Contai
Encyclopedia
Contai is head quarters of Contai subdivision
in Purba Medinipur district, West Bengal
, India
. There are three community development blocks in Contai.
, a tributary state of Orissa
ruled by the Hindu king Gopinath Pattnayak. In 1852 the East India Company of British India announced Contai as a Sub-Division consisting of six police stations - Contai, Khejuri, Ramnagar, Bhagwanpur, Egra and Patashpur. But the Government continued working from Negua. The Sub-Division that covered 912 square miles (2,362.1 km²) was the second largest in Bengal .
In 1863 when Nimak Mahal (the salt factory and business center) at Contai, in the teeth of a serious crisis, ceased functioning, the Sub-Divisional office was shifted from Negua to the abandoned Nimak Mahal building.
Bankim Chandra Chottopadhyay, the precursor of Bengali novel, worked as the Deputy Magistrate of Contai, though for a short period, from January 1860 to November of the year. In 2002, Medinipur District was divided into two parts – Purba Medinipur and Paschim Medinipur for the sake of administrative efficiency and expediency. Purba Medinipur consists of four Sub-Divisions – Tamluk, Contai, Egra and Haldia. Contai Sub-Division now consists of eight blocks of Ramnagar, Digha, Kanthi (Contai), Khejuri and Bhupatinagar.
and 30 km from the beach town Digha
.
, Contai had a population of 77,497. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Contai has an average literacy rate of 82%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 85% and, female literacy is 78%. In Contai, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Contai Subdivision is famous for its tourism, cashew
crop, fishing and processing industries. The land is highly fertile and therefore, agriculture is also the major driving force that sustains the middle-class economy of this region. However, sometimes agriculture is affected by frequent floods due to torrential Monsoon
rain and Cyclone
formed from depressions in the Bay of Bengal
.
Contai is well-connected by roads/highways with other nearby cities and towns like, Digha
, Dantan
, Kharagpur
, Midnapore
, Tamluk
, Haldia
, Howrah, and Kolkata
. The town is also connected by a rail link to Howrah/Kolkata
which is again extended to Digha
.The rail line is believed to have given a rise to the local economy. For local transportation, bus, mini-bus, taxi, and cycle rickshaw
s are available.
The opening of Central Bus-stand has eased the traffic congestion within the city to a great deal.
The region holds great potential in tourism but lamentably enough, no other place except Digha has been developed properly.
There are numbers of well-known schools and colleges in Contai. For higher education, besides the Prabhat Kumar College under the Vidyasagar University
, there is an Ayurvedic College, a Polytechnic Engineering College, a Veterinary College, etc. The literacy rate of Contai subdivision is as high as 95%.
List of schools in contai:1.Contai Kshetramohan Bidhyabhaban. 2.Contai High School
. 3.Contai Model Institution. 4.Contai Hindu Girls' School(H.S.). 5.Chandramani Brahmo Girls' School. 6.Rakhal Chandra Vidyapith. 7.Kishornagar Sachindra Siksha Sadan.8.Contai public school.9.KALIKAPUR HIGH SCHOOL
are the main tourist attractions in Contai Subdivision.
Contai subdivision
Contai subdivision , is a subdivision of the Purba Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India. It consists of Contai municipality and eight community development blocks: Kanthi–I, Kanthi–II, Kanthi–III, Khejuri–I, Khejuri–II, Ramnagar–I and...
in Purba Medinipur district, West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. There are three community development blocks in Contai.
History
Contai was originally a part of Hijli KingdomHijli Kingdom
The Hijli Kingdom existed between 1687 and 1886 in the eastern part of India. Initially Hijli was a small island village on the banks of the Rasulpur River as it flows to the Bay of Bengal. It developed into a port town in 1687. Slowly, it converted into a province or kingdom covering parts of...
, a tributary state of Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
ruled by the Hindu king Gopinath Pattnayak. In 1852 the East India Company of British India announced Contai as a Sub-Division consisting of six police stations - Contai, Khejuri, Ramnagar, Bhagwanpur, Egra and Patashpur. But the Government continued working from Negua. The Sub-Division that covered 912 square miles (2,362.1 km²) was the second largest in Bengal .
In 1863 when Nimak Mahal (the salt factory and business center) at Contai, in the teeth of a serious crisis, ceased functioning, the Sub-Divisional office was shifted from Negua to the abandoned Nimak Mahal building.
Geography
Contai is about 160 km away from KolkataKolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
and 30 km from the beach town Digha
Digha
Digha is a seaside resort town in the state of West Bengal, India. It lies in East Midnapore district and at the northern end of the Bay of Bengal. It is the most popular sea resort in the West Bengal....
.
Demographics
India censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, Contai had a population of 77,497. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Contai has an average literacy rate of 82%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 85% and, female literacy is 78%. In Contai, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Economy
Cashew
The cashew is a tree in the family Anacardiaceae. Its English name derives from the Portuguese name for the fruit of the cashew tree, caju, which in turn derives from the indigenous Tupi name, acajú. It is now widely grown in tropical climates for its cashew nuts and cashew apples.-Etymology:The...
crop, fishing and processing industries. The land is highly fertile and therefore, agriculture is also the major driving force that sustains the middle-class economy of this region. However, sometimes agriculture is affected by frequent floods due to torrential Monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
rain and Cyclone
Cyclone
In meteorology, a cyclone is an area of closed, circular fluid motion rotating in the same direction as the Earth. This is usually characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate anticlockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere of the Earth. Most large-scale...
formed from depressions in the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
.
Transportation
Digha
Digha is a seaside resort town in the state of West Bengal, India. It lies in East Midnapore district and at the northern end of the Bay of Bengal. It is the most popular sea resort in the West Bengal....
, Dantan
Dantan
Dantan I is an administrative division in the Kharagpur subdivision of Paschim Medinipur district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Dantan police station serves this block...
, Kharagpur
Kharagpur
Kharagpur is an industrial city in India. It is located in the Midnapore West district of the state of West Bengal.Kharagpur was chosen as the location of the first campus of the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology . The IITs are the premier technical education institutes in India and...
, Midnapore
Midnapore
Midnapore is the district headquarters of Paschim Medinipur district of West Bengal. It is situated on the banks of the Kangsabati River . This area had taken a pioneering role in India's freedom struggle...
, Tamluk
Tamluk
Tamluk is the district headquarters of Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal, India. Though there is some controversy, scholars have generally agreed that present day Tamluk is the site of the ancient city variously known as Tamralipta or Tamralipti...
, Haldia
Haldia
Haldia has a typical moderate climate with winter temperatures ranging from a low of around 7 degrees Celsius to a high of 22 degrees Celsius. Winters are chilly and is when the residents hold the Haldia Utsav festival. Summers can be very hot and humid. Usual summer temperatures in May, the...
, Howrah, and Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
. The town is also connected by a rail link to Howrah/Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
which is again extended to Digha
Digha
Digha is a seaside resort town in the state of West Bengal, India. It lies in East Midnapore district and at the northern end of the Bay of Bengal. It is the most popular sea resort in the West Bengal....
.The rail line is believed to have given a rise to the local economy. For local transportation, bus, mini-bus, taxi, and cycle rickshaw
Cycle rickshaw
The cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport; it is also known by a variety of other names such as velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab, cyclo, becak, trisikad, or trishaw or, simply, rickshaw which also refers to auto rickshaws, and the, now uncommon, rickshaws pulled by a person on foot...
s are available.
The opening of Central Bus-stand has eased the traffic congestion within the city to a great deal.
The region holds great potential in tourism but lamentably enough, no other place except Digha has been developed properly.
Education
Vidyasagar University
Vidyasagar University is a state-government administered, affiliating and research university located in Paschim Medinipur district of southern West Bengal, in India.-History:...
, there is an Ayurvedic College, a Polytechnic Engineering College, a Veterinary College, etc. The literacy rate of Contai subdivision is as high as 95%.
List of schools in contai:1.Contai Kshetramohan Bidhyabhaban. 2.Contai High School
Contai High School
Contai High School is the oldest school, established in 1857, in the sub-divisional town of Contai, Purba Medinipur, West Bengal, India. It is a semi-residential boys' Higher Secondary School....
. 3.Contai Model Institution. 4.Contai Hindu Girls' School(H.S.). 5.Chandramani Brahmo Girls' School. 6.Rakhal Chandra Vidyapith. 7.Kishornagar Sachindra Siksha Sadan.8.Contai public school.9.KALIKAPUR HIGH SCHOOL
Culture
Among many festivals in Contai, "Gandhi Mela" is the most popular. It is held during January/February each year. Many people from Contai and neighbouring subdivisions take part in "Gandhi Mela" not only for amusement but also for agricultural and industrial exhibitions. The Kapalkundala Temple, Hijli Mosque, Dariapur Light House, Rajbari, Junput, Shankarpur, and DighaDigha
Digha is a seaside resort town in the state of West Bengal, India. It lies in East Midnapore district and at the northern end of the Bay of Bengal. It is the most popular sea resort in the West Bengal....
are the main tourist attractions in Contai Subdivision.