Raxaul is a sub-divisional town in the
East Champaran district
East Champaran is an administrative district in the state of Bihar in India.The district headquarters are located at Motihari. Prior to 1st Dec 1977, there was a single district called "Champaran". On 1st Dec 1977, the district was divided into 2 ...
of 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 of
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
. It is situated at the India-
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
border with
Birgunj
Birgunj ( ne, वीरगञ्ज) is a metropolitan city in Parsa District in Madhesh Province of southern Nepal. It lies south of the capital Kathmandu, attached in the north to Raxaul in the border of the Indian state of Bihar. As an entr ...
city (Nepal). Raxaul is a major
railway junction
A junction, in the context of rail transport, is a place at which two or more rail routes converge or diverge. This implies a physical connection between the tracks of the two routes (assuming they are of the same gauge), provided by ''points'' ( ...
.
The Indian border town of Raxaul has become one of the busiest towns for heavy transportation due to high trade volume. Almost 56% of the total products of Birgunj are exported to the Indian state of
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
through this route.
Demographics
India census,
Raxaul Bazar had a population of 55,532. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Raxaul Bazar has an average literacy rate of 75.62%, higher than the state average of 61.80%: male literacy is 82.14%, and female literacy is 68.25%. In Raxaul Bazar, 16.21% of the population is under 6 years of age. People communicate with each other in the
Bhojpuri
Bhojpuri (;[Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries](_blank)
, Oxford U ...
and
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 ...
languages.
History
Earlier the name of the town is used to be Falejarganj.
Transport
Raxaul is the only city that is connected with
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
.
Birgunj
Birgunj ( ne, वीरगञ्ज) is a metropolitan city in Parsa District in Madhesh Province of southern Nepal. It lies south of the capital Kathmandu, attached in the north to Raxaul in the border of the Indian state of Bihar. As an entr ...
railway station is connected by the
Nepal Government Railway
The Nepal Government Railway (NGR) ( ne, नेपाल गभर्मेन्ट रेलवे) was Nepal's first railway in Nepal. Established in 1927 and closed in 1965, it linked Amlekhganj with Raxaul across the border in India in the s ...
(NGR) to
Raxaul Junction railway station
Raxaul Junction railway station is a main railway station in East Champaran district, Bihar. Its code is RXL. It serves Raxaul city and also as gateway to Nepal as the most important station on the Indo-Nepal border. The station consists of five ...
in Bihar across the border with India. The railway extends north to
Amlekhganj
Amlekhganj (''also'' Amlekhgunj) (Nepali:अमलेखगंज) is a town and Village Development Committee (now Sub Metropolitan City) in Bara District in the Narayani Zone of south-eastern Nepal. At the time of the 2011 Nepal census it had ...
in Nepal. It was built in 1927 by the British but discontinued beyond Birgunj in December 1965.
The 6 km (3.7 mi) railway track from Raxaul to Birgunj was converted to broad gauge two years after the Indian railways converted the track to Raxaul inside India to broad gauge. Now, broad gauge railway line connects Raxaul to the
Sirsiya
Sirsiya is a village development committee in Parsa District in Province No. 2 of south-eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 1966 people living in 352 individual households.
Sirsiya is now known for its Inl ...
(Birgunj) Inland Container Depot (ICD) which became fully operational in 2005. Talks have been held to reopen the railway route from Birgunj to Amlekhganj in Nepal by converting it to broad gauge because of its socio-economic importance.
Rail
Raxaul Junction railway station
Raxaul Junction railway station is a main railway station in East Champaran district, Bihar. Its code is RXL. It serves Raxaul city and also as gateway to Nepal as the most important station on the Indo-Nepal border. The station consists of five ...
is situated on the Delhi – Gorakhpur - Raxaul - Chakia - Muzaffarpur - Kolkata lines.
Raxaul is connected to several cities in Bihar with daily passenger trains. There are multiple daily connections to
Muzaffarpur
Muzaffarpur () is a city located in Muzaffarpur district in the Tirhut region of the Indian state of Bihar. It serves as the headquarters of the Tirhut division, the Muzaffarpur district and the Muzaffarpur Railway District. It is the fourth m ...
,
Sugauli,
Chakia,
Bairgania
Bairgania is a town and notified area in the Sitamarhi district in the state of Bihar, India. Bairgania is one of the blocks of Sitamarhi districts and is a border of India that links Nepal via Rautahat District through a custom checkpoint. Bairg ...
and
Sitamarhi
Sitamarhi is an Indian city and the district headquarters of the Sitamarhi district in the Mithila region of Bihar and is a part of the Tirhut Division. It dates back to the time of Ramayana and is considered as the place where Janaka found Sit ...
and daily connections to
Bagaha
Bagaha is a city and a municipality in the district of Pashchim Champaran in the state of Bihar, India. It is a subdivision of Pashchim Champaran district and is a Police District. It is located around northwest of its district headquarters ...
,
Hajipur
Hajipur (, ) is the headquarters and largest city of Vaishali district of the state of Bihar in India. Hajipur is the 16th most populous city of Bihar, besides being the second-fastest developing city, next to Patna. It had a total population ...
,
Samastipur
Samastipur is a city and a municipal corporation (nagar nigam) in Bihar, India. It is the headquarter of Samastipur district and comes under Darbhanga division. The Budhi Gandak river flows through the town. It is one of the five railway divisi ...
,
Motihari
Motihari is the headquarters of East Champaran district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Bihar. It is located District entry point and New City 40.09 kilometres Northeast Mehsi. north of the state capital Patna.
Geograp ...
and
Narkatiaganj
Narkatiaganj is a town and a notified area in West Champaran district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is a part of Tirhut Division, and situated northwest of capital of the state, Patna.
Overview
Narkatiaganj is a subdivision region in Wes ...
.
Daily express trains connect to
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
with stops in major cities in Uttar Pradesh including
Gorakhpur
Gorakhpur is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, along the banks of the Rapti river in the Purvanchal region. It is situated 272 kilometers east of the state capital Lucknow. It is the administrative headquarters of Gorakhpur dist ...
and
Bareilly
Bareilly () is a city in Bareilly district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is among the largest metropolises in Western Uttar Pradesh and is the centre of the Bareilly division as well as the historical region of Rohilkhand. The city ...
.
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
is also connected by a daily express train ; the train being 13021
Howrah
Howrah (, , alternatively spelled as Haora) is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. Howrah is located on the western bank of the Hooghly River opposite its twin city of Kolkata. Administratively it lies within Howrah district, and is th ...
Raxaul
Raxaul is a sub-divisional town in the East Champaran district of the Indian state of Bihar. It is situated at the India-Nepal border with Birgunj city (Nepal). Raxaul is a major railway junction.
The Indian border town of Raxaul has become on ...
Mithila Express
The 13021 / 13022 Howrah Junction railway station, Howrah Junction-Raxaul, Raxaul railway station Mithila Express is an Express trains in India, Express train belonging to Indian Railways - Eastern Railway zone that runs between Howrah Junction ...
.
There are also direct trains to
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
and
Varanasi
Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.
*
*
*
* The city has a syncretic t ...
with stops in several towns in Uttar Pradesh.
Chhapra
Chhapra is a city and headquarters of the Saran district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is situated near the junction of the Ghaghara River and the Ganges River.
Chhapra grew in importance as a river-based market in the 18th century when th ...
,
Patna
Patna (
), historically known as Pataliputra, is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Patna had a population of 2.35 million, making it the 19th largest city in India. ...
,
chakia,
Jabalpur
Jabalpur is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. According to the 2011 census, it is the third-largest urban agglomeration in Madhya Pradesh and the country's 38th-largest urban agglomeration. J ...
,
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
,
Darbhanga
Darbhanga is the fifth-largest city and municipal corporation in the Indian state of Bihar situated centrally in Mithila region.
Darbhanga is the headquarters of the Darbhanga district and the Darbhanga division. It was the seat of the erstw ...
,
Barauni
Barauni is an Industrial City situated on the bank of the river Ganges in Begusarai district in the state of Bihar, India.
Transport
Railways
Barauni Junction is one of the important stations in Bihar and has strategic location. It is a ju ...
,
Dhanbad
Dhanbad is the second-most populated city in the Indian state of Jharkhand after Jamshedpur. It ranks as the 42nd largest city in India and is the 33rd largest million-plus urban agglomeration in India. Dhanbad shares its land borders with Pa ...
,
Bokaro,
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
Bilaspur,
Raipur
Raipur ( ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raipur is also the administrative headquarters of Raipur district and Raipur division, and the largest city of the state. It was a part of Madhya Pradesh before the state of Chh ...
,
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 ...
and
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
are also connected by weekly or multiple weekly trains.
Delhi is connected via Satyagraha Express and
Sadbhawna Express
The 14015 / 14016 Sadbhavna Express is an Express train belonging to Northern Railway zone that runs between Anand Vihar Terminal & in India.
It operates as train number 14015 from Anand Vihar Terminal to Raxaul Junction and as train number ...
. Earlier, all tracks were
metre gauge
Metre-gauge railways are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre.
The metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by European colonial powers, such as the French, British and German Empires. In Europe, la ...
but most have been converted to
broad gauge
A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways.
Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union (CIS ...
. After the completion of the gauge conversion from
Darbhanga
Darbhanga is the fifth-largest city and municipal corporation in the Indian state of Bihar situated centrally in Mithila region.
Darbhanga is the headquarters of the Darbhanga district and the Darbhanga division. It was the seat of the erstw ...
to Raxaul via
Sitamarhi
Sitamarhi is an Indian city and the district headquarters of the Sitamarhi district in the Mithila region of Bihar and is a part of the Tirhut Division. It dates back to the time of Ramayana and is considered as the place where Janaka found Sit ...
, another broad gauge route to Raxaul became available from March 2014. The metre gauge track from Raxaul to
Narkatiaganj
Narkatiaganj is a town and a notified area in West Champaran district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is a part of Tirhut Division, and situated northwest of capital of the state, Patna.
Overview
Narkatiaganj is a subdivision region in Wes ...
converted in 2018/august.03 pair passenger trains operated in this route.
Road
Raxaul is connected to major cities of India by National Highway 28A. However the condition of NH 28A is terrible causing regular traffic jams. It is the main route to Nepal. The capital of
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
,
Kathmandu
, pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name =
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
is connected with India through this highway. There is a bus terminal from where buses are available for most of cities in Bihar & Jharkhand.
Airlines and destinations
Raxaul Airport
Raxaul Airport is an airport located at Raxaul in the state of Bihar, India. It was established after the Sino-Indian War of 1962, when it served as an emergency landing ground for the Indian Army. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) that o ...
(
ICAO
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international a ...
: VERL) is located at
Ekderwa Raxaul in the
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
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
,
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 was established after the
Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tib ...
of 1962, when it served as an emergency landing ground for the
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...
. The
Airports Authority of India
The Airports Authority of India, or AAI, is a public sector enterprise under the ownership of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. It is responsible for creating, upgrading, maintaining, and managing civil aviation infrastruct ...
(AAI) that owns the airport has undertaken a pre-feasibility study at the airport to upgrade the airport to handle
ATR-72
The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR (french: Avions de transport régional or it, Aerei da Trasporto Regionale), a joint venture formed by ...
aircraft. A draft Master Plan highlighting a requirement of an additional 121 acres of land has been submitted to the State Government.
Now, there is currently no scheduled commercial air service. Raxaul can be reached by flying to
Simara in Nepal. That airport is 27 km from Raxaul and has direct flights to
Kathmandu
, pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name =
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
. A proposal to operationalize the airport for civilian use has been drafted.
Border crossing
India and Nepal have an open border with no restrictions on movement of their nationals and no need of visa or passport documents for local people. There is a
customs checkpoint for goods and third country nationals. There are Jeeps, Cars, Tempos (Three wheels vehicles), and the Tangas (Horse Driven 6 seater Rickshaws) from Raxaul station for Birganj bus park.
River
Sariswa River
The river, Sariswa (Sirsiya), a tributary of the
Burhi Gandak, originates from Pathlahia hill of the dense Ramban forests in Nepal, its course roaming through the subdivision cutting through Bara and Parsa districts in Nepal and Raxaul in Bihar, India. It flows southwards from the place of its origin for about 15 km in Nepal and then enters India at Raxaul. From here, the river flows about 20 km in India and joins Burhi Gandak near Sugauli in East Champaran district. The water is pure in its contents and have full of medicinal values like other Himalayan rivers. It maintains its valuable contents till Parwanipur. But after it, unrestrained untreated wastes are being dumped by the 46 factories situated at Birgunj (Nepal) which make this river contaminated. The colour of the river turned into black besides, emanating foul smell has made the life of the people, who dwell near the river, a nightmare.
Bangari River
It is the neighbor river of Sariswa (Sirsiya) river.
*
Adapur
Adapur is a block in East Champaran district of Bihar, India. Adapur railway station is located north of Motihari, the district headquarters. The state capital Patna is south. Adapur is located on the India - Nepal border. There are many vi ...
,
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
*
Birganj
Birgunj ( ne, वीरगञ्ज) is a metropolitan city in Parsa District in Madhesh Province of southern Nepal. It lies south of the capital Kathmandu, attached in the north to Raxaul in the border of the Indian state of Bihar. As an entry ...
,
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
*
East Champaran district
East Champaran is an administrative district in the state of Bihar in India.The district headquarters are located at Motihari. Prior to 1st Dec 1977, there was a single district called "Champaran". On 1st Dec 1977, the district was divided into 2 ...
References
{{Railway lines in Eastern India
Cities and towns in East Champaran district
Transit and customs posts along the India–Nepal border
Points for exit and entry of nationals from third countries along the India–Nepal border