Bijanbari

Bijanbari
Mini-Town
Bijanbari Location in West Bengal, India
Coordinates: 27°04′13″N88°11′30″E / 27.0702°N 88.1918°E / 27.0702; 88.1918
Country	India
State	West Bengal
District	Darjeeling
Elevation	760 m (2,490 ft)
Languages
• Official	Nepali, English
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
Lok Sabha constituency	Darjeeling
Vidhan Sabha constituency	Darjeeling

Bijanbari is a small town in Darjeeling district with Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block being the headquarters of the Darjeeling Sadar subdivision in West Bengal, India. It is a place of importance in Darjeeling district mainly because of the Block Divisional Office and a Hydel Power Plant. It is a valley land with number of homestays and it takes 1.5 hours to reach from the main town Darjeeling.

Geography

[fullscreen map]

Places and tea estates in the north-western portion of Darjeeling Sadar subdivision (including Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block) in Darjeeling district
CT: census town, R: rural/ urban centre, N: neighbourhood, H: hill centre, NP: national park/ wildlife sanctuary, TE: tea estate, TA: tourist attraction
Abbreviations used in names – TG for Tea Garden (town/village), TE for Tea Estate
Owing to space constraints in the small map, the actual locations in a larger map may vary slightly

Location

Bijanbari is located at 27°04′13″N88°11′30″E / 27.0702°N 88.1918°E / 27.0702; 88.1918

Bijanbari lies in a valley at an altitude of 760 m above sea level. The Little Rangeet River (Chota Rangeet) flows near this town. It came to limelight because of give away of bridge over Rangeet River on 22 Oct 2011. 33 People died and several injured.

Area overview

The map alongside shows the northern portion of the Darjeeling Himalayan hill region. Kangchenjunga, which rises with an elevation of 8,586 metres (28,169 ft) is located further north of the area shown. ^[1] Sandakphu, rising to a height of 3,665 metres (12,024 ft), on the Singalila Ridge, is the highest point in West Bengal. ^[2] In Darjeeling Sadar subdivision 61% of the total population lives in the rural areas and 39% of the population lives in the urban areas. ^{[3] [4]} There are 78 tea gardens/ estates (the figure varies slightly according to different sources), producing and largely exporting Darjeeling tea in the district. It engages a large proportion of the population directly/ indirectly. ^[5] Some tea gardens were identified in the 2011 census as census towns or villages. ^[6] Such places are marked in the map as CT (census town) or R (rural/ urban centre). Specific tea estate pages are marked TE.

Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.

Civic administration

Police station

Pulbazar police station is shown as being located in Bijanbari mouza in the map of Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block on page 121 of District Census Handbook, Darjeeling. ^[7]

Pullbazar police station has jurisdiction over the Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block. ^{[8] [9]}

CD block HQ

The headquarters of the Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block is at Bijanbari. ^[10]

Demographics

According to the 2011 Census of India, Bijanbari had a total population of 5,338 of which 2,685 (50%) were males and 2,653 (50%) were females. There were 514 persons in the age range of 0 to 6 years. The total number of literate people in Bijanbari was 4,156 (77.86% of the population over 6 years). ^[11]

Agriculture

Agriculture is the main industry in Bijanbari and the surrounding areas. The valley produces potatoes, cardamom, rice, maize, millets, peas, beans, squash, cauliflower, cabbages, tomatoes and oranges.

Education

Bijanbari Degree College was established in 1995. Affiliated with the University of North Bengal, it offers honours courses in Nepali, English, political science and history and a general course in arts. ^[12]

Bijanbari has three private schools and a government-run school up to the 12th standard.

• Government School - Vidyasagar Higher Secondary School.
• Private Schools - Little Rangit English School, Vidya Jyoti Academy and Saptarshi Academy.

Healthcare

Bijanbari Rural Hospital, with 30 beds, is the major government medical facility in the Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block. ^[13]

References

1. Gurung, H. & Shrestha, R. K. (1994). Nepal Himalaya Inventory. Kathmandu: Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation.
2. "Sandakphu-Phalut Trek". Himalayan High. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
3. "Darjeeling". District Profile - General Information. District administration. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
4. "District Statistical Handbook 2013 Darjeeling". Tables 2.2, 2.4b. Department of Planning and Statistics, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
5. "Darjeeling Tea". District administration. Archived from the original on 11 September 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
6. "2011 Census – Primary Census Abstract Data Tables". West Bengal – District-wise. Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
7. "District Census Handbook, Darjeeling, Series 20, Part XII A, 2011 Census of India" (PDF). Page 121: Map of Darjeeling Pulbazar CD block. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
8. "District Statistical Handbook 2013 Darjeeling". Tables 2.1, 2.2. Department of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
9. "District Profile - Darjeeling". District administration. Archived from the original on 17 August 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
10. "District Census Handbook: Darjiling" (PDF). Map of District Darjiling with CD block HQs and Police Stations (on the fifth page). Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal, 2011. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
11. "2011 Census – Primary Census Abstract Data Tables". West Bengal – District-wise. Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
12. "Bijanbari Degree College". BDC. Archived from the original on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
13. "Health & Family Welfare Department" (PDF). Health Statistics – Rural Hospitals. Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2020.