Dinapur Cantonment

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Danapur Cantonment
City
India Bihar location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Danapur Cantonment
Location in Bihar, India
Coordinates: 25°38′04″N85°01′35″E / 25.63444°N 85.02639°E / 25.63444; 85.02639
CountryFlag of India.svg  India
State Bihar
District Patna
Established1765
Population
 (2011)
  Total28,723
Languages
  Official Hindi
Time zone UTC+5:30 (IST)
ISO 3166 code IN-BR
Vehicle registration BR-01
Website danapur.cantt.gov.in

Danapur Cantonment or Danapur Cantt is a cantonment town in Danapur, Patna District in the state of Bihar, India. Danapur is a category II cantonment, established in 1765. [1] The board consists of 14 members including 7 elected members. [2] Danapur Cantonment, located on the outskirts of Patna, is the second oldest cantonment in India, after Barrackpur Cantonment, West Bengal. [3] Danapur is the regimental centre of the Bihar Regiment (BRC). It was earlier called Bankipore Cantonment. Initially, it was set up at Bankipore but later set up in the Danapur area (then known as Dinapur) in 1766–67. [4]

Contents

History

Danapur was known as Dinapur during the British period. The word Dinapur means the "City of Grains", being located in the fertile Gangetic plains. Danapur Cantonment played a big role in the freedom struggle of 1857, as on 25 July 1857 sepoys of the Danapur Cantonment revolted against the British.

Established in 1765, Danapur Cantonment happens to be the second-oldest cantonment in the country after Barrackpore in West Bengal, which was established in the 17th century. It was the only white cantonment of the East India Company at one point of time, and the largest military cantonment in Bengal which stationed two artillery batteries, a European and native infantry regiment. Located on the southern banks of the Ganga, Danapur was chosen perhaps due to the availability of an inland water route to Calcutta through the Ganga.

On 10 May 1857, sepoys posted at Meerut rebelled and started India's First War of Independence, which the British termed as Sepoy Mutiny. This freedom struggle spread to Danapur on 25 July 1857. Danapur happened to be the second important center in the country, which influenced Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bengal and Orissa. At that time, the British had their epicenter in Calcutta; therefore the uprising in Danapur was more important to the British than the uprising in the North India. On 25 July, mutiny erupted in the garrisons of Dinapur. Mutinying sepoys from 7th, 8th, and 40th Regiments of Bengal Native Infantry quickly moved towards the city of Arrah and were joined by Babu Kunwar Singh and his men. The Siege of Arrah was eventually crushed on 3 August 1857 by Major Vincent Eyre (The 5th Fusiliers) and his men.

The garrison was used by the British during World War II as an administrative base. This garrison was to provide transit facilities to the British Expeditionary Force from Calcutta towards the northern provinces of India. It had a war cemetery to commemorate those who laid their lives on the Burma campaign. Today, the Arrah Barracks, St Luke's Church, Havlock Church, the Flag Staff House, Military Hospital, Supply Depot and The Bihar Regimental Centre etc. stand testimony to the rich history and heritage of Danapur Cantonment.

A Category II cantonment, Danapur Cantt is spread across an area of approximately 848.50 acres. [5]

Demographics

As of 2011 India census, [6] Danapur Cantonment had a population of 28,723. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Danapur Cantonment has an average literacy rate of 81%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 87% and, female literacy is 73%. In Danapur Cantonment, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Transport and connectivity

Danapur Cantt is very well connected by road, rail and air. NH 30 and Bailey Road links the cantt to other cities of Bihar.

It is connected to most of the major cities in India by railway network. Patna Junction, Patliputra Junction, and Danapur railway station are the major railway stations.

Nearest Airport to Danapur Cantt is Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport at Patna, which is 6 km away.

See also

Related Research Articles

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Events in the year 1857 in India.

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During the Indian Rebellion of 1857 a column of troops led by the commander of the 24th Regiment of Foot was sent to disarm Bengal Native Infantry units believed to be at risk of mutiny in Rawalpindi and Jhelum. At Rawalpindi, the 58th Bengal Native Infantry was disarmed peacefully, however the two companies of the 14th Bengal Native Infantry resisted the attempt by force of arms. These two companies were quickly defeated by the British, loyal native troops and the local population. In Jhelum, also garrisoned by the 14th, the concurrently timed disarmament was much more violent. Thirty five British soldiers of the 24th Regiment of Foot were killed along with a number of Loyal Indian troops, by mutinous sepoys of the 14th Bengal Native Infantry. When the mutineers realised that they, except the Sikhs, were to be disarmed, they mutinied and made a vigorous defence against the force that had arrived from Rawalpindi to disarm them. The following night a significant number of mutineers managed to slip away but most were subsequently arrested by the Kashmir authorities, into whose territory they had escaped.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Luke's Church, Patna</span> Church in Danapur Cantonment, Bihar State

St. Lukes Church is located at Danapur Cantonment in Danapur, a satellite town of Patna in the Indian state of Bihar. It is around 10 kilometers from Jay Prakash Narayan Airport. It is more than 200 years old, and has stood on the site through the most turbulent times in Indian history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monghyr Mutiny</span> Mutiny against the East India Company

The Monghyr Mutiny occurred among European officers of the East India Company stationed in Bengal in 1766. The mutiny arose after the East India Company's governor of Bengal, Robert Clive, implemented an order to reduce the batta field allowance paid to its army officers. The batta had been doubled while the troops were in the service of the Nawab of Bengal Mir Jafar. Clive's order came into effect on 1 January 1766 and brought the allowances into line with those paid by the company in the rest of India. At this time the company army in Bengal was divided into three brigades under the command of Sir Robert Fletcher, Richard Smith and Robert Barker.

References

  1. "Book, scheduled to hit stores next month, will throw light on how the military establishment came into being". Archived from the original on 15 September 2015.
  2. Danapur Directorate General Defence Estates
  3. "Danapur cantt hosts 6K migratory birds this year". The Times of India . Archived from the original on 19 July 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  4. "Danapur cantt celebrates 250 yrs".
  5. "History – DANAPUR CANTONMENT BOARD".
  6. "History – DANAPUR CANTONMENT BOARD".