Chirang district

District of Assam in India
26°35′N 90°37′E / 26.58°N 90.61°E / 26.58; 90.61Country IndiaState AssamTerritorial Region BodolandEstablished2004HeadquartersKajalgaonGovernment
 • Lok Sabha constituenciesKokrajhar (shared with Kokrajhar district) • Vidhan Sabha constituenciesSidli, BijniArea
 • Total1,169.9 km2 (451.7 sq mi)Population
 (2001)
 • Total482,162 • Density410/km2 (1,100/sq mi)Boro
Time zoneUTC+05:30 (IST)Major highways27Notable educational institutions
  • Bengtol College
  • Bijni College
  • Basugaon College
Websitechirang.assam.gov.in

Chirang District is an administrative district in the Bodoland Territorial Region of Assam state in the North-East of India.[1]

Etymology

The word "Chirang" has derived from Garo word – "chi" means water and "rang" means "rain".[2] It may also be a copy of Tsirang District of neighbouring Bhutan. On the other hand, most of the people regarded the word Chirang is derived from the Bodo word Chirang or Sirang. Si means life and Rang means Money.

History

Duars

Chirang district falls under the Eastern Duars which includes the region between the Sankosh river and the Manas river. Guma, Bijni and Chirang Dooars are three important Dooars in Chirang district.[3]

Under the Kingdom of Bhutan

From early 17th-century present-day Chirang district was under the control of Kingdom of Bhutan,[4] till the Duar Wars in 1865 when British removed the Bhutanese influence and later the areas were merged to undivided Goalpara district of the Indian Union in 1949.

The Druk Desi (Dzongkha: འབྲུག་སྡེ་སྲིད་) of Bhutan appointed Paro Penlop to look after the Duars, who in turn appointed local people as Subah or Laskar, below this was an officer called Kamta who was appointed directly by the Deb Raja of Bhutan.[5]

Present

It is a relatively new district in the Bodoland Territorial Region of Assam. Chirang district has been carved out from Bongaigaon district in 2004.[6] Sirang was an area which is covered by valuable soil, plants, trees, flora and fauna or the things which are necessary for human life. Thus, it is a place which is important for human life or the place which is just like money or valuable for life and is later come to know Si + Rang = Sirang. After some time, the word articulated to Chirang from Sirang. And thus, the word Sirang is latter known as Chirang.[citation needed]

Geography

Chirang is located in the lower part of Assam.It is located between longitudes 26.58°N (North) 90.61°E(East). The Chirang region has a plain geology. It additionally has undulating regions and the northern pieces of the area lie on the lower regions of Bhutan that has somewhat higher height, which is diminishing towards the southern pieces of the locale. The four sorts of soil found here are Entisols, Inceptisols, Alfisols and Ultisols. The region goes under Lower Brahmaputra Valley Agro-Climatic Zone. The environment is sub-tropical in nature with warm and sticky summer followed by dry and cool winter. The pre and post-storm months are eccentric and experience whimsical precipitation. Champabati River,Aie River and Manas River move through the area and join the Brahmaputra Waterway. Numerous different feeders, little creeks and streams course through locale.[citation needed]

National protected area-

Flora and fauna-

In 1990 Chirang district became home to Manas National Park, which has an area of 500 km2 (193.1 sq mi).[7] It shares the park with four other districts.

Climate

Chirang has a moderate climate. There is a lot of rainfall in the summer, and in the winter it is quite dry again. The average annual temperature for Chirang is 33° (degrees)and there is about 248 mm of rain in a year. It is dry for 282 days a year with an average humidity of 42% and an UV-index.[8]

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
190137,523—    
191148,731+2.65%
192161,885+2.42%
193171,977+1.52%
194182,972+1.43%
195190,797+0.91%
1961165,829+6.21%
1971247,085+4.07%
1991437,288+2.90%
2001433,061−0.10%
2011482,162+1.08%
source:[9]

According to the 2011 census Chirang district has a population of 482,162,[10] roughly equal to the nation of Suriname.[11] This gives it a ranking of 547th in India (out of a total of 640).[10] The district has a population density of 244 inhabitants per square kilometre (630/sq mi) .[10] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 11.26%.[10] Chirang has a sex ratio of 969 females for every 1000 males,[10] and a literacy rate of 64.71%. 7.33% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 7.29% and 37.06% of the population respectively.[10]

Religion

Religion in Chirang district (2011)[12]
Religion Percent
Hinduism
 
 66.50%
Islam
 
 22.66%
Christianity
 
 10.32%
Other or not stated
 
 0.52%

Hindus make up the majority, with 66.50%. Muslims are the second largest with 22.66%. Christians are third with 10.32%.[12]

Language

Languages of Chirang district (2011)[13]

  Boro (37.82%)
  Bengali (28.85%)
  Assamese (17.19%)
  Santali (4.72%)
  Rajbongshi (4.22%)
  Nepali (2.51%)
  Kurukh (1.11%)
  Hindi (1.06%)
  Others (2.52%)

According to the 2011 census, 37.83% of the population spoke Boro, 28.86% Bengali, 17.66% Assamese, 4.73% Santali, 4.22% Rajbongshi, 2.51% Nepali, 1.11% Kurukh and 1.06% Hindi as their first language.[13]

Transportation

Gelephu,India-Bhutan International border Gelephu, India-Bhutan crossing Gelephu is 41 km from Kajalgaon, the headquarter of Chirang, 7 km from Bongaigaon, 340 km from Siliguri.[14]

Tourism Gallery

Kalamati stream
Dark view Kalamati
kalamati colorful hill
Black stone
  • Mwnabili Pic spot
    Mwnabili Evening shadow
    Mwnabili picnic spot

Administration

The district has a headquarters in Kajalgaon. There are 479 revenue villages in the district.

Major Towns-

Township-

Villages-

Education

The district has numerous colleges and higher educational institute.[16]

Notable colleges-

All the college's and higher educational institutions are Affiliated to Bodoland University.

Industries

Rivers

Notable people

References¹

  1. ^ "Chirang district of BTR–". Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  2. ^ "Chirang District – Assam". chirang.assam.gov.in. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  3. ^ (Das 1998:50–51)
  4. ^ "While Bhutan generally enjoyed absolute possession of the eleven Bengal duars, its control over the seven Assam duars was not straightforward. Even during the Ahom rule, the Bhutanese did not gain full possession of the duar tracts. As a result, they are said to have harassed the population along the Assam frontiers with persistent incursions and raids."(Phuntsho 2013:394)
  5. ^ (Das 1998:33)
  6. ^ Law, Gwillim (25 September 2011). "Districts of India". Statoids. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  7. ^ Indian Ministry of Forests and Environment. "Protected areas: Assam". Archived from the original on 23 August 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  8. ^ "Climate chirang". Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  9. ^ Decadal Variation In Population Since 1901
  10. ^ a b c d e f "District Census Handbook: Chirang" (PDF). censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
  11. ^ US Directorate of Intelligence. "Country Comparison:Population". Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 1 October 2011. Suriname 491,989 July 2011 est.
  12. ^ a b "Table C-01 Population By Religion: Assam". census.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
  13. ^ a b "Table C-16 Population By Mother Tongue: Assam". censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
  14. ^ "Gelephu,India-Bhutan International". Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  15. ^ "Kalamati tourist". Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  16. ^ "List of Colleges in Chirang District". Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  17. ^ "Bongaigaon Refinery". Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  18. ^ "About the Awardee: Pwilao Basumatary". NDTV. Retrieved 31 July 2021.

References²

  • Das, Smriti (1998). Assam Bhutan relations with special reference to duars from 1681 to 1949 (PhD). Guwahati University. hdl:10603/67909. Archived from the original on 16 March 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  • Phuntsho, Karma (2013). The History of Bhutan. Penguin Books. ISBN 9781908323583.

External links

  • Chirang District Official Website
Places adjacent to Chirang district
  • v
  • t
  • e
State symbolsTopicsHistoryAdministrationDistricts and divisions
North Assam
Lower Assam
Central Assam
Upper Assam
Barak Valley
GeographyCultureArts, literature,
music and cinemaPeopleNotable surnames
Urban areas
  • Fairs and Festivals
  • Hindu Temples
  • History