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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 of what is present-day Chhattisgarh. The Jharkhand state was formed on 15 November 2000 by carving out the Bihar divisions of Chota Nagpur and Santhal Parganas. Ranchi has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi's flagship Smart Cities Mission.

During the time of the British Raj, the city was the summer capital of Bihar, because of its cold climate during the winter season. Ranchi is also one of the oldest cities in Jharkhand. Jagannath Temple and Ratu Palace are some sights which witnessed the history of Ranchi.

Ranchi is rapidly growing its economy, and certain parks, special economic zones and industrial areas are being developed. Of late, new sectors and modern areas have been built for the city's development. Ranchi is also nicknamed the 'City of Waterfalls'.

Etymology

According to one popular tale, Captain choose "Archi" a Oraon tribal village as headquarters. ''Archi'' means Bamboo forest in local Nagpuri dialect. The British inadvertently named "Archi" as "Ranchi". Captain Thomas Wilkinson renamed Kishunpur village as Rachi. Up to 1927, the place was known as Rachi.

In his book ''The Mundas and Their Country'', anthropologist Sarat Chandra Roy writes that the name of the city is derived from the Mundari word ''aranchi'' or "short stick" used in driving cattle.

According to another local story, the name of Ranchi comes from a local bird named "Rici" which was mostly found in the Pahari Mandir premise. ''Rici'' is name for Black Kite ''( Milvus migrans'') in Mundari language, the modern-day landmark of Ranchi city, the Pahari Mandir, is also known as ''Rici Buru'' (रिचि बुरु) - the hill of the kites, and the city originated on the foothills of Rici Buru with the construction of ''Bada Talab'' by Commissioner Thomas Wilkinson at the same site.

History

The early evidence of use of several iron slag, pot sheds, iron tools found in Chota Nagpur region around 1400 BCE. Magadha Empire exercised indirect control over the territory, which lasted until the reign of the Ashoka. Armies of Samudra Gupta passed through the region on their expedition to the Deccan. In 4th century CE, Nagvanshi king Raja Pratap Rai chose Chutia as his capital which is now a place in Ranchi. Few ruins of Chutia trace back to 2nd Century CE. With the expansion of the Mughal Empire, the sovereign status of the Nagvanshi dynasty was technically affected, but they continued to rule and administer independently. Thakur Ani Nath Shahdeo made Satranji as capital of Barkagarh estate near Subarnarekha river. He built Jagannath Temple in 1691.

After Battle of Buxar, Nagvanshi became vassal of East India Company. British reduced Nagvanshi rulers to Jamindar in 1817 due to rebellion of Jagirdars under Nagvanshi against tax imposition by East India Company and directly ruled Chotanagpur. In 1833, Captain Wilkinson established headquarter of the South-West Frontier agency in the village of Kishunpur, which he renamed into Ranchi after the hamlet located at the foot of the Hill. In 1855, Thakur Vishwanath Shahdeo declared independene from British rule. British attacked Satranji but he defeated British forces. He ruled independently for two years. In Indian Rebellion of 1857, Thakur Vishwanath Shahdeo led soldiers of Ramgarh Battalion with Madhav Singh who was Jamadar of Ramgarh Battalion. Pandey Ganpat Rai, Tikait Umrao Singh and Sheikh Bhikhari also joined rebellion. They attacked British in Ranchi and compelled to flee them. But later they were defeated by East India company forces in Chatra and in Pithuriya with the help of king of Pithuriya, Jagatpal Singh and hanged. British made Ranchi as municipality in 1869 and Ranchi was first termed as a town in the census of 1872. Nagvanshi shifted their capital to Ratu from Palkot in 1870. Udai Pratap Nath Shah Deo built Ratu Palace in Ratu in 1900. He donated large tracts of land to built the infrastructure of city. Freedom fighter Birsa Munda died in the Ranchi jail on 9 June 1900. In 1912, Jyotirindranath Tagore, the eldest brother of Rabindranath Tagore, settled in Ranchi. Tagore Hill, where his house was located, has been named after him in remembrance. The last ruler of the Nagvanshi dynasty was Lal Chintamani Sharan Nath Shahdeo (1931–2014).

After Independence, Ranchi saw significant increase in its population. Its population rate of growth was 3.5% in 1901 to 1941, which increased to 14% in 1951–1971. This was because of increased industrial and educational institutions being set up, as well as the arrival of post-Partition refugees. Ranchi became an 'administrative-cum-industrial' town in 1958 when Heavy Engineering Corporation

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