Wikipedia

Sitamarhi district

This article is about the district. For its eponymous headquarters, see Sitamarhi.

Sitamarhi is one of the districts in the Mithila region of the Indian state of Bihar, India. Dumra is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district is a part of the Tirhut Division and is located along the border of Nepal.

Sitamarhi district
District of Bihar
Sitamarhi district
Janaki Kund, Sitamarhi
Janaki Kund, Sitamarhi
Location of Sitamarhi district in Bihar
Location of Sitamarhi district in Bihar
Country India
State Bihar
RegionMithila
DivisionTirhut
HeadquartersDumra
Government
 • Lok Sabha constituenciesSitamarhi
 • Vidhan Sabha constituenciesRiga, Bathnaha, Parihar, Sursand, Bajpatti, Sitamarhi, Runnisaidpur, Belsand
Area
 • Total
2,185 km2 (844 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)
 • Total
3,423,574
 • Density1,600/km2 (4,100/sq mi)
 • Urban
5.71 per cent
Demographics
 • Literacy53.53 per cent
 • Sex ratio899 females \ 1000 males
Time zoneUTC+05:30 (IST)
Major highwaysNH 104
HDI (2016)Increase 0.132[1] (low)
Websitesitamarhi.nic.in

History

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This place is considered as birthplace of Sita, the main character of the epic Ramayana and a temple dedicated to Sita lies near Sitamarhi town.[2] A Rock cut sanctuary of Mauryan period is found near Sitamarhi.[3]

In 1875, a Sitamarhi subdistrict was created within the Muzaffarpur district.[4] Sitmarhi was detached from Muzaffarpur and became a separate district as of 11 December 1972.[5] It is situated in the northern part of Bihar. The district headquarters is located in Dumra, five kilometers south of Sitamarhi.[clarification needed]

Sitamarhi district became a full-fledged district when it was split from Muzaffarpur district in 1972.[6] 1994 saw the split of Sheohar district from Sitamarhi.[6]

The district was a part of the Red Corridor.The Indian government recently declared it naxal-free.

Communal riots

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Sitamarhi district has a history of communal riots dating back to the partition of India.[7] In 1948, violence broke out in Belsand, following by riots in 1959 over issue of the Mahavir Flag; roughly 50 people, mostly Muslims, were killed. Further violence occurred around the issue of Durga Mela - these riots began after a false rumour that Muslims had slaughtered a cow, which was eventually found alive. Another riot in 1959 on the issue of cow slaughter killed 11 people, again mostly Muslims, and destroyed 200 houses. Subsequent riots occurred in 1967, 1968, 1969, and 1989.

Geography

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Sitamarhi district occupies an area of 2,294 square kilometres (886 sq mi),[8] comparatively equivalent to Australia's Groote Eylandt.[9]

It is bordered by Nepal to the north, Madhubani district to the east, Darbhanga and Muzaffarpur districts to the south, and Sheohar and East Champaran districts to the west.

It is situated on a flood plain. In August 2019, Sitamarhi district suffered heavy flooding.

Politics

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This section is transcluded from 17th Bihar Assembly. (edit | history)
District No. Constituency Name Party Alliance Remarks
Sitamarhi 23 Riga Moti Lal Prasad BJP NDA
24 Bathnaha Anil Kumar BJP NDA
25 Parihar Gayatri Devi Yadav BJP NDA
26 Sursand Dilip Kumar Ray JD(U) NDA
27 Bajpatti Mukesh Kumar Yadav RJD MGB
28 Sitamarhi Mithilesh Kumar BJP NDA
29 Runnisaidpur Pankaj Kumar Mishra JD(U) NDA
30 Belsand Sanjay Kumar Gupta RJD MGB

Block

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1. Dumra
2. Runni Saidpur
3. Parihar
4. Bathnaha
5. Sonbarsa
6. Bajpatti
7. Sursand
8. Riga
9. Nanpur
10. Pupri
11. Bairgania
12. Bokhara
13. Suppi
14. Belsand
15. Majorganj
16. [Parsauni]
17. Choraut

Economy

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It is one of the 38 districts in Bihar currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[10]

Education

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The following is a list of Schools in Sitamarhi, Bihar, India

  • Sitamarhi (M.P.) High School, Dumra, Sitamarhi
  • Golden bharti public school , sitamarhi
  • D.A.V. Public school, runnisaidpur
  • S.R Dav public school, pupri
  • Saraswati vidya mandir, Pupri
  • Sitamarhi Central school, Simra
  • Kendriya Vidyalaya Jawahar Nagar, Sutihara
  • Janki Vidya Niketan
  • Sacred Heart School
  • Thakur Yugal Kishore Singh College, Pratap Nagar
  • Saraswati Vidya Mandir, Ring bandh
  • N.S.D.A.V. Public School
  • Hellen's School Sitamarhi
  • Delhi Public School, Lagma
  • Brilliant Public School, Sitamarhi
  • R.O.S. Public School, Khairwa, Riga Road, Sitamarhi
  • Mathura High School
  • Sri Gandhi High School, Parihar
  • Lakshmi High School
  • Kamala–Girls High School
  • Idaa Dawatul Haque, Madhopur Sultanpur, Runni Saidpur
  • Jamia Islamia Quasmia Darululoom Balasath

Tourism

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Transport

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National Highway 77 connects the area to the Muzaffarpur district and Patna to the South. Sitamarhi has road connections to adjoining districts, of which the major examples are National Highway 77 and National Highway 227. It is situated on the Darbhanga Narkatiaganj railway line and has the largest railway station of the district. Another broad gauge track, running between Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi. Direct train services are available to places such as New Delhi, Kolkata, Varanasi, Hyderabad and Kanpur. State highways link it to the Madhubani (to the east) and Sheohar (to the west) districts. Railway lines connect Sitamarhi to Darbhanga in east, and to Muzaffarpur in the south and to Raxaul in the west. Sitamarhi has a railway junction. Sitamarhi railway station is on the Raxaul-Darbhanga rail route.

The nearest airport to Sitamarhi is the Darbhanga Airport which is about 70 km from Sitamarhi.

The Sitamarhi-Bhitthamore Road is important for religious reasons as it connects Janakpur, which houses a 200-year-old Janki Temple with Sitamarhi—considered to be the birth place of Goddess Sita.

National Highway 227 passes through Bhitthamore. Thus it is a gateway to Janakpur, Nepal and other parts of Sitamarhi & Madhubani.

 
NH227 signage board at Bhitthamore Border

Demographics

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Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1901782,557—    
1911807,936+0.32%
1921782,221−0.32%
1931835,055+0.66%
1941921,265+0.99%
1951999,655+0.82%
19611,158,546+1.49%
19711,323,793+1.34%
19811,627,716+2.09%
19912,013,796+2.15%
20012,682,720+2.91%
20113,423,574+2.47%
source:[11]
Religions in Sitamarhi district (2011)[12]
Religion Percent
Hinduism
 
 78.06%
Islam
 
 21.62%
Other or not stated
 
 0.32%

According to the 2011 census Sitamarhi district has a population of 3,423,574,[13] roughly equal to the nation of Panama[14] or the US state of Connecticut.[15] This gives it a ranking of 96th in India (out of a total of 640).[13] The district has a population density of 1,491 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,860/sq mi).[13] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 27.47%.[13] Sitamarhi has a sex ratio of 899 females for every 1000 males,[13] and a literacy rate of 53.53%. 5.56% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 11.85% and 0.09% of the population respectively.[13]

Languages of Sitamarhi district (2011)[16]

  'Other' Hindi (49.14%)
  Hindi (33.46%)
  Urdu (13.96%)
  Maithili (3.25%)
  Others (0.19%)

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 33.46% of the population spoke Hindi, 13.96% Urdu and 3.25% Maithili as their first language. 49.14% of the population recorded their language as 'Others' under Hindi.[16] The main language of the region is the Bajjika dialect of Maithili.

Notable people

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References

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  1. ^ "Development of Human Development Index at District Level for EAG States". March 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  2. ^ Chakrabarti, Dilip K (2001). Archaeological Geography of the Ganga Plain: The Lower and the Middle Ganga. New Delhi: Orient Blacksawn. p. 207. ISBN 9788178240169. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  3. ^ Sen, S N (1999). Ancient Indian History And Civilization. New Age International. p. 166. ISBN 9788122411980. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  4. ^ a b Official Website of the District and Civil Court of Sitmahri Archived 2010-05-25 at the Wayback Machine, Retrieved 26 May 2010
  5. ^ District Health Action Plan Archived 2011-11-25 at the Wayback Machine, National Rural Health Mission, Government of Bihar, Retrieved 25 May 2010
  6. ^ a b Law, Gwillim (25 September 2011). "Districts of India". Statoids. Archived from the original on 17 October 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  7. ^ Engineer, Asghar Ali (1992). "Sitamarhi on Fire". Economic and Political Weekly. 27 (46): 2462–2464. ISSN 0012-9976. JSTOR 4399118.
  8. ^ Srivastava, Dayawanti, ed. (2010). "States and Union Territories: Bihar: Government". India 2010: A Reference Annual (54th ed.). New Delhi, India: Additional Director General, Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Government of India. pp. 1118–1119. ISBN 978-81-230-1617-7.
  9. ^ "Island Directory Tables: Islands by Land Area". United Nations Environment Program. 18 February 1998. Archived from the original on 1 December 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2011. Groote Eylandt 2,285km2
  10. ^ Ministry of Panchayati Raj (8 September 2009). "A Note on the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme" (PDF). National Institute of Rural Development. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
  11. ^ Decadal Variation In Population Since 1901
  12. ^ "Table C-01 Population by Religion: Bihar". censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "District Census Handbook: Sitamarhi" (PDF). Census of India. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
  14. ^ US Directorate of Intelligence. "Country Comparison:Population". Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2011. Panama 3,460,462 July 2011 est.
  15. ^ "2010 Resident Population Data". U. S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2011. Connecticut 3,574,097
  16. ^ a b "Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: Bihar". censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
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26°36′00″N 85°29′00″E / 26.60000°N 85.48333°E / 26.60000; 85.48333

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