Hazaribagh

Template:Infobox Indian Jurisdiction Hazaribagh (Template:Lang-hi) is a city and a municipality in Hazaribagh district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It is the divisional headquarters of North Chotanagpur division. It is famous as a health resort and for Hazaribagh National Park (17 km from city).

Etymology

Etymologially, the word Hazaribagh is made of two words. Hazar means one thousand (1,000) and bagh means tigers. Hence the literal meaning of Hazaribagh is 'city of a thousand tigers'. According to Sir John Houlton the town takes its name from the small villages of Okni and Hazari – shown in old maps as Ocunhazry. The last syllable in its name probably originated in a mango-grove, which formed a camping ground for troops and travellers marching along the ‘new military road’ from Kolkata to Varanasi, constructed in 1782 and the following years. The Grand Trunk Road subsequently replaced this military road in the mid-eight hundreds, but the lay out differed at places, particularly around Hazaribagh. A dilapidated watch tower meant to guard the military road is still visible on Tower Hill, near Silwar.

File:Hazaribagh Map.jpg

Geography

Konar River, a tributary of Damodar River, flows past the town. Hazaribagh has been a thick forest earlier and is still surrounded by forests.

Travelling Times

Air The nearest airport is Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand, (91 km). Ranchi is connected with New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Patna and Lucknow by regular service of many airlines.

Rail The nearest railway station is Koderma, 69 km away to the north, situated on the New Delhi- Howarah railway line. All major trains including Rajdhanis stop here. Railways provide regular bus service from Koderma Station to Hazaribagh.

A new railway line has been constructed from Koderma to Hazaribagh to Barkakana junction eventually to join Ranchi. Hazaribagh railway station has been constructed but train services have not started.

Road Hazaribagh is situated on NH 33 and the road distances to major cities are: Ranchi 91 km, Dhanbad 128 km (via GT road), Bokaro 116 km (via Ramgarh), Gaya 130 km, Patna 235 km, Daltonganj 198 km, and Kolkata (via Asansol-Govindapur-Barhi) 434 km. Regular bus service connects Hazaribagh to all these places.

History

In ancient times the district was covered with inaccessible forests inhabitated by tribes who remained independent. The entire territory of Chhotanagpur, known as Jharkhand (meaning forest territory) was presumably beyond the pale of outside influence in ancient India. Throughout the Turko-Afghan period (up to 1526 CE), the area remained virtually free from external influence. It was only with the accession of Akbar to the throne of Delhi in 1556 that Muslim influence penetrated Jharkhand, then known to the Mughals as Kokrah. In 1585, Akbar sent a force under the command of Shahbaj Khan to reduce the Raja of Chotanagpur to the position of a tributary. After the death of Akbar in 1605, the area presumably regained its independence. This necessitated an expedition in 1616 by Ibrahim Khan Fateh Jang, the Governor of Bihar and brother of Queen Noorjehan. Ibrahim Khan defeated and captured Durjan Sal, the 46th Raja of Chotanagpur. He was imprisoned for 12 years but was later released and reinstated on the throne after he had shown his ability in distinguishing a real diamond from a fake one.

In 1632 CE, Chotanagpur was given as Jagir to the Governor at Patna for an annual payment of Rs.136,000. This was raised to Rs.161,000 in 1636 CE. During the reign of Muhammad Shah (1719–1748), Sarballand Khan, the Governor of then Bihar, marched against the Raja of Chotanagpur and obtained his submission. Another expedition was led by Fakhruddoula, the Governor of Bihar in 1731.

He came to terms with the Raja of Chotanagpur. In 1735 Alivardi Khan had some difficulty in enforcing the payment of the annual tribute of Rs. 12000 from the Raja of Ramgarh, as agreed to by the latter according to the terms settled with Fakhruddoula.

This situation continued until the occupation of the country by the British. During the Muslim period, the main estates in the district were Ramgarh, Kunda, Chai and Kharagdiha. Subsequent to the Kol uprising in 1831 that, however, did not seriously affect Hazaribag, the administrative structure of the territory was changed. The paraganas Ramgarh, Kharagdiha, Kendi and Kunda became parts of the South-West Frontier Agency and were formed into a division named Hazaribag as the administrative headquarters.

In 1854 the designation of South-West Frontier Agency was changed to Chota Nagpur and it began to be administered as a Non-regulation province under the Lieutenant Governor of the then Bihar. In 1855-56 there was the great uprising of the Santhals against the British but was brutally suppressed.

After 1991 census, the district of Hazaribag has been divided into three separate districts, viz., Hazaribag, Chatra and Koderma. The two sub-divisions namely Chatra and Koderma were upgraded to the status of independent districts.

During British rule, one had go by train to Giridih and then travel in a vehicle called push-push to Hazaribagh. It was pushed and pulled by human force over hilly tracts. It was exciting journey across rivers and through dense forests infested with bandits and wild animals. Rabindranath Tagore travelled in a push-push along the route in 1885. He has recorded the experience in an essay, Chotanagpur families. When the Grand Chord was opened in 1906, Hazaribagh Road station was linked with the town. For many years, Lal Motor Company operated the rail-cum-bus service between Hazaribagh town and Hazaribagh Road station.

Cantonment town

The town became a cantonment in 1790, the Ramgarh battalion having been raised ten years earlier. It was then part of Ramgarh district. It became a district headquarter in 1834. The cantonment flourished till 1884.This resulted in a planned old city. This part of the town is known as Boddam Bazar, after the officer who laid it out. Many Englishmen settled in Hazaribagh during the British period. They built large bungalow type houses, quite often with sloping roofs. Many of them were great hunters and hunting stories abound in the town by word of mouth. Most of them left after independence. Tutu Imam topped the list of hunting legends in the town. A century back it was common for tigers and leopards to poach upon livestock in the outskirts of the town.

Hazaribagh Central Jail housed many leaders of the Indian freedom movement, including Dr. Rajendra Prasad, later the first president of India. The popular leader Jayaprakash Narayan was put under arrest in this jail during the Quit India Movement of 1942. His escape from this high security prison and the support he received from the local people is one of the legends of the Indian Independence movement.

During the early years of World War II an internment camp ("parole camp") for German civilians was in the town. In June 1942 it housed 36 women, 5 men and 16 children. 21 females with 13 children, had been transferred on 25. February 1942 from Diyatalawa. In autumn they were transferred to the family camps at Purandhar or Satara.

Early Bengali settlers

A small but effective Bengali community settled at Hazaribagh in the nineteenth century when the area was in Bengal Presidency and the British administration was looking for people with English education. The small community Contributed considerably towards the development of the place.

Ray Bahadur Jadunath Mukhopadhay(Mukherjee) one of early settlers is much talked about. He helped in setting up the Durga Puja mandap, the Brahmo Samaj and the first girls’ school in the town. Chanchala Niyogi physically got the school going around 1895. Those were the days when people thought that by educating their daughters they were paving the way for their widowhood. Around 1920, the new school building was built with the initiative of Braja Kumar Niyogi with funds mainly from the estate of Raja of Ramgarh. Great Scholars such as Mahesh Chandra Ghosh, and Dhirendranath Choudhury, made the town their home. The poet Kamini Roy lived in the town for some years. Manmathanath Dasgupta, a Brahmo missionary spent many years in Hazaribagh working amongst the down trodden. Sarat Kumar Gupta contributed towards the development of the town in many ways. Doctors such as Mandindra Bhushan Banerjee (Panna Babu), Bikash Kumar Sen, Sambhu Nath Roy and Benoy Chandra Chatterjee were prominent personalities. The noted Bengali author and writer for many Hindi films like SUJATA, Subodh Ghosh was born and brought up in Hazaribagh. Many of his stories are set in the region.

Keshub Chunder Sen, the great Brahmo Leader, accompanied by Trailokyanath Sanyal, had visited Hazaribagh in 1874 to recoup his health. He wrote many pieces during his short stay and participated in Bhadrotsav celebrations. After his death in 1884, a public hall on the Main Road was named Keshub Hall in his memory. Amongst the Brahmo missionaries who visited Hazaribagh regularly was Pramathalal Sen.

Rai Bahadur Kalipada Sarkar was a leading advocate. He was the chairman of Municipality, chairman of District Board, President Bar Association and also member of council. Incidentally, KP Sarkar was the first Indian to be the chairman of Hazaribag Municipality.

Another notable Bengali of the first half of the 20th century was Rai Bahadur Surendra Nath Roy, the noted government Pleader and a patron of the arts. Suren babu migrated from village Raghunathpur (Nadia, Bengal), where he was a zamindar (জমিদার) and the title 'Rai Bahadur' was conferred on him by the British, in 1902 to practice law in the Civil Court at Hazaribagh. For a time he was President Bar Association and was the co-founder of Annada High School (Bengali School). He also acted as the custodian of the minor Kamakhya Narayan Singh, the erstwhile Raja of Ramgarh Ramgarh Raj.

Economy

Coal Fields and Power Centre

Hazaribagh has the 2nd highest coal reserve in Jharkhand (1st is Dhanbad region) and is still largely intact. Recently there has been a spurt in the coal mining activities in the region by Central Coalfields, a subsidiary of Coal India Limited. Work is currently going on for the development of NTPC's 3000MW Super Thermal Power Project, and Reliance Power's 3600MW Thermal power projectSuper Thermal Power Project. A major NTPC township is also coming 10 km from city. Many Steel Plants and other industries are also envisioned due to its proximity to coal, water and power. Damodar Valley Corporation has a number of offices in Hazaribagh.

Education

The cool climate and the quiet environs of Hazaribagh attracted educationists to set up institutions in the town. The Dublin Mission has a big presence with educational institutions and a women’s hospital. Activities of the mission were started at Hazaribagh in 1890, under the aegis of Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland. St. Columba's College was one of the oldest in Bihar. A.F.Markham attached to the college for many years was a legend in his lifetime. He later became vice chancellor of Ranchi University.Hazaribag now has Vinoba Bhave University within city limits, named after Saint Vinoba Bhave.It is the 2nd largest university of Jharkhand.St. Columba's College,Medical College of Dhanbad and many Engineering and local colleges are affiliated to this university now.

After independence Roman Catholics,established a girls’ school - Mount Carmel. Parallel to this Reverend Father John Moore, an Australian Jesuit missionary, set up St.Xavier’s in 1952.

Hazaribagh has the Police Training centre of whole of jharkhand. The Border Security Force(BSF) also have huge presence. East India's largest training Centre is here in the forest with hilly terrain.

Hazaribagh has one of the most prestigious school of Jharkhand, Indira gandhi balika vidyalaya. the school is resedential school for girls by the state government.

Demographics

Template:As of India census, Hazaribagh had a population of 142,494 (compared to 127,243 in 2001). Males were 74,267 (52% of the population, compared to 53% in 2001) and females were 68,227 (48%, compared to 47% in 2001). Hazaribagh had an average literacy rate of 80%, an increase from 76% in 2001, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy was 83%, and female literacy was 76%. In Hazaribagh, 11% of the population was under 6 years of age in 2011 compared to 13% in 2001.

The population of the town and the area is overwhelmingly Hindi-speaking. There is a sprinkling of Santhali-speaking population mainly in the rural areas. There is a sizeable Muslim population. Bengalis, Marwaris and Punjabis form small minorities.

Politics

The Raja of Ramgarh had a big presence in the area, initially during the British period and then after independence when he set up the Janata Party that had a large following in the region for many years. His palace at Padma was a prominent spot on the road to Barhi.

Krishna Ballabh Sahay (Born in Khadhaiya, a village in Tandwa Block), the renowned freedom fighter and subsequently chief minister of Bihar belonged to Hazaribagh. As Revenue Minister, he was instrumental in the abolition of zemindaries in Bihar. In 1952 that was the first such legislation in the country. The political rivalry between the Kamakhya Narayan Singh, the Raja of Ramgarh and K.B.Sahay was talk of the town in the fifties of the twentieth century.

In the elections for the first Lok Sabha held in 1951, Nageshwar Prasad Sinha of Congress won the Hazaribagh East seat and Baboo Ram Narayan Singh, an Independent candidate, won the Hazaribagh West seat. In 1957, Lalita Rajya Lakshmi, of the Ramgarh Raj family, won the seat. Basant Narayan Singh, younger brother of Kamakhya Narayan Singh, won the seat four times, in 1962, 1967 and again in 1977 and 1980. Damodar Pandey of Congress had won it in 1984. Yadunath Pandey of BJP won it in 1989. Bhubneshwar Prasad Mehta of CPI won the seat in 1991 and in 2004. Mahabir Lal Viswakarma of BJP won the seat in 1996. Yashwant Sinha of BJP won the seat in 1998 and went on to become Finance Minister and latter Foreign Minister in the NDA government. He also won the seat in 2009 Lok Sabha Elections. Bhubneshwar Prasad Mehta of Communist Party of India (CPI) won the seat in 2004 with the help of seat sharing of the UPA.

Hazaribag Times is a local newspaper.

Tourist attractions

1. Hazaribagh National Park is located with hillocks, deep nullahs, thick tropical forests and grassy meadows. The Sanctuary has wild bears, sambhar, nilgai, chital and kakar, sloth bears, tigers and leopards.
2. Canary Hill is a popular spot for nature lovers. There is a guest house and a watch tower on the top of the hills. RecentlyTemplate:When a proposal has been submitted for setting up a tiger and deer safari at the place.
3. Swarnajayanti Cafeteria at Hazaribagh Jheel (Natural Lake)is a major family attraction.
4. Panchmandir.
5. Budhwa Mahadev Mandir (Lord Shiva Temple)
6. Narsingh Temple dedicated to Narsingh avatara (incarnation) of Lord Vishnu.
7. Surajkund hot spring which is 60 km away from city on NH2 near Barkattha village.
8. Barso Pani Cave is located at Barkagaon in Hazaribagh District.
9. Rajrappa Mandir which is 80 km away at the bank of river Damodar is a very sacred place.
10. Tillaya (Jhumri Tillaya) Dam 45 km North from Hazaribag.
11. Konar Dam situated about 50 km East of Hazaribag.

The specialty is a Template:Convert stone, which is locally named Barso Pani. There is a belief that if any one enters the cave and call Barso Pani, it starts raining. Contrary to popular beliefs, it does not rain when you clap nor it rains when you shout BARSO PANI. It just rains without any calling. Situated at Jhikjhor Basti on Barkagaon- Hemgir Road, 17 km from Barkagaon block and 50 km from the district headquarters, Barso Pani is a silent obscure place concealed deep in forest. Its a semi-formed cave structure where drops of water fall from the ceiling and gives a fake sense of rain. An interesting point to note is that only the bottom of the ceiling of this cave remains wet, remaining sides stay dry which makes tourists speculate about the source of those raining drops. There is a small stream just beside the structure but to call it the source would be foolish and a personal visit can only prove why.The place is full of natural beauty and visitors need to trek for almost a kilometer from Jhikjhor.

Nearby places

1. hazaribagh cafeteria park is surrounded by jhil'

• Koderma produces the world's 60%-65% of Mica, it is 60 km away from city.
• Tilaiya Dam across the Barakar River has beautiful hillocks all around and there also nestles one Sainik School nearby.
• Konar Dam is 51 km from Hazaribagh
• Surajkund hot spring is 72 km from Hazaribagh. The water is boiling hot and benefiacial for the treatment of skin diseases and rheumatism. It is 2 km from Belkappi, near Barakattha, located half way between Barhi and Bagodar on Grand Trunk Road.

External links

• Hazaribag district administration
• http://www.suwidha.com
• Central Coalfields Ltd.
• Damodar Valley Corporation
• Hazaribagh Old Xaverians Association
• Hazaribagh online business directory / yellow pages
• http://sccbiotech.com/default.htm
• The Lovers of Hazaribag group
• Hazaribagh travel guide

Please see travel details - Template:Wikitravel