando's first wife.