North Bihar

Coordinates: 26°04′N 85°27′E / 26.07°N 85.45°E / 26.07; 85.45
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For state of India, see Bihar.

North Bihar
Geographic Region
Emblem of Bihar
Seal
Coordinates: 26°04′N 85°27′E / 26.07°N 85.45°E / 26.07; 85.45
Country India
StateBihar
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
Lok Sabha21
Vidhan Sabha127+2
Districts21
Main LanguagesBhojpuri, Maithili and Hindi
Emerging townsSupaul, Araria, Madhepura, Samastipur, Madhubani, Bettiah, Gopalganj, katihar, saharsa, sitamarhi
Emerged townsMuzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Motihari, Purnea, Begusarai
Industrial and Financial capitalBegusarai
Websitenorthbihar.in

North Bihar is a term used for the region of Bihar, India, which lies north of the Ganga river.

Towns and cities[edit]

38 Districts of Bihar
  1. Naugachia is a sub-division in the Bhagalpur district. It is famous for Banana farming, and known as Kelanchal of Bihar.[1]
  2. Purnia is the headquarters of the Purnia division and Purnia district. It is the 2nd largest city in North Bihar by population. It is also known as "Mini Darjeeling" due to its humid climate. This city is called the Gateway of North East India in Bihar. NH 27 also passes through the city that connects North East to the whole of India. Purnia Junction is the major railway of this city. Gulabbagh agriculture market is the biggest maize market in Asia.
  3. Katihar is the headquarters of the Katihar district. Katihar is known for Jute production.[2]
  4. Kishanganj is the headquarters of the Kishanganj district. It is the easternmost district of Bihar. A part of this district is known as the chicken neck region of India.
  5. Araria is the headquarters of the Araria district. NH 27 (Old NH57) connects Araria to other parts of the state.
  6. Madhepura is the headquarters of the Madhepura district. This district was curved out from the Saharsa district. This is a flood-prone district of the Kosi region.
  7. Supaul is the headquarters & chief town of the Supaul district. Supaul is set to get India's largest road bridge sharing some parts with the Madhubani district. The construction site of the bridge is 6 to 8 miles away from Supaul. A bridge on the mighty kosi river was built in 2012 near Nirmali in Supaul. After the inauguration of the koshi mega bridge. The bridge which was already a part of the eastern-western corridor became operational & hence completing the whole circuit of the 3507 km long Porbandar-Silchar highway, and providing direct road connectivity to cities like Lucknow & Kanpur[3]
  8. Saharsa is the headquarters of the Saharsa district and the Kosi division. Saharsa is located in the Mithila region, one of the earliest centers of Brahminical civilization in India. Saharsa is considered the heart of the whole Mithila region. It's the birthplace of many legends like Mandana Misra, Laxminath Gosain, Ubhai Bharti, etc. The region of Bangaon and Mahisi is one of the most civil servants producing areas.
  9. Khagaria is the headquarters of the Khagaria district. Two major rivers of the North Bihar Ganga river and the Kosi river flows through the district.[4]
  10. Begusarai is the industrial and financial capital of Bihar, and headquarters of the Begusarai district. Barauni and Begusarai are the main industrial hub of Bihar. Barauni is one of the important railway junctions of Bihar. It is the land of great people like Ramdhari Singh Dinkar and Shri Krishna Sinha.
  11. Samastipur is the headquarters of the Samastipur district. The Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agriculture University, India's first-ever Imperial Agriculture Research Institute, is located in Pusa, Samastipur district.
  12. Darbhanga is the headquarters of the Darbhanga district and Darbhanga division. Darbhanga is the cultural capital of Bihar. It is considered the Medical Capital of North Bihar. It has DMCH & second AIIMS Hospital in the State after Capital Patna.
  13. Madhubani is the headquarters of the Madhubani district. Jainagar in the Madhubani district connects North Bihar to Janakpurdham in Mithila region of Nepal.
  14. Hajipur[5] is the headquarters of the Vaishali district, located on the northern bank of Ganga river, opposite Patna, on the southern bank. It is the headquarters of the East Central Railway zone of the Indian Railways.[6][7]
  15. Muzaffarpur[8][9] is the financial capital of North Bihar. It is the headquarters of the Muzaffarpur district and Tirhut division. All the important roadways (like NH 27, NH 28, NH 57, NH 77, NH 102) and railways (like Muzaffarpur-Hajipur, Muzaffarpur-Motihari, Muzaffarpur-Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur-Samastipur) have their junction in the city.[10]
  16. Sitamarhi is the headquarters of the Sitamarhi district. It has Vedic importance as Goddess Sita is believed to be unearthed here.[11]
  17. Sheohar is the headquarters of the Sheohar district, the smallest district of North Bihar. It was carved out from Sitamarhi District.[12]
  18. Motihari is the headquarters of the East Champaran district. Mahatma Gandhi launched a non-cooperation movement there. It has been announced to establish a Central University in Motihari. This would be the first nationalized University in North Bihar.[13]
  19. Bettiah is the headquarters of the West Champaran district. It is the westernmost district of North Bihar, and the Northernmost district of Bihar state.[14]
  20. Chhapra is the headquarters of the Saran district.
  21. Siwan is the headquarters of the Siwan district.
  22. Gopalganj is the headquarters of the Gopalganj district.

Languages[edit]

Proposed state[edit]

Further information: Mithila, India

There is an ongoing movement in the Maithili-speaking region of Bihar for a separate Mithila state. The capital of the state has yet to be decided, but Begusarai, Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga are the most likely candidates.[15]

Economy[edit]

Agricultural economy[edit]

Agriculture is the main economic activity of the region.

The industries have generated considerable employment and have also been helpful in establishing a number of small industries, including a few cottage industries. The most important item that is manufactured in Muzaffarpur city is the railway wagon. Barauni is the prominent industrial town of North Bihar, and Bihar state, having Barauni Refinery, Barauni Fertilizer, Barauni Carbons, a railway yard, and the Barauni thermal power station. Hajipur is also a new emerging industrial area due to its proximity with Patna leading to the development of an industrial area.

North Bihar is also home to majority of sugar production of Bihar and more than 20 sugar industries are located in Bihar but about a third of it is operational mostly in Champaran belt, Gopalganj, Darbhanga, Sitamarhi, etc.

Rivers and floods[edit]

There are several rivers flowing through this region from north to south and merge in the Ganges river.[16] These rivers, along with floods, bring fertile soil to the region on a yearly basis. However, sometimes government sponsored floods[clarification needed] causes loss of thousands of lives. Major rivers of North Bihar are Mahananda, Gandak, Kosi, Bagmati, Kamala, Balan, Budhi Gandak.[17]

Natural floods[edit]

Since the beginning of human civilization, rivers have been an important part of human life. North Bihar has 7 major rivers and several tributaries to them. North Bihar districts are vulnerable to at least five major flood-causing rivers during the monsoon – Mahananda River, Koshi River, Bagmati River , Burhi Gandak River and Gandak – which originate in Nepal.[18] All these rivers receive water from the Himalayas, so these rivers always have an adequate water supply. Every year, these rivers bring valuable floods for the people of North Bihar. Flood waters used to enter the agricultural land, leave their quite fertile silt and recede to the river. This pattern of humane flood was beneficial for North Bihar, making the land perfectly fertile. However, there are no more natural floods as of today.

Man-made floods[edit]

Soon after independence, the Congress Government of Bihar made several attempts to domesticate these rivers. High barriers or Bandhs were made on their both banks. This resulted in inhumane and destructive floods. Bandhs caused deposition of silts in the bottom of rivers, because of which, depth of rivers decreased, and so their water holding capacity also decreased. This is the reason these rivers bring more frequent floods now. With flood water, sand comes in force and gets deposited on the land. This way the land of the region in turning barren. Floods, once a boon for North Bihar, has now become a curse.

Kosi flood 2008,[edit]

2008 Kosi flood
Flooded North Bihar
Date18 August 2008
LocationNorth Bihar
Deaths434[19] (Dead bodies were found until 27 November 2008)

The 2008 Kosi flood was one of the most disastrous floods in the history of North Bihar, an impoverished and densely populated region in India. A breach in the Kosi embankment near the Indo-Nepal border (at Kusha in Nepal) occurred on 18 August 2008. The river changed course and inundated areas which were not flooded in decades.[20] The flood affected over 2.3 million people in North Bihar.[21]

The flood killed 250 people and forced nearly 3 million people from their homes in North Bihar.[22] More than 300,000 houses were destroyed and at least 340,000 hectares (840,000 acres) of crops were damaged.[22] Villagers in North Bihar ate raw rice and flour mixed with polluted water. Hunger and disease were widespread. The Supaul district was the worst-hit; surging waters swamped 1,000 square kilometers (247,000 acres) of farmlands, destroying crops.[23]

  • The Kosi before it flooded in August 2008
    The Kosi before it flooded in August 2008
  • The Kosi during the August 2008 flood
    The Kosi during the August 2008 flood

2017 North Bihar Floods[edit]

2017 North Bihar Flood
DateAugust 2017
LocationNorth Bihar, India
Deaths514
Main article: 2017 Bihar Flood

The 2017 North Bihar Floods affected 19 districts of North Bihar causing death of 514 people.[24][25][26][27][28] This flood was result of sudden increase in water discharge through the Gandak, Burhi Gandak, Bagmati, Kamla, Kosi and Mahananda Rivers due to heavy rain in the catchment areas of the major rivers of north Bihar in Nepal.[29] Araria district accounted for 95 deaths alone,[30] followed by Sitamarhi (34), West Champaran (29), Katihar (26), East Champaran (19) while 22 have died in Madhubani, Supaul (13) and Madhepura (15). 11 deaths were reported in Kishanganj, while Darbhanga accounted for 19 deaths, Purnea (9), Gopalganj (9), Sheohar (4), Muzaffarpur (7), Samastipur (1) and Saharsa (4) registered four deaths each while Khagaria and Saran accounted for 7 deaths each. Nowadays, around 1.71 people on average are affected by floods alone.[31][32][33][34]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Naugachia". Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  2. ^ TOI. "Katihar Jute". The Times Of India. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  3. ^ Shoumojit Banerjee (9 February 2012). "Mithilanchal gets back its lifeline". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 10 May 2018. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  4. ^ "Rivers near Khagaria". Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  5. ^ East Central Railway (PDF). Indian Railway. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 May 2012.
  6. ^ "Official Website of Sonpur Division of East Central Railway". Government of India. Archived from the original on 6 May 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
  7. ^ "Zones and their Divisions in Indian Railways" (PDF). Indian Railways. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  8. ^ "BJP MP poser to Nitish". The Times of India. 29 November 2011. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  9. ^ AAHSKK: ALPSANKHYAK AVAM HARIJAN SAMAJ KALYAN KENDRA. "An AGO in Muzaffarpur". Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2012.
  10. ^ District - Muzaffarpur (PDF). Patna, India: Road constructor Department, Government of Bihar. p. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 March 2016.
  11. ^ "Sitamarhi district". Sitamarhi Temple. Archived from the original on 23 June 2012. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  12. ^ "Sheohar district". Bihar News Information Portal. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  13. ^ "Central University at Motihari in Bihar, says govt". The Times of India. PTI. 18 August 2012. Archived from the original on 19 August 2012. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  14. ^ "West Champaran". Brand Bihar. Archived from the original on 10 September 2013. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  15. ^ Braja Bihārī Kumāra (1998). Small States Syndrome in India. Concept Publishing Company. p. 146. ISBN 9788170226918. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017.
  16. ^ "Bihar's scary new flood".
  17. ^ "Rivers of Bihar | Bihar Articles". Bihar.ws. Archived from the original on 23 July 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  18. ^ "Bihar gears up to fight annual floods". The Times of India. 9 June 2020.
  19. ^ A report by the Department of disaster management, Government of Bihar
  20. ^ "A Dalit watch report on the flood camps in Bihar". India Water Portal. 22 June 2011. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  21. ^ "Half of Bihar under water, 30 lakh suffer". CNN IBN. 1 September 2008. Archived from the original on 3 September 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  22. ^ a b Michael Coggan in New Delhi (29 August 2008). "Death toll rises from Indian floods - Just In (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". ABC. Archived from the original on 5 November 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  23. ^ Sunil Kataria (29 August 2008). "Bihar villagers desperate as floods spread". Reuters. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  24. ^ Abhay Singh (29 August 2017). "Floods in state not man-made, says minister". Times of India. TNN. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  25. ^ "Flood Situation Improves In Bihar, Number Of Dead At 514". NDTV. 28 August 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  26. ^ "Flood situation worsens in Bihar, death toll rises to 253". Times of India. PTI. 20 August 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  27. ^ "Bihar floods: 119 dead; bridge collapse caught on camera". Times of India. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 27 October 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  28. ^ "Bihar floods: Death toll rises to 202 in 18 districts; thundershowers likely to continue today". 20 August 2017. Archived from the original on 25 August 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  29. ^ "Alert sounded in north Bihar plains". Times of India. TNN. 12 August 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  30. ^ "Death toll in Bihar floods mounts to 304; situation grim in UP". Times of India. PTI. 21 August 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  31. ^ "Bihar Flood Deaths Rise To 440; Prime Minister Announces Rs. 500 Crore Relief". NDTV. 27 August 2017. Archived from the original on 19 September 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  32. ^ "Bihar floods' death toll touches 440, 1.71 crore people still affected". 26 August 2017. Archived from the original on 27 August 2017.
  33. ^ "Bihar floods cost 39 more lives, UP staggers". 25 August 2017. Archived from the original on 10 May 2018.
  34. ^ "Bihar floods: Death toll rises to 304, 1.38 crore people still battling deluge in 18 districts". The Hindu Business Line. PTI. 21 August 2017. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 31 December 2017.

External links[edit]

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