Contai III (also known as Kanthi III block) is a
community development block
In India, a Community development block (CD block) or simply Block is a sub-division of Tehsil, administratively earmarked for planning and development. The area is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO), supported by several techni ...
that forms an administrative division in
Contai subdivision of
Purba Medinipur district in the
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 ...
n
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
of
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 fou ...
.
Geography
Purba Medinipur district is part of the lower
Indo-Gangetic Plain and
Eastern coastal plains
The Eastern Coastal Plains is a wide stretch of landmass of India, lying between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal. It is wider and leveled than the Western Coastal Plains and stretches from Tamil Nadu in the south to West Bengal in the n ...
. Topographically, the district can be divided into two parts – (a) almost entirely flat plains on the west, east and north, (b) the coastal plains on the south. The vast expanse of land is formed of
alluvium
Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. ...
and is composed of younger and coastal alluvial. The elevation of the district is within 10 metres above mean sea level. The district has a long coastline of 65.5 km along its southern and south eastern boundary. Five coastal CD Blocks, namely, Khejuri II, Contai II (Deshapran), Contai I, Ramnagar I and II, are occasionally affected by cyclones and tornadoes. Tidal floods are quite regular in these five CD Blocks. Normally floods occur in 21 of the 25 CD Blocks in the district. The major rivers are Haldi, Rupnarayan, Rasulpur, Bagui and Keleghai, flowing in north to south or south-east direction. River water is an important source of irrigation. The district has a low 899 hectare forest cover, which is 0.02% of its geographical area.
Durmuth, a constituent panchayat of Contai III block, is located at .
Contai III CD Block is bounded by
Bhagabanpur II
Bhagabanpur II (also spelt as Bhagawanpur) is a community development block that forms an administrative division in the Contai subdivision of Purba Medinipur district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Geography
Purba Medinipur district is ...
and
Khejuri I CD Blocks in the north,
Deshapran CD Block in the east,
Contai I
Contai I (also known as Kanthi I block) is a community development block that forms an administrative division in Contai subdivision of Purba Medinipur district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Geography
Purba Medinipur district is part of t ...
CD Block in the south and
Egra II
Egra II is a Community development block in India, community development block that forms an administrative division in Egra subdivision of Purba Medinipur district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of West Bengal.
Geography
Pu ...
CD Block in the west.
It is located 59 km from
Tamluk
Tamluk () is a town and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Purba Medinipur district. Though there is some controversy, scholars have generally agreed that present-day Tamluk is the site of the an ...
, the district headquarters.
Contai III CD Block has an area of 160.52 km
2. It has 1
panchayat samity, 8
gram panchayat
Gram Panchayat () is a basic village-governing institute in Indian villages. It is a democratic structure at the grass-roots level in India. It is a political institute, acting as cabinet of the village. The Gram Sabha work as the general bo ...
s, 117 gram sansads (village councils), 165
mouzas and 166 inhabited villages.
Marishda
Marishda is a village, in Contai III CD block in Contai subdivision of Purba Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India.
Geography
Police station
Marishda police station has jurisdiction over Contai III CD block. It covers an ...
police station serves this block. Headquarters of this CD Block is at Marishda.
Gram panchayat
Gram Panchayat () is a basic village-governing institute in Indian villages. It is a democratic structure at the grass-roots level in India. It is a political institute, acting as cabinet of the village. The Gram Sabha work as the general bo ...
s of Contai III block/ panchayat samiti are: Bhajachauli, Debendra, Durmuth, Kaniadighi, Kumirda, Kusumpur, Lauda and Marishda.
Demographics
Population
As per
2011 Census of India
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 ...
Contai III CD Block had a total population of 157,793, all of which were rural. There were 81,143 (51%) males and 76,650 (49%) females. Population below 6 years was 17,985.
Scheduled Castes
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 ...
numbered 20,832 (13.20%) and
Scheduled Tribes numbered 144 (0.09%).
As per 2001 census, Contai III block had a total population of 137,364, out of which 70,418 were males and 66,946 were females. Contai III block registered a population growth of 12.52 per cent during the 1991-2001 decade. Decadal growth for the combined Midnapore district was 14.87 per cent.
Decadal growth in West Bengal was 17.84 per cent.
Large villages (with 4,000+ population) in Contai III CD Block (2011 census figures in brackets):
Marishda
Marishda is a village, in Contai III CD block in Contai subdivision of Purba Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India.
Geography
Police station
Marishda police station has jurisdiction over Contai III CD block. It covers an ...
(5,953), Kanaidighi (8,783).
[
Other villages in Contai III CD Block (2011 census figures in brackets): Bhaja Chauli (2,541), Kumirda (3,625), Lauda (1,124), ]Dihibahiri
Dihibahiri is a village in the Contai III CD block in the Contai subdivision of the Purba Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India.
History
When the largest man-made waterbody in the area, Bhimsagar, was being dug, many antiqui ...
(161).[
]
Literacy
As per 2011 census the total number of literates in Contai III CD Block was 125,656 (89.88% of the population over 6 years) out of which 68,135 (54%) were males and 57,541 (46%) were females.[
As per 2011 census, literacy in Purba Medinipur district was 87.02%.] Purba Medinipur had the highest literacy amongst all the districts of West Bengal in 2011.
See also – List of West Bengal districts ranked by literacy rate
Language and religion
As per the 2001 census, Bengali was the mother-tongue of 90.5% of the population of Purba Medinipur district, followed by Santali (4.6%), Hindi (1.4%), Kurmali Thar (0.7%), Urdu (0.6%), Telugu (0.6%), Odiya (0.4%), Mundari (0.2%), Koda/ Kora (0.1%), Munda (0.1%), Nepali (0.1%) and others (0.3%). Census information about language is available at the district level or above only.
The West Bengal Official Language (Second Amendment) Bill, 2012, included Hindi, Santhali, Odiya and Punjabi as official languages if it is spoken by a population exceeding 10 per cent of the whole in a particular block or sub-division or a district. Subsequently, Kamtapuri, Rajbanshi and Kurmali were also included in the list of minority languages by the West Bengal Official Language (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018. However, as of 2019, there is no official / other reliable information about the areas covered.
In the 2011 census Hindus numbered 152,038 and formed 96.35% of the population in Contai III CD Block. Muslims numbered 5,584 and formed 3.54% of the population. Others numbered 171 and formed 0.11% of the population.
Rural poverty
The District Human Development Report for Purba Medinipur has provided a CD Block-wise data table for Modified Human Poverty Index of the district. Contai III CD Block registered 29.68 on the MHPI scale. The CD Block-wise mean MHPI was estimated at 24.78. Eleven out of twentyfive CD Blocks were found to be severely deprived in respect of grand CD Block average value of MHPI (CD Blocks with lower amount of poverty are better): All the CD Blocks of Haldia and Contai subdivisions appeared backward, except Ramnagar I & II, of all the blocks of Egra subdivision only Bhagabanpur I appeared backward and in Tamluk subdivision none appeared backward.
Economy
Livelihood
In Contai III CD Block in 2011, total workers formed 41.29% of the total population and amongst the class of total workers, cultivators formed 19.18%, agricultural labourers 33.94%, household industry workers 7.18% and other workers 39.70.%.
Infrastructure
There are 166 inhabited villages in Contai III CD block. All 166 villages (100%) have power supply. 164 villages (98.8%) have drinking water supply. 27 villages (16.27%) have post offices. 155 villages (93.37%) have telephones (including landlines, public call offices and mobile phones). 25 villages (15.06%) have a pucca (paved) approach road and 31 villages (18.67%) have transport communication (includes bus service, rail facility and navigable waterways). 35 villages (31.08%) have agricultural credit societies. 13 villages (7.83%) have banks.
In 2007-08, around 40% of rural households in the district had electricity.
In 2013-14, there were 71 fertiliser depots, 12 seed stores and 32 fair price shops in the CD Block.[
]
Agriculture
According to the District Human Development Report of Purba Medinipur: The agricultural sector is the lifeline of a predominantly rural economy. It is largely dependent on the Low Capacity Deep Tubewells (around 50%) or High Capacity Deep Tubewells (around 27%) for irrigation, as the district does not have a good network of canals, compared to some of the neighbouring districts. In many cases the canals are drainage canals which get the backflow of river water at times of high tide or the rainy season. The average size of land holding in Purba Medinipur, in 2005-06, was 0.73 hectares against 1.01 hectares in West Bengal.[
In 2013-14, the total area irrigated in Contai III CD Block was 4,953 hectares, out of which 2,543 hectares were irrigated by tank water, 1,710 hectares by deep tube well and 700 hectares by shallow tube well.][
Although the Bargadari Act of 1950 recognised the rights of ]bargadar
Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land.
Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...
s to a higher share of crops from the land that they tilled, it was not implemented fully. Large tracts, beyond the prescribed limit of land ceiling, remained with the rich landlords. From 1977 onwards major land reforms took place in West Bengal. Land in excess of land ceiling was acquired and distributed amongst the peasants. Following land reforms
Land reform is a form of agrarian reform involving the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution, generally of agricultural ...
land ownership pattern has undergone transformation. In 2013-14, persons engaged in agriculture in Contai III CD Block could be classified as follows: bargadar
Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land.
Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...
s 7.19%, patta (document) holders 27.28%, small farmers (possessing land between 1 and 2 hectares) 2.66%, marginal farmers (possessing land up to 1 hectare) 29.45% and agricultural labourers 33.42%.[
In 2013-14, Contai III CD Block produced 18,098 tonnes of Aman paddy, the main winter crop, from 13,195 hectares, 6,413 tonnes of Boro paddy, the spring crop, from 2,095 hectares and 118 tonnes of potatoes from 164 hectares. It also produced oil seeds.][
Betelvine is a major source of livelihood in Purba Medinipur district, particularly in Tamluk and Contai subdivisions. Betelvine production in 2008-09 was the highest amongst all the districts and was around a third of the total state production. In 2008-09, Purba Mednipur produced 2,789 tonnes of ]cashew nuts
The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus '' Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf cul ...
from 3,340 hectares of land.[
]
Pisciculture
Purba Medinipur's net district domestic product derives one fifth of its earnings from fisheries, the highest amongst all the districts of West Bengal.[ The nett area available for effective pisciculture in Contai III CD Block in 2013-14 was 750.60 hectares. 2,755 persons were engaged in the profession and approximate annual production was 28,598 quintals.][
]
Banking
In 2013-14, Contai III CD Block had offices of 4 commercial banks and 3 gramin banks.[
]
Backward Regions Grant Fund
Medinipur East district is listed as a backward region and receives financial support from the Backward Regions Grant Fund
Backward or Backwards is a relative direction.
Backwards or Sdrawkcab (the word "backwards" with its letters reversed) may also refer to:
* "Backwards" (''Red Dwarf''), episode of sci-fi TV sitcom ''Red Dwarf''
** ''Backwards'' (novel), a nov ...
. The fund, created by the Government of India, is designed to redress regional imbalances in development. As of 2012, 272 districts across the country were listed under this scheme. The list includes 11 districts of West Bengal.
Transport
Contai III CD Block has 3 ferry services, 3 originating/ terminating bus routes.[
]
Education
In 2013-14, Contai III CD Block had 132 primary schools with 5,934 students, 14 middle schools with 828 students, 8 high schools with 6,216 students and 11 higher secondary schools with 12,443 students. Contai III CD Block had 1 general college with 538 students and 290 institutions for special and non-formal education with 12,305 students.[
As per the 2011 census, in Contai III CD block, amongst the 166 inhabited villages, 21/22 villages did not have a school, 49 villages had two or more primary schools, 35 villages had at least 1 primary and 1 middle school and 23 villages had at least 1 middle and 1 secondary school.
]
Healthcare
In 2014, Contai III CD Block had 1 block primary health centre and 2 primary health centres with total 10 beds and 5 doctors (excluding private bodies). It had 24 family welfare sub centres. 515 patients were treated indoor and 126,451 patients were treated outdoor in the hospitals, health centres and subcentres of the CD Block.[
Kharipukuria Block Primary Health Centre at ]Kharipukuria
Kharipukuria is a village in Contai III CD block in Contai subdivision of Purba Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India.
Geography
Location
Kharipukuria is located at .
Urbanisation
93.55% of the population of Contai subdivi ...
, PO Nachinda Bazar (with 10 beds) is the main medical facility in Contai III CD block. There are primary health centres at Banamalichatta (with 10 beds), Bhaitgarh (with ? beds) and Deulbarh (with 2 beds).
References
{{Purba Medinipur topics
Community development blocks in Purba Medinipur district