The Himalayas lies in the north of West Bengal and the Bay of Bengal is at the south. Between them, the river Ganga flows eastwards and its main distributary, the Hooghly River, flows south to reach the Bay of Bengal. The Siliguri Corridor, which connects North-East India with rest of the India, lies in the North Bengal region of the state. Geographically, West Bengal is divided into a variety of regions—Darjeeling Himalayan hill region, Terai and Dooars region, North Bengal plains, Rarh region, Western plateau and high lands, coastal plains, Sundarbans and the Ganga Delta. [1]
In 1947, when India gained independence, the state of West Bengal was formed, with 14 districts, as per partition plan of the then Bengal province of British India. [2] [3] The former princely state Koch Bihar joined as a district on 26 January 1950, [4] and the former French enclave Chandannagore joined as part of the Hooghly district in 1954. [5] The States Reorganisation Act of 1956 led to addition of Purulia district to the state and to enlargement of West Dinajpur district. [6] Later, larger districts such as West Dinajpur, 24 Parganas and Midnapore were bifurcated.
West Bengal is now divided into 23 districts which includes the newly formed Alipurduar district (formed on 25 June 2014), Kalimpong district (formed on 14 February 2017), Jhargram district (formed on 4 April 2017), and the splitting of the former Bardhaman district into Purba Bardhaman district and Paschim Bardhaman district (formed on 7 April 2017). The districts are grouped into five divisions. [7] [8]
Divisions are administered by Divisional Commissioners. [9] Kolkata, the capital of the state, constitutes the Kolkata district. Other districts are further divided into administrative units such as subdivisions and blocks, administered by SDO and BDO, respectively. The Panchayati Raj has a three-tier structure in the state. The atomic unit is called a Gram Panchayat, which is the Panchayat organisation for a collection of villages. [10] The block-level organisations are called Panchayat Samiti, [11] and the district-level organisations are named Zilla Parishad. [12]
The West Bengal cabinet has approved the creation of seven new districts on 1 August 2022. This will number district from 23 to 30. [13] New Sundarban District from existing South 24 Parganas District, new Ichhamati District and Basirhat District from existing North 24 Parganas District. New Ranaghat District from existing Nadia District and Bishnupur District from existing Bankura district. While new Jangipur District and Berhampore district from existing Murshidabad District will be carved out.
West Bengal is bordered by three countries: Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh; and five Indian states: Sikkim, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Assam. Sikkim and Bhutan are located to the north of the state, Nepal to the northwest, Bihar and Jharkhand in the west, Odisha in the southwest, the Bay of Bengal to the south, and Bangladesh and Assam are in the east. West Bengal is the only state of India that has both snowy mountains (Himalayas in the north) and sea beaches (on the coast of the Bay of Bengal in the south). In between them, the river Ganga enters the state from west, before it branches off into its main distributaries: the Hooghly River, which flows southwards to reach the Bay of Bengal, and the Padma River, which flows eastwards into Bangladesh.
The districts that are located at the north of the Ganga—Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar, Malda, Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur, Alipurduar and Kalimpong — are often referred to collectively as North Bengal. Kalimpong is a newly added district of West Bengal. [1] Geographically, this area is divided into the Darjeeling Himalayan hill region, the Terai and Dooars region, and the North Bengal plains. [1] The Siliguri Corridor, also known as Chicken's Neck, which connects North-East India with rest of the India, lies in this region. The Indo-Bangladesh enclaves are either enclaves or exclaves of the Cooch Behar district or the Jalpaiguri district. [14]
The districts on the south of the Ganges—Bankura, Paschim Bardhaman, Purba Bardhaman, Birbhum, Purulia, Murshidabad, Nadia, West Midnapore, Jhargram, East Midnapore, Hooghly, Howrah, Kolkata, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas—constitute a variety of geographical regions such as the Rarh region, the Western plateau and high lands, the coastal plains, the Sunderbans and the Ganga Delta. [1] Kolkata, the capital of the state, constitutes the Kolkata district.
The uninhabited South Talpatti Island, which surfaced in the Bay of Bengal in the 1970s near the Indo-Bangladesh border, is claimed by both India and Bangladesh. [15]
After India gained independence in 1947, the province of Bengal was partitioned along religious lines. The western part remained in India (and was named West Bengal) while the eastern part joined newly formed Pakistan as a province called East Pakistan (later giving rise to Bangladesh in 1971). [2] At the time of its creation in 1947, the state of West Bengal was divided into 14 districts—Bankura, Birbhum, Burdwan, Calcutta (Kolkata), Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Hooghly, Howrah, Malda, Midnapore, Murshidabad, Nadia, West Dinajpur and 24 Parganas. [3] Cooch Behar district was a princely state named Koch Bihar till 20 August 1949, when the state formally agreed to join India. Transfer of administration was started on 12 September 1949 and was completed on 19 January 1950, when Cooch Behar became a district of West Bengal. [4] Chandannagar, which was earlier part of the French India, had voted to join India in a plebiscite in 1949. Formally, it joined India in 1952 and finally became a part of the Hooghly district of West Bengal on 2 October 1954. [5] The States Reorganisation Act of 1956 reorganised boundaries of the Indian states along linguistic lines. As this act was implemented, the then West Dinajpur district was enlarged with the addition of some areas from Bihar, and the Purulia district was formed on 1 November 1956 from parts of the Manbhum district of Bihar. [6]
Later, some large districts were divided into smaller districts. On 1 March 1986, the district of 24 Parganas was bifurcated into two districts—the North 24 Parganas district and the South 24 Parganas district. [16] On 1 April 1992, the West Dinajpur district was bifurcated into the Uttar Dinajpur district and the Dakshin Dinajpur district. [17] [18] On 1 January 2002, the erstwhile Midnapore district was bifurcated into the Purba Medinipur district and the Paschim Medinipur district. [19]
Since 2007, the demand for a separate Gorkhaland state has been revived by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and its supporters in the Darjeeling hills. [20] The Kamtapur People's Party and its supporters' movement for a separate Kamtapur state that covers the North Bengal has also gained momentum in the 2000s. [21]
A district is governed by a District Collector, who is better known as a District Magistrate (DM) in the state of West Bengal. [22] A DM is an officer from either Indian Administrative Service (IAS) or West Bengal Civil Service (WBCS), and is appointed by the State Government of West Bengal. [22] Each district is divided into subdivisions, except the Kolkata district, which contains urban area only, administered by Kolkata Municipal Corporation. A subdivision is governed by a sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), better known as a Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO). [23] Other than urban units such as town municipalities, a subdivision contains 'community development blocks' (also known as CD blocks or blocks or Tehsil or Taluka). A block consists of urban units such as census towns and rural units called gram panchayats. A block is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO),who is similar as Tehsildar and who is appointed by the Government of West Bengal. [22]
A gram panchayat, which consists of a group of villages, is administered by a village council headed by a Pradhan . [10] As per the West Bengal Panchayat Act, 1973, each Block has a Panchayat Samiti, whose members include the Pradhans of the constituent gram panchayats, and the MLAs from the block. [11] A Panchayat Samiti is headed by a Sabhapati. [24] The third tier of the Panchayati Raj is Zilla Parishad, a district level organisation with the Sabhapatis of the constituent Panchayat Samitis and the MLAs from the district as its members. [12] A Zilla Parishad is headed by a Sabhadhipati. [25] For the Darjeeling district, the Zilla Parishad has ceased to exist, but a similar organisation for the Siliguri subdivision exists, which is designated as a Mahakuma Parishad. [26]
The Gorkha Hill Council, formed in 1988, administers three (out of four) subdivisions of the Darjeeling district: Darjeeling Sadar, Kalimpong and Kurseong. [27] Gorkha Hill Council manages the departments of Public Health, Education, Public Works, Transport, Tourism, Market, Small scale industries, Agriculture, Agricultural waterways, Forest (except reserved forests), Water, Livestock, Vocational Training and Sports and Youth services. [28] District administration of Darjeeling, which is still responsible for election, panchayat, law and order, revenue etc., also acts as an interface between the Council and the State Government. [28]
A District Superintendent of Police, better known as a Superintendent of Police, heads the District Police organisation of West Bengal Police. This is as per the Police Act of 1861, which is applicable to the whole of India. [29] The Superintendents of Police are officers of the Indian Police Service. [30] For every subdivision, there is a Subdivision Police, headed by a Police officer of the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police or Deputy Superintendent of Police. [31] Under subdivisions, there are Police Circles, each headed by an Inspector of Police. [31] A Police Circle consists of Police Stations, each headed by an Inspector of Police, or in case of rural areas, by a Sub-Inspector of Police. [31]
The Calcutta High Court has the jurisdiction of the state of West Bengal. Though most of the districts have more courts other than a District Court, not every subdivision of the state has a Court. [32]
A group of districts forms a division, which is administered by a 'Divisional Commissioner'. West Bengal is now divided in twenty three districts, grouped under five divisions: [9]
Malda division | Burdwan division | Jalpaiguri division | Presidency division | Medinipur division |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sl no. | Code [33] | District | Headquarters [34] | Established [35] | Subdivisions [9] | Area [36] | Population 2011 [update] [36] | Population Density | Map |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | AD | Alipurduar | Alipurduar | 2014 [19] | 3,383 km2 (1,306 sq mi) | 1,491,250 | 441/km2 (1,140/sq mi) | ||
2 | BN | Bankura | Bankura | 1947 | 6,882 km2 (2,657 sq mi) | 3,596,674 | 523/km2 (1,350/sq mi) | ||
3 | BR | Paschim Bardhaman | Asansol | 2017 | 1,603.17 km2 (618.99 sq mi) | 2,882,031 | 1,798/km2 (4,660/sq mi) | ||
4 | BR | Purba Bardhaman | Bardhaman | 2017 | 5,432.69 km2 (2,097.57 sq mi) | 4,835,532 | 890/km2 (2,300/sq mi) | ||
5 | BI | Birbhum | Suri | 1947 | 4,545 km2 (1,755 sq mi) | 3,502,404 | 771/km2 (2,000/sq mi) | ||
6 | KB | Cooch Behar | Cooch Behar | 1950 [4] | 3,387 km2 (1,308 sq mi) | 2,819,086 | 833/km2 (2,160/sq mi) | ||
7 | DA | Darjeeling | Darjeeling | 1947 | 3,149 km2 (1,216 sq mi) | 1,595,181 | 732/km2 (1,900/sq mi) | ||
8 | DD | Dakshin Dinajpur | Balurghat | 1992 [18] | 2,219 km2 (857 sq mi) | 1,676,276 | 755/km2 (1,960/sq mi) | ||
9 | HG | Hooghly | Chinsura | 1947 | 3,149 km2 (1,216 sq mi) | 5,519,145 | 1,753/km2 (4,540/sq mi) | ||
10 | HR | Howrah | Howrah | 1947 | 1,467 km2 (566 sq mi) | 4,850,029 | 3,306/km2 (8,560/sq mi) | ||
11 | JP | Jalpaiguri | Jalpaiguri | 1947 | 6,227 km2 (2,404 sq mi) | 2,381,596 | 837/km2 (2,170/sq mi) | ||
12 | JH | Jhargram | Jhargram | 2017 [4] | 3,037.64 km2 (1,172.84 sq mi) | 1,136,548 | 374/km2 (970/sq mi) | ||
13 | KO | Kolkata | Kolkata | 1947 | Kolkata | 206.08 km2 (79.57 sq mi) | 4,496,694 | 24,306/km2 (62,950/sq mi) | |
14 | KA | Kalimpong | Kalimpong | 2017 [19] | 1,044 km2 (403 sq mi) | 251,642 | 241/km2 (620/sq mi) | ||
15 | MA | Malda | English Bazar | 1947 | 3,733 km2 (1,441 sq mi) | 3,988,845 | 1,069/km2 (2,770/sq mi) | ||
16 | ME | Paschim Medinipur | Medinipur | 2002 [19] | 6,308 km2 (2,436 sq mi) | 4,776,909 | 757/km2 (1,960/sq mi) | ||
17 | ME | Purba Medinipur | Tamluk | 2002 [19] | 4,785 km2 (1,847 sq mi) | 5,095,875 | 1,076/km2 (2,790/sq mi) | ||
18 | MU | Murshidabad | Baharampur | 1947 | 5,324 km2 (2,056 sq mi) | 7,103,807 | 1,334/km2 (3,460/sq mi) | ||
19 | NA | Nadia | Krishnanagar | 1947 | 3,927 km2 (1,516 sq mi) | 5,167,601 | 1,316/km2 (3,410/sq mi) | ||
20 | PN | North 24 Parganas | Barasat | 1986 [16] | 4,094 km2 (1,581 sq mi) | 10,009,781 | 2,445/km2 (6,330/sq mi) | ||
21 | PS | South 24 Parganas | Alipore | 1986 [16] | 9,960 km2 (3,850 sq mi) | 8,161,961 | 819/km2 (2,120/sq mi) | ||
22 | PU | Purulia | Purulia | 1956 [6] | 6,259 km2 (2,417 sq mi) | 2,930,115 | 468/km2 (1,210/sq mi) | ||
23 | UD | Uttar Dinajpur | Raiganj | 1992 [17] | 3,140 km2 (1,210 sq mi) | 3,007,134 | 958/km2 (2,480/sq mi) | ||
— | Total | 23 | — | — | 69 | 88,752 km2 (34,267 sq mi) | 91,347,736 | 1,029/km2 (2,670/sq mi) |
The following is a list of the basic demographic data for the districts of West Bengal at the time of the 2011 census by their population rank in India [38]
Rank | District (West Bengal) | Population (2011 census) | Bengali (Bangla) Speakers | Percentage (%) of Bengali Speakers | Growth Rate | Sex Ratio | Literacy | Density/KM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Uttar 24 Parganas | 10,009,781 | 8,899,696 | 88.91% | 12.86 | 955 | 84.53 | 2,445 |
2 | Dakshin 24 Parganas | 8,161,961 | 7,984,030 | 97.82% | 18.17 | 956 | 77.51 | 819 |
3 | Murshidabad | 7,103,807 | 6,996,539 | 98.49% | 21.09 | 958 | 66.59 | 1,334 |
4 | Paschim Medinipur | 5,913,457 | 5,153,577 | 87.15% | 14.44 | 960 | 79.04 | 636 |
5 | Hooghly | 5,519,145 | 4,828,699 | 87.49% | 9.49 | 958 | 82.55 | 1,753 |
6 | Nadia | 5,167,600 | 5,065,281 | 98.02% | 12.24 | 947 | 75.58 | 1,316 |
7 | Purba Medinipur | 5,095,875 | 5,009,754 | 98.31% | 15.32 | 936 | 87.66 | 1,076 |
8 | Howrah | 4,850,029 | 4,122,039 | 84.99% | 13.31 | 935 | 83.85 | 3,300 |
9 | Purba Bardhaman | 4,841,632 | 4,495,939 | 92.86% | 11.92 | 945 | 76.21 | 1,099 |
10 | Kolkata | 4,496,694 | 2,763,218 | 61.45% | −1.67 | 908 | 86.31 | 24,306 |
11 | Malda | 3,988,845 | 3,631,444 | 91.04% | 21.50 | 939 | 62.71 | 1,071 |
12 | Jalpaiguri | 3,872,846 | 2,539,037 | 65.56% | 13.77 | 954 | 73.79 | 621 |
13 | Bankura | 3,596,674 | 3,261,463 | 90.68% | 12.64 | 954 | 70.95 | 523 |
14 | Birbhum | 3,502,404 | 3,235,520 | 92.38% | 16.15 | 956 | 70.90 | 771 |
15 | Uttar Dinajpur | 3,007,134 | 2,046,655 | 68.06% | 22.90 | 936 | 60.13 | 956 |
16 | Purulia | 2,930,115 | 2,360,500 | 80.56% | 15.43 | 955 | 65.38 | 468 |
17 | Paschim Bardhaman | 2,882,031 | 1,676,765 | 58.18% | 11.92 | 945 | 76.21 | 1,099 |
18 | Cooch Behar | 2,819,086 | 2,672,211 | 94.79% | 13.86 | 942 | 75.49 | 833 |
19 | Darjeeling | 1,846,823 | 489,592 | 26.51% | 14.47 | 971 | 79.92 | 585 |
20 | Dakshin Dinajpur | 1,676,276 | 1,414,944 | 84.41% | 11.16 | 954 | 73.86 | 753 |
The following is a list of basic economic data for the districts of West Bengal as of 2023–2024, the latest year for which data is available: [39]
District | Real Economy (Nominal GDP Per Capita in 2023–2024) |
---|---|
Paschim Bardhaman | $3,500 |
Purba Bardhaman | $2,200 |
Birbhum | $1,600 |
Bankura | $1,900 |
Purba Medinipur | $2,800 |
Paschim Medinipur | $1,700 |
Howrah | $2,500 |
Hooghly | $2,400 |
Uttar 24 Parganas | $2,400 |
Dakshin 24 Parganas | $1,900 |
Kolkata | $4,400 |
Nadia | $1,900 |
Murshidabad | $1,600 |
Jalpaiguri | $1,900 |
Darjeeling | $3,000 |
Uttar Dinajpur | $1,200 |
Dakshin Dinajpur | $1,500 |
Malda | $1,600 |
Cooch Behar | $1,600 |
Purulia | $1,600 |
West Bengal | $2,400 |
Nadia is a district in the state of West Bengal, India. It borders Bangladesh to the east, North 24 Parganas and Hooghly districts to the south, Purba Bardhaman to the west, and Murshidabad to the north.
Cooch Behar district is a district of the Indian state of West Bengal. Formerly part of the Kamarupa kingdom, the area became the heart of the Kamata Kingdom in the 12th century. During the British Raj, the district was known as Cooch Behar state ruled by the Koch dynasty until 1949, when it became part of India. The district consists of the flat plains of North Bengal and has several rivers: the most notable being the Teesta, Jaldhaka and Torsa. The district has the highest proportion of Scheduled Castes in the country, where they form a majority.
Howrah district is a district of the West Bengal state in eastern India. Howrah district is one of the highly urbanized area of West Bengal. It has thousands of years of rich heritage in the form of the great Bengali kingdom of Bhurshut. The district is named after its headquarters, the city of Howrah.
North Bengal or Uttar Banga is a term used for the north-western part of Bangladesh and northern part of West Bengal. The Bangladesh part denotes the Rajshahi Division and Rangpur Division. Generally, it is the area lying west of Jamuna River and north of Padma River and includes the Barind Tract. The West Bengal part denotes Jalpaiguri Division and the Malda division together. The Bihar parts include the Kishanganj district. It also includes parts of Darjeeling Hills. Traditionally, the Ganga River divides Bengal into South Bengal and North Bengal, divided again into Terai and Dooars regions.
The Geography of West Bengal, a state in eastern India, is primarily defined by plains and plateaus, with the high peaks of the Himalayas in the north and the Bay of Bengal to the south.
The University of North Bengal is a public state university in the North Bengal region of West Bengal, India. Its main campus is located in Raja Rammohanpur, Siliguri, Darjeeling district, in the Indian state of West Bengal. Its second campus is located in Danguajhar, Jalpaiguri in Jalpaiguri district and the third campus is located in Salt Lake, Kolkata. The university was established in 1962 by the Government of West Bengal. North Bengal University offers degrees in undergraduate, post-graduate, doctoral and post-doctoral programmes. It is accredited by NAAC with B++ grade.
Paschim Medinipur district is one of the districts of the state of West Bengal, India. It was formed on 1 January 2002 after the partition of Midnapore into Paschim Medinipur and Purba Medinipur. On 4 April 2017, the Jhargram subdivision was upgraded to a district. GDP of West Midnapore district is 12 billion USD.
Jalpaiguri Division is one of the 5 divisions in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the northernmost division of West Bengal. It is surrounded by Nepal on the western side, Bihar on South-Western side, Bhutan on the Northern side and Bangladesh on the southern side.
Cooch Behar Sadar subdivision is a subdivision of the Cooch Behar district in the state of West Bengal, India.
Tufanganj subdivision is a subdivision of the Cooch Behar district in the state of West Bengal, India.
Alipore Sadar subdivision is an administrative subdivision of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Barrackpore subdivision is an administrative subdivision of the North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Cooch Behar I is a community development block that forms an administrative division in the Cooch Behar Sadar subdivision of the Cooch Behar district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Cooch Behar II is a community development block that forms an administrative division in the Cooch Behar Sadar subdivision of the Cooch Behar district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Dinhata II is a community development block that forms an administrative division in the Dinhata subdivision of the Cooch Behar district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Mathabhanga II is a community development block that forms an administrative division in the Mathabhanga subdivision of the Cooch Behar district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to West Bengal:
Bamanhat is a neighbourhood and a gram panchayat in the Dinhata II CD block in the Dinhata subdivision of the Cooch Behar district, West Bengal, India.
Changrabandha is a census town and a gram panchayat in Mekhliganj CD block in Mekhliganj subdivision of Cooch Behar district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is a border checkpoint on the Bangladesh-India border.
The 2022 Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation election was held on 12 February 2022 to elect 41 members of the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) which governs Bidhannagar, the Satellite city of the capital city of Indian state of West Bengal, Kolkata in the district of North 24 Parganas.
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