Medinipur district General information
History
A number of prehistoric sites of great interest are being excavated throughout the West Midnapore district. In ancient times the region seems to be highly influenced by Jainism and Buddhism. Coins issued by Samudragupta have been found in the near vicinity of the town.Originally this region belongs to the Kalinga-Utakala (ancient Orissa) empire. The kingdom of Shashanka and Harshavardhana also included part of undivided Midnapore in their kingdom. However, the most significant archaeological site in the region is the bustling port of Tamralipta near present-day Tamluk, a site noted in the travelogues of Fa Hien and Hiuen Tsang. Later Chaitanya passed through the area on his way from Puri to Varanasi as documented in the Chaitanya Charitamrita.After the fall of last independent Hindu dynasty of Kalinga-Utkala (ancient Orissa) Gajapati Mukunda Deva in 16th century this region was came under one of the five Sarkars of Mughalbandi Orissa i.e. Jaleshawr Sarkar which was ruled by the Subehdar of Orissa.The north boundary of Jalshwar Sarkar was Tamluk & south was Soro & Dhalbhumgarh in the west to bay of bengal(Purva Sagara) in the east.
Bahadur Khan was the ruler of Jaleshwar Sarkar or Hijli (including Midnapore) during the time of Shah Jehan. He was defeated by Shah Shuja, the second son of Shah Jehan, then the subshdar of Bengal.
During the era of the Muslim rulers of Bengal nawab Alivardi Khan's general Mir Jafar fought successfully against Mir Habib's lieutenant Sayyid Nur near Midnapore town in 1746. This was part of his campaign to regain Orissa and thwart the Maratha attacks on Bengal. Mir Habib came up from Balasore and was joined by the Marathas but Mir Jafar fled to Burdwan leaving Mir Habib to retake Midnapore with ease. Alivardi defeated Janoji Bhosle, a Maratha cheftain in a severely contested battle near Burdwan in 1747 and Janoji fled to Midnapore. The Marathas held on to Orissa including Midnapore until 1749 when it was reconquered by Alivardi. The Marathas continued to raid Midnapore which proved disastrous for the residents.
In 1756 Alivardi died and his successor was Siraj-ud-daulah. On June 20, 1757, he was betrayed by Mir Jafar to the East India Company under the command of Lord Robert Clive at Plassey. This consolidated the Company's hold on Bengal and Orissa (along with Midnapore). The district of Midnapore which included Dhalbhum or Ghatshila, now in Singhbhum, Jharkhand was annexed in 1760 along with Burdwan and Chittagong both handed over to the East India Company by Mir Qasim. The last free king of Dhalbhum was imprisoned in Midnapore town.
Some of the Malla kings of Mallabhum in the Bankura district held land in northern Midnapore district, while the Raj rules of Narajole, Jhargram, Lalgarh, Jamboni, and Chandrakona held sway in their local areas. The Raj rulers in Rajasthan would pay homage to Jagannath but carves out their own territories under the supremacy of the Hindu empires of Orissa.
Geography
Midnapore is located at 22°15'N 87°39'E / 22.25, 87.65 and is 23 metres above sea-level.
Climate
The climate follows a hot tropical monsoon weather pattern. Summers last from April to mid-June with diurnal highs ranging from the upper 30s°C to the mid 40s°C and lows in the low 30s°C. Daily heat is often followed by evening rains known as kalboishakhis or dust-storms (loo) Monsoon rains can last from mid-June to late August or even September with rains from the southeast monsoon contributing the lions-share of the annual rainfall of around 1500 mm. Winters last for 2 to 3 months and are mild; typical lows are from 8 °C - 14 °C. Allergies are common in winter and spring due to the high content of particulate dust in the air.
Soil
Soils near the Kangsabati River are alluvial with a high-degree of clay or sand, whereas soils towards Rangamati are lateritic. Vegetation incluces eucalyptus and sal forests on the northwest side of town. The sal forests form part of the Dalma Bengal-Jharkhand Range. Arabari, the forest range which was the site of India's first Joint Forest Management scheme, is only 30 km away. Elephant attacks on humans are common in this area, although the town itself has never been attacked. Hordes of marauding elephants attacking human habitation in villages in Midnapore district have come as close to the town as Gurguripal, 6 km away.
Tourist Place
TAMLUK
The bank of river Rupnarayan is famous for picnic.
There is a nearly 1150 year old Temple of Kali named here as Devi Barghobhima. This temple is a part of 51 Shakti Peethas. Puranas say that the small finger of left feet of Sati/Parvati fell here when Lord Vishnu cut the sacred Body of Goddess Sati into several pieces to make Lord Shiva quite.
Tamluk Rajbari is on the outskirts of town. The literal translation for "rajbari" is king's house, once housing one of the many kings in West Bengal. The Mayura-dhwaja ( Peackok ) Dynasty had been named in Mahabharata, Bhagvat, Bramhabaibarto Puran etc as a very rich and wealthest one of that region.
There is an Archeological Museum in Tamluk; it is a must see place of the town. Mr Kamal Kundu is the one of the prominent person who did his best to run this museum. The Tamralipta Museum at Tamluk contains artifacts of tamra or copper. Inscribed copper templates comprise the documents of this museum. The museum has preserved a tamralipta of Greek inscriptions. The Tamralipta Museum preserves the historical heritage of Bengal.
Rakhit bati is the another place to visit in Tamluk. In the beginning of 19th century it was famous as a secrete center of the then revolutionary party ‘Anusilan Samiti’ & ‘Gupta samiti’. Famous historian Late Shri Tailakyanath Rakhit rebuilt this building.
Matangani Sahid Smarak at the side of pond called Banpukur at Abasbari Para near Tamluk Court is another place of tourist interest. During the ‘Ahimsa’ movement of 1942, while a crowd trying to capture Tamluk administrative building, British police open fire in which Smt Matangini Hazara became ‘Sahid’. Later on Mahatma Gandhi appreciated her bravery and titled her as ‘Birangana’. This monument is a homage to her by Ex- prime-minister, Smt Indira Ghandhi. This is about 7Km from Tamluk station and on the way to Tamluk college.
Tamluk irrigation Bungalow and its near by areas also famous for its semi-nonurban atmospheres. The River Rupnarayana is just 1 km from the bungalow.
Another very popular picnic destination in Tamluk is green fields near the rail station.
Maahishadal and Geonkhali are near by tourist places. At geonkhali river Rupnarayan joins Hooghly river with a beautiful backdrop.
Kolaghat is another town on the bank of Rupnarayan River and famous for Hilsa (Ilish) fishes.
DIGHA
Digha is a small but the most popular seaside resort town in the state of West Bengal, India. It lies at the northern end of the Bay of Bengal.It is located just 183 km from Kolkata/Howrah via Mecheda and 234 km via Kharagpur. Digha is connected to Kolkata/Howrah by a highway and a rail-link via Contai.
Digha's old beach isn't as wide as it used to be due to heavy soil erosion. The beach is held together with big stones and concrete steps. Since it is one of very few popular beaches in West Bengal, overcrowding, especially during the cooler winter break, is another problem. A new beach has been developed at New Digha which is about 2 km from the old beach. This new beach is not only bigger than the old one, but might be considered a better one. It is clean and well-maintained and is not surrounded by a congested locality like the older beach. There are new and better hotels a walking distance from the beach at New Digha and the locality itself seems to be better planned. The entire stretch of the Digha seaface from Old Digha to New Digha is filled with casuarina plantations, which looks beautiful. Tourists come here and bath in the sea, stroll by the beach along the casuarina trees and enjoy the sights and scenes offered by this magnificent stretch of sea.
Apart from the sea, there is Asia's largest marine aquarium, a science museum and a beautiful park all on the main road from Old Digha to New Digha. Another important spot near Digha is the Shiva temple at Chandaneshwar which is 6 km west of Digha. During the Bengali month of Chaitra, an annual fair is organised here which is attended by people from near and far.
MANDARMANI
From Chawlkhola you will get mechanised/non-mechanised cycle vans which will take you to a place known Dadanpatrabar. Though this is not proper Mandarmani which is about 5.5km. One thing what everyone should remember before going to Mandarmani is that there are no proper motorable road after Dadanpatrabar. After you reach Dadanpatrabar, you will have to drive through the sea beach. If there is high tide in the rainy season the beach gets partially submerged and sometimes you will have to wait till the low tide starts.
Relax, swim and enjoy the beach. You are not likely to have many visitors around and that's the beauty of this beach. Activities include table tennis, carrom, beach cricket, beach volleyball, and boat cruises.
Fishing ,Sunbathing - only possible from October to February ,Swimming
HALDIA
Haldia is a city and a municipality in Purba Medinipur in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a major seaport located approximately 50 kilometers southwest of Calcutta near the mouth of the Hooghly River, one of the distributaries of the Ganges. The population in 2001 was 170,695.
Haldia is being developed as a major trade port for Calcutta, intended mainly for bulk cargoes. The port is quite modern, uses conveyor belts for loading and unloading and has the world's second largest lock gate-1010 ft x 130 ft and a depth of 48 ft. The Haldia Refinery and Haldia Fertilizers may be paid a visit with prior permission. The Centinery Park also attracts tourists. Haldia is a ideal spot for weekend tour. The industrial city has several factories, including South Asian Petrochemicals Limited, Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Exide, Shaw Wallace, Tata Chemicals, Petrochemical complex (Haldia Petrochemical) and Hindustan Lever, in addition to various light industries. The port has attracted factories of foreign companies, like Mitsubishi Chemical Company (MCC). A large number of companies are also being set up now, Dredging Corporation of India Limited (DCI), primarily being ancillary industries to the Haldia Petrochemicals. The Haldia Petrochemicals is the second largest project of such kind in India.
The Haldia Township is bordered by the Haldi River an offshoot of the Ganges River. The riverside in Haldia is a favorite destination for residents and one can see people strolling down the riverside during the evenings.
Haldia is also a base of Indian Coast Guard. There is a hover-port to house two of the six hovercrafts belonging to the Indian Coast Guard.
Karnagarh Temple
Karnagarh Temple in Salboni Block is famous for Mahamaya Mandir . Its' Jogimandap and Panchamundir Asan are very attractive. People who come Midnapore Town must visit this temple. It is 15 kms. away from Midnapore Town on road.
Temples of Pathra
Temples of Pathra on the bank of river Kangsabati in Midnapore Sadar Block has been attracted for its' archaeological importance. People very often visit this site to see the terakota works on the walls of 32 temples . Restoration works have been undertaken by the Archaeological Survey of India. It is 8 kms. away on road from Midnapore Town. Small vehicles are available to visit the site.
Mahoboni
The village Mohoboni in Keshpur Block is now famous for the birth place Sahid Khudiram Bose, a freedom fighter . On 3rd December, Khudiram was born in this village. A Museum opened on the occasion of birth centenary and also a Rest House has been built for the visitors. It is 38 kms. on the way to Ghatal from Midnapore Town. Vehicles are available towards Mohobon