Uttar Dinajpur district

Uttar Dinajpur () is a district of the Indian state of West Bengal. Created on 1 April 1992 by the division of the erstwhile West Dinajpur district, it comprises two subdivisions: Raiganj and Islampur.

History

Undivided Dinajpur district was part of the Pundra kingdom. The whole of Pundra was part of the Mauryan empire, and Jainism was spread in the region in the fourth century BCE. Their capital was at Pundrabardhan (now in Bangladesh), and two other ancient towns were Gourpur and Kotibarsha, now called Bangarh. Later multiple inscriptions show how the Guptas also controlled Pundra. The district was then under Pala rule from 750 CE. The Senas overthrew the Palas in 1143. In 1204, Bakhtiyar Khilji defeated the Senas and had Bangarh as its capital. After his murder, it was controlled by various governors sent by the Delhi Sultan from Gauda. In 1586, Mughal Emperor Akbar conquered Bengal and Dinajpur was controlled by the ''sarkars'' of Tajpur and Panjara. In 1765, it fell under the rule of the East India Company and was ruled from Murshidabad. In the later part of the 18th century, the district was home to the Sanyasi-Fakir rebellion until the early 19th century. The district remained relatively peaceful all through the rest of the 1800s. In 1905, the people of Dinajpur district protested against the Partition of Bengal. They participated in the Freedom struggle by refusing to pay tax, doing hartals, and launching agitations. In 1947, Dinajpur district was split between India and Pakistan with West Dinajpur remaining with India. In 1992, West Dinajpur district was bifurcated to form Uttar Dinajpur and Dakshin Dinajpur districts.

Geography

Uttar Dinajpur district lies between latitude 25°11' N to 26°49' N and longitude 87°49' E to 90°00' E occupying an area of enclosed by Panchagarh, Thakurgaon and Dinajpur districts of Bangladesh on the east, Kishanganj, Purnia and Katihar districts of Bihar on the west, Darjeeling district and Jalpaiguri district on the north and Malda district and Dakshin Dinajpur district on the south. Uttar Dinajpur is well connected with the rest of the state through National Highways, State Highways and Railways. NH-27 and NH-12 pass through the heart of the district.

The regional topography is generally flat with a gentle southerly slope towards which the main rivers like Kulik, Nagar, Mahananda. The District forms a part of the basin lying between Rajmahal hills on the east. The older alluvium is estimated to be Pleistocene age. Uttar Dinajpur is bestowed with a very fertile soil. The soil is very rich in nature due to the alluvial deposition which helps to grow Paddy, Jute, Mesta and Sugarcane etc. Raiganj on the banks of the River Kulik is the District Headquarters where the Raiganj Wildlife Sanctuary, the second largest bird sanctuary in Asia, is situated. In Uttar Dinajpur district, there are two sub-divisions, Raiganj and Islampur, apart from each other. There are four municipalities, nine blocks and 99 Panchayats covering 1577 villages.

Economy

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Uttar Dinajpur one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640). It is one of the eleven districts in West Bengal currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).
but now Dalkhola the main commercial, business town with well connected railway and roadways. increasing the economy of Dalkhola and Uttar Dinajpur District.

Divisions

Sub-divisions

Uttar Dinajpur District comprises two subdivisions:
* Raiganj Sub-Division and
* Islampur Sub-Division

Assembly constituencies

As per order of the Delimitation Commission in respect of the delimitation of constituencies in the West Bengal, the district is divided into nine assembly constituencies:

Hemtabad and Kaliaganj constituencies are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC) candidates. Along with six assembly constituencies from Darjeeling district, Chopra constituency forms the Darjeeling (Lok Sabha constituency). Islampur, Goalpokhar, Chakulia, Karandighi, Hemtabad, Kaliaganj and Raiganj constituencies forms the Raiganj (Lok Sabha constituency). Along with six assembly constituencies from South Dinajpur district, Itahar forms the Balurghat (Lok Sabha constituency).

Demographics

According to the 2011 census Uttar Dinajpur district has a population of 3,007,134, roughly equal to the nation of Albania or the US state of Mississippi. This gives it a ranking of 124th in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of . Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 22.9%. Uttar Dinajpur has a sex ratio of 936 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 59.1%. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 26.87% and 5.41% of the population respectively. 2,644,906 were rural and 362,228 were urban.

Religion

Language

According to the 2011 census, 68.06% of the population spoke Bengali, 13.22% Surjapuri, 9.48% Urdu