|
|
|
|
Darjeeling, is the northern most district of West Bengal state in eastern India. The district is famous for its beautiful hill station, Darjeeling, often referred as the queen of the Himalayas and Darjeeling tea and its aroma. Kalimpong, Kurseong and Siliguri, three other major towns in the district, are the sub divisional headquarters of the district. Mirik, another town of the district, has been developed as a lake resort in late 1970s. Geographically the district can be divided into two broad divisions, the hills and the plains. The entire hilly region of the district comes under Darjeeling Gorkha Autonomous Hill Council, an autonomous administrative body under the state Government of West Bengal. The council covers the three hill subdivisions of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong. The foot-hills of Darjeeling Himalayas, which coming under the Siliguri subdivision, is known as Terai. The Terai is the tract lying at the foot of the hills, which is bounded on the north by the mountains, on the south by the Purnia district of Bihar state, on the east by Jalpaiguri district and on the west by Nepal, the Himalayan kingdom. It has a length from north to south of 18 miles, and a breadth from east to west of 16 miles. 
HistoryThe name Darjeeling came from the Tibetan words, dorje (thunderbolt) and ling (place or land), means the land of the thunderbolt. In 1835 Darjeeling was annexed by the East India Company. Prior to that, Darjeeling formed a part of Sikkim and for a brief period of Nepal. Previously Darjeeling formed a part of dominions of the Raja of Sikkim, who had been engaged in an unsuccessful warfare against the Gorkhas. From 1780 the Gorkhas made several attempts to capture the entire region of Darjeeling. By the beginning of 19th Century, they had overrun Sikkim as far eastward as the Teesta River and had conquered and annexed the Terai. In the meantime, the British were engaged in preventing the Gorkhas from overrunning the whole of the northern frontier. The Anglo-Nepal war broke out in 1814, which resulted in the defeat of the Gorkhas and subsequently to the Sugauli Treaty in 1815. According to the treaty, Nepal had to cede all those territories which the Gorkhas had annexed from the Raja of Sikkim to the British East India Company. Later in 1817, through the Treaty of Titalia, the British East India Company reinstated the Raja of Sikkim (who was driven out), restored all the tracts of land between the Mechi River on the west and Teesta River to the Raja of Sikkim and guaranteed his sovereignty. The controversy did not end there. Later, in 1835, the hill of Darjeeling including an enclave of 138 square miles was gifted to the East India company. In November 1864, the treaty of Sinchula was executed in which the Bhutan Dooars with the passes leading into the hills and Kalimpong were ceded to the British. The Darjeeling district can be said to have assumed its present shape and size in 1866 is 1234 sq. miles. GeographyThe Darjeeling hill area is formed of comparatively recent rock structure that has a direct bearing on landslides. However, heavy monsoon precipitation is however a very common cause of the landslides. Soils of Darjeeling hill areas are extremely varied, depending on elevation , degree of slope, negetative cover and geolithology. The Himalayas serve as the source of natural resources for the population residing in the hills as well as in the plains. As human population expands in the hills, forests are being depleted for the extension of agricultural lands, introduction of new settlements, roadways etc. The growing changes coming in the wake of urbanization and industrialization leave deep impression on the hill ecosystem. The principal economy of Darjeeling Hill Area depends on tea production, horticulture, agriculture, forestry and tourism. The major portions of the forests are today found at elevations of 2000 meters and above. The area located in between 1000-2000 meters is cleared either for tea plantation or cultivation. About 30 percent of the forest covers found in the lower hills are deciduous. Evergreen forest constitutes only about 6 percent of the total forest coverage. Shora robusta remains the most prominent species of Tropical moist deciduous forest along with heavy under growth. Tista, Great Rangit, Mechi, Balason, Mahananda, Lish, Gish, Chel,Ramman, Murti and Jaldhaka are the important rivers of the district. SubdivisionsThe district comprises four subdivisions: Darjeeling Sadar, Kalimpong, Karseong and Siliguri. Darjeeling Sadar consists of Darjeeling city and three community development blocs: Darjeeling Pulbazar, Rangli Rangliot and Jorebunglow Sukiapokhri. Kalimpong subdivision consists of Kalimpong city and three community development blocs: Kalimpong — I, Kalimpong — II and Gorubathan. Karseong subdivision consists of Kurseong city and two community development blocs: Mirik and Kurseong. Siliguri subdivision consists of Siliguri city and four community development blocs: Matigara, Naxalbari, Phansidewa and Kharibari.[1] Darjeeling is the district headquarters. There are 17 police stations, 12 development blocks, 3 municipalities, 1 municipal corporation and 134 gram panchayats in this district.[2] Each subdivision contains one municipality each (Siliguri has a municipal corporation instead) along with community development blocs which in turn are divided into rural areas with gram panchayats,[3] and census towns.[4] In total there are 9 urban units: 3 municipalities, 1 municipal corporation, 1 notified area and 4 census towns. Also, Darjeeling city and Pattabong Tea Garden are part of a urban agglomeration. Darjeeling Sadar subdivision
Kalimpong subdivision
Kurseong subdivision
Siliguri subdivision
Assembly constituenciesThe district is divided into 5 assembly constituencies:[5]
Phansidewa constituency is reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST) candidates. Along with two assembly constituency from North Dinajpur district, the five assembly constituencies of this district form the Darjeeling (Lok Sabha constituency). Impact of delimitation of constituenciesAs per order of the Delimitation Commission in respect of the delimitation of constituencies in the West Bengal, the district will be divided into 6 assembly constituencies:[6]
Phansidewa constituency will continue to be reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST) candidates. Matigara-Naxalbari constituency will be reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC) candidates. Along with one assembly constituency from North Dinajpur district, the six assembly constituencies of this district will form the Darjeeling (Lok Sabha constituency). PeopleThe original inhabitants of the Darjeeling Hills were Lepcha or Rongpa (the ravine folks) as they prefer themselves to be known as. They are decidedly Mongolian in feature. The Khampas, another branch of the Lepchas, are warrior-like and more dashing than their docile cousins. The Khampas are recent immigrants from Tibet. The greater bulk of the people in the Hills are Gorkhas. They are industrious and enterprising as a race and speak various dialects. Among the population are also the Newars and the Sherpas. They are well known for their contributions to mountaineering. Also much in evidence in the Hills are the Bhutias. In the plains one would find several communities like Rai, Limbu, adivasi people from Chotanagpur and Santhal Parganas and a greater bulk of Bengali from Siliguri subdivision. See alsoReferences
External links
CommentsNo comments have been added. |
Switch Language
Popular PagesEmail this PageSyndicate
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
