- Darbhanga
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This article is about the municipality in India. For its namesake district, see Darbhanga district.
Darbhanga — city — Coordinates 26°10′N 85°54′E / 26.17°N 85.9°ECoordinates: 26°10′N 85°54′E / 26.17°N 85.9°E Country India State Bihar District(s) Darbhanga Parliamentary constituency Darbhanga Assembly constituency Darbhanga, Darbhanga Rural Population
• Density
3,921,971 (2011[update])
• 1,721 /km2 (4,457 /sq mi)
Sex ratio 910:1000 ♂/♀ Language(s) Hindi, Maithili, Urdu Time zone IST (UTC+05:30) Area
• 52 metres (171 ft)
Website http://darbhanga.bih.nic.in/ Darbhangā is a twin city and a municipal corporation and the capital city of the Darbhanga district and Darbhanga Division in the state of Bihar, India. It is one of the most important districts of North Bihar situated in the very heart of Mithilanchal.[citation needed] According to the latest 2011 census, the total population of the district is 3,921,971, of which about 91.30% live in rural areas. There are 511,125 people in scheduled castes, while there are only 841 people in scheduled tribes; together, they accounted for 15.53% of the total population. The total male population is 2,053,043, with the female population being 1,868,928. The population density is as high as 1,721 per km2 and the sex ratio is 910[clarification needed]. 290,889 families were below the poverty line, with 1,745,334 people (66.28% of the population).
Contents
History
The history of Darbhanga dates back to the Ramayana and Mahabharata periods; it is among the oldest cities of Bihar. According to the Vedic sources, the Videhas first migrated to the area from the banks of Saraswati in Punjab, they were guided to the east of Sadanira (Gandak River) by Agni, the God of Fire. Settlements were established and, thus, flourished the kingdom of the Videhas, the Selfless.
In the course of time Videhas came to be ruled by a line of kings called Janaks. In this line of kings there was a very famous king named Mithi. To commemorate his greatness the territory was named as Mithila. Another famous king was Janak Sirdhwaja, father of Sita. The legends speak of various learned men patronized by Janak Sirdhwaja, who himself was an erudite scholar. Prominent among them were Yagyavalkya, who codified the Hindu law in his Yagyavalkya Smriti and Gautam, who had various valuable philosophical treatises to his credit. King Janak was himself a great philosopher and his ideas have been eternally enshrined in the Upanishads, especially in the Brihad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣada.
Some scholars say that Darbhanga was named after Dar (Dwar) and Bhangaa which means broken gates. It is assumed that the gates of the Qila (at Qilaghat probably) were broken (by cannons or elephants) in 1326 AD when Tughlak forces attacked the last independent North Indian Hindu king Harisinghdeva (of the Karnaata Chalukya dynasty from Karnataka) who ruled over North Bihar and most of Nepal.
Historians guess that the capital of Harisinghdeva was situated near foothills of Himalayas, Haraahi pond in Darbhanga is named after Harisinghdeva and the pond Gangaasagar is named after his ancestor Gangadeva who was son of Naanyadeva, the founder of this dynasty; Naanyadeva was a chieftain of Chalukya king Vikramaditya-VI of Karnatak who had successfully invaded North India in the end of 11th century.
Hindus began to flock to this town since the beginning of 19th century when the Maharaja of Darbhanga shifted his residence to this town and was granted the title Maharaja by East India Company. It was the biggest town of North Bihar for centuries, but after Muzaffarpur was connected to broad gauge railway in mid-1970s, the latter overtook Darbhanga due to shift of trade, commerce, business and transport to some extent. Once part of the Brahman kingdom of Mithila, Darbhanga passed to the Tughlaks in the 14th century. The British assumed control in 1765.
Darbhanga was an ancient city of Mithila, which is an ancient cultural region of North India lying between the lower ranges of the Himalayas and the Ganges River. The Nepal border cuts across the top fringe of this region. The Gandak and Kosi River are rough western and eastern boundaries of Mithila.
It was seat of the Maharaja of Darbhanga. During Akbar's reign in the sixteenth century, a second Maithil Brahmin family came to rule as the Khandavala Dynasty. During this period, Akbar also planted 100,000 mango trees in Darbhanga, at a place now known as Lakhi Bagh[1] In British times, their estate, Darbhanga Raj, was the largest and richest of the great zamindari estates. Their capital was in Bhaur village in Madhubani, later shifted to the town of Darbhanga. They controlled most of Mithila until after Independence when the Republic of India abolished zamindari (Maharaja of Darbhanga was actually a zamindar entitled to add the title Maharaja in his name, besides the British title : KCIE (Knight Commander of Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire).
“ Maharajah Sir Lakhmishwar Singh, K.C.I.E., of Darbhanga, who was only in his forty-third year at the time of his death in 1898, was in every sense the best type of the Indian nobleman and landlord. He was the leading zamindar in India, where he owned no less than 2,152 square miles (5,570 km2) with a net yearly rental of 30 lakhs, and was the recognized head of the orthodox Hindu community. His philanthropy and his munificent contributions to all public movement won him the esteem of all classes and creeds. He took an active part in public life and enjoyed a high reputation as a progressive and liberal minded statesman. With but slight interruptions he was a member of the Supreme Legislative Council from the year 1883 until his death, and latterly he sat in that body as the elected representative of the non-official members of the Bengal Council.[2] ” The Maharaja of Darbhanga, Sir Kameshwar Singh was also an integral part of the Constituent Assembly of India and was instrumental in campaigning for retention of privy purses and land rights for rulers. He single handedly negotiated rights of various rulers and nawabs.
Languages and Religion
The languages spoken in this district are Maithili and Hindi and its variations, Urdu and its unique style spoken by locale Muslim Community. Other languages spoken by their respective speakers are Bengali, Marwari, Punjabi, Sindhi and Nepali.
Religion-wise breakup of population is indicated below as per 1991 census: Hindus: 19,55,068, Muslims: 8,55,429, Christians: 141, Sikhs: 198, Buddhists: 26, Jains: 27, Other religions and persuasions: 70.
Demographics
As of 2001 India census,[3] Darbhanga Town had a population of 269,138 while the district had a population of 3,295,789. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Darbhanga has an average literacy rate of 64%, which is higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 72% and, female literacy is 56%. In Darbhanga, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age. Darbhanga is a place where people of different languages and religions live. There are many lingual minorities which have contributed to the development of Darbhanga.
Climate
Climate data for Darbhanga Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Average high °C (°F) 23.1
(73.6)25.8
(78.4)31.0
(87.8)35.1
(95.2)35.0
(95.0)34.9
(94.8)32.5
(90.5)32.8
(91.0)32.5
(90.5)31.6
(88.9)29.0
(84.2)24.8
(76.6)30.68
(87.22)Average low °C (°F) 9.2
(48.6)11.0
(51.8)15.1
(59.2)19.1
(66.4)21.2
(70.2)22.9
(73.2)23.8
(74.8)24.2
(75.6)23.8
(74.8)21.2
(70.2)15.8
(60.4)10.6
(51.1)18.16
(64.68)Precipitation mm (inches) 13.0
(0.512)14.0
(0.551)9.0
(0.354)29.0
(1.142)76.0
(2.992)139.0
(5.472)353.0
(13.898)254.0
(10)193.0
(7.598)73.0
(2.874)6.0
(0.236)7.0
(0.276)1,166
(45.91)[citation needed] Education
Being a major centre of Education from decades in North Bihar, Darbhanga is always been flocked by students not only from own District but also from near-by areas. Education now-a-days has becomed a rapid growing Industry in Darbhanga citing its growing reputation as a major educational destination. There are 70 high schools, 312 middle schools and 1165 primary schools. There are also around 900 coaching centres/institutes like C. M. Science College, Darbhanga & Gyan Bharti Public School
References
- ^ "National Fruit". Govt. of India Official website. http://india.gov.in/knowindia/national_fruit.php.
- ^ Cotton, H.E.A., (1909/1980) Calcutta Old and New, pp 335-336, General Printers and Publishers Pvt. Ltd.
- ^ "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.
Cities and towns in Darbhanga Division Darbhanga district Darbhanga • LaheriasaraiMadhubani district Samastipur district See also Darbhanga division topicsCities and towns in other Divisions live:Darbhanga
Categories:- Cities and towns in Darbhanga district
- Darbhanga
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