Margherita, Assam

Margherita
—  city  —
Margherita Location of Margherita in Assam and India
Coordinates	27°17′N 95°41′E / 27.28°N 95.68°E / 27.28; 95.68Coordinates: 27°17′N 95°41′E / 27.28°N 95.68°E / 27.28; 95.68
Country	India
State	Assam
District(s)	Tinsukia
Population	23,836 (2001[update])
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 162 metres (531 ft)

Please see Margherita for disambiguation.

Margherita is a census town in Tinsukia district in the Indian state of Assam. The name Margherita actually derives from the Italian queen and dates back to the late 19th century as a token appreciation for the Italian Chief Engineer of a rail section Chevalier R Paginini who supervised the construction. Margherita was famous for its collieries much developed by the British. Coal India Ltd is the biggest industry here apart from the beautiful tea gardens.

Geography

Margherita is located at 27°17′N 95°41′E / 27.28°N 95.68°E / 27.28; 95.68.^[1] It has an average elevation of 162 metres (531 feet). The Dihing River flows through Margherita.

Demographics

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[2] Margherita had a population of 23,836. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Margherita has an average literacy rate of 76%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 81%, and female literacy is 71%. In Margherita, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age. The main communities of the area includes Ahoms, Moran, Nepali, Bihari, Singpho, Muttock etc.

Etymology

Before getting its existing name, Margherita was known as Ma-Kum(shingfo, meaning the abode of all tribes). The name has its roots in the Dehing river bridge which was built around 1880 by a team led by an Italian Engineer Chevalier Roberto Paganini who worked for the Assam Railways & Trading Company Ltd. From historical records, it is not quite clear whether the directors of that company renamed the place as a lasting tribute to that Italian engineer or was it Paganini himself, out of patriotism, christened the place in honour of Queen Margherita, the reigning Queen of Italy.

Religion and Festivals

The population is a mix of Assamese, Bengali, Nepali as well as those who migrated from Bihar, Uttarpradesh and other south Indian states to work in the coal mines. A major chunk of the population are Hindus followed by Muslims and Christians. In the interior parts, some people follow Buddhism.The main festival in margherita is Bihu, celebrated in the month of January(magho bihu),April(bohag bihu) and kati bihu in sep-oct.madam-me-fi is also celebrated in the month of January.other than that as this place has a multi- cultural heritage Durga puja, Bhai tika, holi Diwali,chat puja, buddha purnima, Idd, Christmas is celebrated with much fun fare.

Transport

Margherita is well connected with all the major towns and districts both by road and rail. Margherita has a railway station of its own and Tinsukia railway station is just 45 kilometres, about an hour's drive from the town. With Rajdhanis and other long-distance trains running from Tinsukia, Margherita is well connected to the rest of India. Margherita serves as a transit point to many parts of Arunachal Pradesh and buses ply regularly to and from Changlang, Miao and Jairampur. Tourists, while going to Arunachal, can get their passes from the office of A.P.S.T. Assam state transport corporation and a number of other private buses are also available from there. The nearest airport is in Dibrugarh, 96 km away.

Economy

North Eastern Coalfields operates from here and has its head quarter in the town.

Politics

Margherita is part of Dibrugarh (Lok Sabha constituency).And the current M.P from this region is Mr. Paban Singh Ghatowar.It is also 124th Legislative Assembly constituency and is presently represented by Sri Pradyut Bordoloi.^[3]

References

1. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Margherita
2. ^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. http://web.archive.org/web/20040616075334/http://www.censusindia.net/results/town.php?stad=A&state5=999. Retrieved 2008-11-01. 
3. ^ "List of Parliamentary & Assembly Constituencies". Assam. Election Commission of India. http://archive.eci.gov.in/se2001/background/S03/AS_ACPC.pdf. Retrieved 2008-10-06.