Muzaffarpur

This article is about the municipality in India. For its namesake district, see Muzaffarpur district.

Muzaffarpur
City
Muzaffarpur Junction
Muzaffarpur Location in India Show map of Bihar Muzaffarpur Muzaffarpur (India) Show map of India
Coordinates: 26°7′21″N85°23′26″E / 26.12250°N 85.39056°E / 26.12250; 85.39056
Country	India
State	Bihar
District	Muzaffarpur
Division	Tirhut
Established	1 January 1875
Municipal Corporation	Muzaffarpur Municipal Corporation
Government
• Member of Parliament	Raj Bhushan Choudhary
• Member of Legislative Council	Dinesh Prasad Singh
• Member of Legislative Assembly	Vijendra Chaudhary [1]
• Mayor	Nirmala Sahu
Area
• Total	91 km2 (35 sq mi)
Elevation	60 m (200 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	354,462 [2]
• Rank	4th (Bihar) 127th (India)
Language Other Local Language
• Official	Hindi [3]
• Additional official	English [3]
• Regional Languages	Bajjika [4]
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	842001-05 (Muzaffarpur) [5]
Telephone code	0621
Vehicle registration	BR-06
Sex ratio	890 (females per thousand males) [6] ♂/♀
Literacy	85.16% [6]
Lok Sabha constituency	Muzaffarpur
Vidhan Sabha constituency	Muzaffarpur
Website	muzaffarpur.bih.nic.in

Muzaffarpur ( pronunciation ^ⓘ ) is a city located in Muzaffarpur district in the Tirhut region of the Indian state of Bihar. ^{[6] [2]} It serves as the headquarters of the Tirhut division, the Muzaffarpur district, and the Muzaffarpur Railway District. It is the fourth most populous city in Bihar.

Muzaffarpur is known for Shahi litchis and is known as the Lychee Kingdom. ^{[7] [8]} Shahi lychee is the fourth product from Bihar to get the Geographical Indication (GI) tag, after jardalu mango, katarni rice and Magahi paan (betel leaf). The city is situated on the banks of the perennial Budhi Gandak River, which flows from the Someshwar Hills ^[9] of the Himalayas.

Etymology

The current city was established in 1875 during the British Raj for administrative convenience, by dividing the Tirhut district and was named after an aumil , Muzaffar Khan; thus the city came to be known as Muzaffarpur. ^[10]

History

The city was founded in 18th century during British Raj period and was constituted a municipality in 1864. A major road and rail hub, it is a trade centre on the route between Patna (south) and Nepal (north). Lychee, sweet corn, mango, vegetables, rice and sugar milling alongside cutlery manufacturing are the chief industries. ^[11]

In 1972, the Sitamarhi and Vaishali districts were split off from Muzaffarpur. ^[12]

Geography

Muzaffarpur is located at 26°07′N85°24′E / 26.12°N 85.4°E / 26.12; 85.4 . ^[13] The city lies in a highly active seismic zone of India. In the disastrous earthquake on 15 January 1934, much of the town suffered severe damage and many people died. ^[14] It has an average elevation of 47 meters (154 feet). This saucer shaped, low-centered town lies on the great Indo-Gangetic plains of Bihar, over Himalayan silt and sand brought by the glacier-fed and rain-fed meandering rivers of the Himalayas.

Climate

Muzaffarpur has a humid subtropical climate (Cwa) under the Köppen climate classification. The summer, between April and June, is extremely hot and humid (28–40 °C, 90% max). and winter is pleasantly cool, around 6-20 °C. Rainfall in Muzaffarpur City is comparatively less compared to other parts of Bihar.

Climate data for Muzaffarpur (1991–2020, extremes 1901–2009)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	30.8 (87.4)	34.6 (94.3)	39.4 (102.9)	42.2 (108.0)	44.5 (112.1)	43.4 (110.1)	43.5 (110.3)	40.6 (105.1)	38.2 (100.8)	35.9 (96.6)	33.2 (91.8)	29.6 (85.3)	44.5 (112.1)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	21.7 (71.1)	26.1 (79.0)	31.4 (88.5)	35.8 (96.4)	35.3 (95.5)	35.0 (95.0)	33.0 (91.4)	33.1 (91.6)	32.6 (90.7)	32.0 (89.6)	28.6 (83.5)	24.1 (75.4)	30.7 (87.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	10.4 (50.7)	13.6 (56.5)	17.8 (64.0)	22.6 (72.7)	25.1 (77.2)	26.7 (80.1)	27.0 (80.6)	27.0 (80.6)	26.0 (78.8)	23.0 (73.4)	16.8 (62.2)	12.0 (53.6)	20.6 (69.1)
Record low °C (°F)	2.7 (36.9)	2.2 (36.0)	7.2 (45.0)	12.6 (54.7)	18.3 (64.9)	19.4 (66.9)	20.9 (69.6)	20.6 (69.1)	19.6 (67.3)	14.4 (57.9)	7.7 (45.9)	4.0 (39.2)	2.2 (36.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	10.5 (0.41)	12.5 (0.49)	7.1 (0.28)	20.9 (0.82)	74.9 (2.95)	168.6 (6.64)	270.7 (10.66)	276.5 (10.89)	192.4 (7.57)	48.5 (1.91)	3.8 (0.15)	2.8 (0.11)	1,089.2 (42.88)
Average rainy days	0.9	0.9	0.7	1.5	4.4	7.0	12.4	11.9	8.2	1.7	0.2	0.3	50.1
Average relative humidity (%) (at 17:30 IST)	79	70	57	52	63	74	82	83	83	78	76	80	73
Source: India Meteorological Department [15] [16] [17]

Muzaffarpur has been ranked 32nd best "National Clean Air City" under (Category 2 3-10L Population cities) in India. ^[18]

Demographics

As of the 2011 India census, ^[19] Muzaffarpur had a population of 393,724. ^[2] Males constituted 52.96% (208,509) of the population and females 47.04% (185,215). ^[2] Muzaffarpur had a literacy rate of 85.16%. Male literacy was 88.83%, and female literacy was 81.05%. ^[20]

As per 2011 census data, there are total 275,233 Hindus whereas 74,680 Muslims and 1,352 Christians along with other small minorities. ^[21]

Religion in Muzaffarpur (2011)

   Hinduism (77.65%)

   Islam (21.07%)

  Other (1.28%)

Economy

Vasant Palace

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Muzaffarpur one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640). ^[22] It is one of the 36 districts in Bihar currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF). ^[22]

Lychee

Lychee garden in Muzaffarpur

The lychee crop, which is available from May to June, is mainly cultivated in the districts of Muzaffarpur and surrounding districts. Cultivation of litchi covers approximately an area of about 25,800 hectares producing about 300,000 tonnes every year. Litchi are exported to big cities of India like Mumbai, Kolkata, and even to other countries. India's share in the world litchi market amounts to less than 1%. The names of the litchi produced in Muzaffarpur are Shahi and China . The fruits are known for excellent aroma and quality. ^[23]

Bihar's contribution in the production of lychee in about 40 percent of lychee produced in India. ^[24]

Bihar has emerged as a brewery hub with major domestic and foreign firms setting up production units in the state. Vijay Mallya's group, United Breweries Group, is setting up a production unit to make litchi-flavoured wine, in Muzaffarpur in 2012. The company has leased litchi gardens. ^[25]

Muzaffarpur based Prabhat Zarda Factory is one of the leading tobacco manufacturers of India. ^[26]

Lahti Bangles

The production and sales of Lahti bangles is also very prominent in city. Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai also wore the Lahti bangles of the city at her wedding. ^[27]

Transport

Railways

Aerial view of Muzaffarpur Junction with sunset view

Muzaffarpur Junction railway station (MFP) ^[28] is a main A1 Category railway junction in Sonpur Division of East Central Railway, having total 8 platforms, with three suburban stations, Ram Dayalu Nagar, Narayanpur Anant (Sherpur), Kaparpura and Jubba Sahni. More than 200 trains regularly visits this 136+ year old railway junction.

Roads

Road connecting New Zero Mile with NH-57

National Highway 57 (India) comes via Gorakhpur, Motihari, Mehsi and crosses Muzaffarpur and National Highway 57 (India) goes to Darbhanga, Purnia. The East–West Corridor crosses Muzaffarpur thus connecting it to all the major towns and cities in India. National Highway 22 (India) starting from Hajipur passes through Muzaffarpur and connects Muzaffarpur to Sitamarhi. National Highway 28 (India) connects Mehsi and Muzaffarpur to Barauni, all 6 National Highways having junction there.

Airport

Muzaffarpur Airport (IATA: MZU, ICAO: VEMZ) ^[29] is located in Patahi of Muzaffarpur city (besides NH 722 Muzaffarpur - Chhapra (Rewa Ghat)) in the state of Bihar, India. It was operable from 1967 to 1982, on a regular basis. Currently it is not in operations, commercially. ^[30]

Darbhanga Airport is the nearest domestic airport roughly 64 km away by road. Patna Airport is the nearest customs airport roughly 70 km from the city.

Education

University

• Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Bihar University

Colleges

• Langat Singh College
• Muzaffarpur Institute of Technology
• Mahant Darshan Das Mahila College
• S.K.J. Law College
• Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital

Schools

• Kendriya Vidyalaya Muzaffarpur

Notable people

Rambriksh Benipuri, freedom fighter, Socialist Leader, editor and Hindi writer

• Rambriksh Benipuri, Indian freedom movement activist, eminent writer of Hindi literature
• George Fernandes, former Defence Minister of India
• Raj Bhushan Choudhary, Indian politician, Member of 18th Lok Sabha, Member of Third Modi ministry
• Devaki Nandan Khatri, the author of Chandrakanta, first modern Hindi novel
• Arunabh Kumar, founder and ex-CEO of The Viral Fever
• Dinesh Prasad Singh, Indian politician, Member of Bihar Legislative Council
• Veena Devi, Indian politician, Member of Lok Sabha, Vaishali (Lok Sabha constituency)
• Rajendra Prasad, India's first president, worked as a professor of English in Langat Singh College
• Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary, sports spectator and fan of the Indian Cricket Team
• Shreya Narayan, Bollywood actress
• Aishwarya Nigam, Bollywood playback singer
• Jai Narain Prasad Nishad, Indian politician and member of parliament from Muzaffarpur Lok Sabha Constituency of Bihar.
• Ajay Nishad, Indian politician, Member of 17th Lok Sabha
• Raghunath Pandey, famous entrepreneur who founded Shri Krishna Medical College & Hospital ( SKMCH), Muzaffarpur.
• Jubba Sahni, freedom fighter
• Rajni Ranjan Sahu, Member Rajya Sabha, 1984–1996
• Sunil Sahu, Educator in the US
• Uday Shankar media executive and former journalist, president of FICCI, The Walt Disney Company Asia Pacific, and chairman of Star India and The Walt Disney Company India
• Janki Ballabh Shastri, Hindi poet, writer and critic
• Baikunth Shukla, revolutionary hanged by the British in 1934
• Yogendra Shukla, revolutionary, Indian freedom movement activist, served time at Kalapani
• Basawon Singh, revolutionary, Indian freedom movement activist
• Chandeshwar Prasad Narayan Singh, diplomat and freedom fighter
• Kishori Sinha, Indian politician and educationalist
• Mridula Sinha, former Governor of Goa (2014–2019)
• Bapi Tutul, Music composer

See also

• Appan Samachar
• List of cities in Bihar
• Sujini embroidery work of Bihar
• Muzaffarpur Shirsh Bihar United Football Club

References

1. "Muzaffarpurchunav 2020: क्या इस बार मंत्री जी लगाएंगे हैट्रिक या पूर्व विधायक विजेंद्र चौधरी करेंगे वापसी?". Dainik Jagran (in Hindi). 1 November 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
2. "Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 3 lakh and above" (PDF). Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011. Government of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
3. "second Report of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in India" (PDF). nclm.nic.in. Ministry of Minority Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
4. "Bajjika". Ethnologue. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
5. "Pin Codes of Muzaffarpur, Bihar, India, Muzaffarpur Pincode Search". indiapincodes.net.
6. "Cities having population 3 lakh and above" (PDF). Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011. Government of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2012. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
7. "Bihar's famous Shahi litchi to get GI tag soon". The Times of India . 8 July 2018.
8. Destinations :: Vaishali ::Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation Archived 22 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine . Bstdc.bih.nic.in. Retrieved on 9 January 2011.
9. "bihar". Scribd.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
10. Faizi, Amir Afaque Ahmad (2009). Self-help Groups and Marginalised Communities. Concept Publishing Company. p. 6. ISBN   978-81-8069-621-3 . Retrieved 20 January 2020.
11. "Muzaffarpur | India". 19 September 2024.
12. Law, Gwillim (25 September 2011). "Districts of India". Statoids. Archived from the original on 17 October 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
13. "Maps, Weather, and Airports for Muzaffarpur, India". fallingrain.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2008.
14. Bihar India Earthquake Movie, 15 January 1934 Archived 6 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine . Harappa.com (15 January 1934). Retrieved on 9 January 2011.
15. "Climatological Tables of Observatories in India 1991-2020" (PDF). India Meteorological Department . Retrieved 8 April 2024.
16. "Station: Muzaffarpur Climatological Table 1981–2010" (PDF). Climatological Normals 1981–2010. India Meteorological Department. January 2015. pp. 513–514. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
17. "Extremes of Temperature & Rainfall for Indian Stations (Up to 2012)" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. December 2016. p. M36. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
18. "Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan 2024" (PDF). India - National Clean Air Programme. 7 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
19. "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
20. "Cities having population 3 lakh and above" (PDF). Census India. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
21. "Muzaffarpur District Population, Bihar, List of Taluks in Muzaffarpur".
22. Ministry of Panchayati Raj (8 September 2009). "A Note on the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme" (PDF). National Institute of Rural Development. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
23. "7. Lychee Production in India". Fao.org. 31 May 1992. Archived from the original on 17 November 2014. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
24. "Bihar is the top litchi producing State, about 300 thousand metric tonnes of litchi is being produced from 32 thousand hectare areas: Shri Radha Mohan Singh". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
25. "Bihar emerging as brewery hub". Economic Times. 16 January 2012. Archived from the original on 24 May 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
26. Sinha, Nishant (20 July 2016). "Sale of tobacco products legal". The Telegraph. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
27. "Aishwarya Rai's Muzaffarpur connection". The Times of India. 18 October 2012. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 8 December 2023.
28. "Muzaffarpur Jn". www.railyatri.in. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
29. "Muzaffarpur Airport". centreforaviation.com. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
30. "Muzaffarpur Airport (Bihar)". www.aai.aero. Retrieved 16 August 2022.

External links

• Official website of Muzaffarpur District
• Official website of Tirhut Division
• "Muzaffarpur"  . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.