Puranigudam
Encyclopedia
Puranigudam is a small to medium size area in Nagaon district
, Assam
, India
. The area of Puranigudam consists of several small villages named Nortom Gaon, Harimishra Satra, Deuri Gaon, Halowa Gaon, Potani Gaon, Bankathal Gaon, Bora Chuk, Hati Gaon, Bisahya Chuk, Khaund chuk,Nalbora Chuk, Na-alimur, Kashari Gaon, Garakur, Baruah Chuk, Mikirhat Pani Gaon etc. The main commercial center of Puranigudam, also known as Keyan Patti (most of the shops were established by the businessmen from the Marwar
area of Rajasthan
, India; who were called Keyans in Assamese. The name Keyan Patti comes from that. Patti means inhabitation) is located closest to Garamur. Puranigudam is encircled by the Rupahi in the north, Barhampur and Nagaon town in the west, Chalchali in the south and Rongagorah and Chamaguri in the east. The river Kolong
flowes through the upper half of the area; and the National Highway no. 37 runs parallel to the river, which is the main link road of the area to all other parts of the state and the country. The area is almost in the middle of the Nagaon district and situated in higher elevation than the district headquarter.
The place is also important for its strategic location, strong cultural background and mixed demography. The area is approx 12 km away from the present district headquarter. During the days of Assam movement Assam Movement, a company of Central Reserve Police Force was stationed in the Bapuji Bhawan (a community hall established by the renowned Khaund-family, used mainly for cultural activities). The area comes under Barhampur constituency (of Assam Legislative Assembly), from where till now no candidate from Indian national Congress had won the general election. Asom Gana Parishad Asom Gana Parishad
candidates Dr Girindra Kumar Baruah two-times Assam chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta
(now in AGP(P)Asom Gana Parishad (Pragatisheel))had been winning for this constituency since 1985 general election.
Puranigudam is the entry point to the beautiful tourist spot of Champawati water-fall.
All the communities are living in peace since long, and there had been no record of any ethnic violence in the area. Even during the religious violence, that broke out in the entire country, after the Babri Mosque demolition Babri Mosque#Demolition of Babri Masjid, the Hindu and Muslims lived without any violence.
There are few Marshy areas, some private fresh-water ponds and the Kolong river, as the source of the fishes, which are also mostly used to fulfill the local demands. Few broiler-chicken farms, established in private basis, also supply some part of the demand for animal protein. Although there are few small piggeries, there are no large scale egg-laying chicken farms and dairy farms.
In last few decades, in line with the entire state, with increase in population and unemployment, the economy of the area is getting less that better and living standard of people is also noticeably declining.
(Singer), late Radhakanta Barua (Social activist), late Nilaranjan Barthakur (Academician and founding principal of Puranigudam RKB Higher Secondary School), late Nipa Barua (film director and actor), Chandra Mudoi (film director) etc. are, to name a few of them. Besides, Late Nabakanta Barua
(poet) also spent his childhood in Baruah Chuk. Late Dr Bhabendra Nath Saikia
(author of award-winning fictions, director of award winning films) also spent quite some time in the Bhimar Gaon, which was his mother's native place.
In recent times, Bapon Chandra Barooah (National Award Winner Academician), Phanindranath Gayan (Noted Writer), Pranjit Borah (Poet), Chittaranjan Borah (Cultural activist and Director, Kolong Kala Kendra), Deepak Borah (Cultural activist) and few others are doing their best to keep the cultural heritage of the area bright and shining.
There are also some non-academic training centers, permanently of temporarily run by some non-profit/ non-govt. organizations. Anirban Drawing School, Gyanjyoti Drawing School, Rudra Barua Music Academy etc. are some such centres, to name a few; but most of them are not in progressive stage.
There was a public sponsored drinking water supply scheme established long before in Na-alimur. It was almost defunct for quite some time; which has been renovated recently, and has started working. But the exact mechanism of its functioning is not known to all.
Nagaon district
Nagaon is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. As of 2011 it is the most populous district of Assam .-History:...
, Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
, 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...
. The area of Puranigudam consists of several small villages named Nortom Gaon, Harimishra Satra, Deuri Gaon, Halowa Gaon, Potani Gaon, Bankathal Gaon, Bora Chuk, Hati Gaon, Bisahya Chuk, Khaund chuk,Nalbora Chuk, Na-alimur, Kashari Gaon, Garakur, Baruah Chuk, Mikirhat Pani Gaon etc. The main commercial center of Puranigudam, also known as Keyan Patti (most of the shops were established by the businessmen from the Marwar
Marwar
Marwar is a region of southwestern Rajasthan state in western India. It lies partly in the Thar Desert. In Rajasthani dialect "wad" means a particular area. The word Marwar is derived from Sanskrit word 'Maruwat'. English translation of the word is 'The region of desert'., The Imperial Gazetteer...
area of Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
, India; who were called Keyans in Assamese. The name Keyan Patti comes from that. Patti means inhabitation) is located closest to Garamur. Puranigudam is encircled by the Rupahi in the north, Barhampur and Nagaon town in the west, Chalchali in the south and Rongagorah and Chamaguri in the east. The river Kolong
Kolong
The Kolong river is a tributary of the Brahmaputra River, which divert out from the Brahamputra river in Jakhalabandha , and meets the same at Kolongpar near Guwahati. The tributary is approx. 250 km in length, and flows through the districts of Nagaon, Morigaon and Kamrup; on the way, several...
flowes through the upper half of the area; and the National Highway no. 37 runs parallel to the river, which is the main link road of the area to all other parts of the state and the country. The area is almost in the middle of the Nagaon district and situated in higher elevation than the district headquarter.
History
The name Puranigudam was derived from the Assamese words Purani (means old)and Gudam (means storehouse/ godown). During the colonial period, the headquarters of the district was initially established in Puranigudam, because of easy access to the place through the Kolong river, and for storing of different goods, storehouses were constructed in the river banks; so the name. Later the district headquarter was shifted to present Nagaon.Importance
The place is well-known in the entire state. The most notable pride of the area is the permanent statue of goddess Durga, made from Bael wood. As the folklore goes, more than a century ago, the Durga Puja (worship of the goddess Durga; celebrated in Assam and West Bengal, during the month of October/ November) was celebrated every year in the area and a folk-artist (Lerela Khanikar) used to make the statue of the goddess with mud. After the celebration was over after four days, according to the ritual, the statue was immersed into the river. This made the artist very sad, and so he made the permanent statue with the Bael wood, which would not be immersed after the celebration was over, but a symbol of the statue (a banana tree) would only be immersed. The statue would be used next year again after re-painting. The same statue is still being used for the yearly celebrations, and few years back the statue had crossed 100 years.The place is also important for its strategic location, strong cultural background and mixed demography. The area is approx 12 km away from the present district headquarter. During the days of Assam movement Assam Movement, a company of Central Reserve Police Force was stationed in the Bapuji Bhawan (a community hall established by the renowned Khaund-family, used mainly for cultural activities). The area comes under Barhampur constituency (of Assam Legislative Assembly), from where till now no candidate from Indian national Congress had won the general election. Asom Gana Parishad Asom Gana Parishad
Asom Gana Parishad
Asom Gana Parishad is a state political party in Assam, India. The AGP was formed after the historic Assam Accord of 1985 when Prafulla Kumar Mahanta was elected as the youngest chief minister of the country...
candidates Dr Girindra Kumar Baruah two-times Assam chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta
Prafulla Kumar Mahanta
Prafulla Kumar Mahanta was the leader of the Assam Movement, a former Chief Minister of Assam and belongs to the Asom Gana Parishad , a major political party in the Indian state of Assam...
(now in AGP(P)Asom Gana Parishad (Pragatisheel))had been winning for this constituency since 1985 general election.
Puranigudam is the entry point to the beautiful tourist spot of Champawati water-fall.
Demography and inter-religious relationship
The population of the area mainly consists of ethnic Hindu (>60%) and Muslims. There are several other smaller communities also (like the businessmen from Marwar, who are living with peace for last 40–50 years, and most of them speak Assamese; some Ahom population towards south; some tea-tribes and others). The Muslim population is mostly aggregated in Potani Gaon, Na-alimur and main the main business centre.All the communities are living in peace since long, and there had been no record of any ethnic violence in the area. Even during the religious violence, that broke out in the entire country, after the Babri Mosque demolition Babri Mosque#Demolition of Babri Masjid, the Hindu and Muslims lived without any violence.
Economy
The economy of the area is mainly dependent on rain fed agriculture. Few efforts had been made earlier for mechanical irrigation; but no significant progress had been made partly due to political apathy and partly due to lack of suitable water source (it was tried with water from Kolong, but it became a failure after the river was closed). The main crop is rice, grown only once in a year, due to rain fed nature of the cultivation; and that too with traditional low-yielding verities, due to lack of awareness among farmers. Sugarcane, Jute, pulses, Rapeseed and Mustard, some vegetables and fruits are also grown, mostly for local consumption. Due to the presence of large number of omnivorous wild monkeys, extent of cultivation of vegetables and fruits are also decreasing.There are few Marshy areas, some private fresh-water ponds and the Kolong river, as the source of the fishes, which are also mostly used to fulfill the local demands. Few broiler-chicken farms, established in private basis, also supply some part of the demand for animal protein. Although there are few small piggeries, there are no large scale egg-laying chicken farms and dairy farms.
In last few decades, in line with the entire state, with increase in population and unemployment, the economy of the area is getting less that better and living standard of people is also noticeably declining.
Culture and important personalities
The place is culturally rich and had been breeding ground for several noted persons of the state. Late Narendra Nath Hazarika, a well known freedon figher was born and borught up at Bisaya Chuk village of Puranigudam. He studied in Presidency College, Calcutta (now Kolkota) and made valuabale contributions in Indis's Freedom Struggle.He was a famous cultural icon of the area.To pay a rich tribute his statue was erected at Bapuji Hall & Library, Puranigudam.Late Debakanta Barua (brother of Nabakanta Baruah, please see below; poet and former General Secretary, Indian National Congress (I)), Late Rudra BaruaRudra Baruah
Luit Konwar Rudra Baruah was one of the foremost music pioneers of Assam. He was a actor, composer, lyricist, singer and musician. He served with Govt...
(Singer), late Radhakanta Barua (Social activist), late Nilaranjan Barthakur (Academician and founding principal of Puranigudam RKB Higher Secondary School), late Nipa Barua (film director and actor), Chandra Mudoi (film director) etc. are, to name a few of them. Besides, Late Nabakanta Barua
Nabakanta barua
Navakanta Barua , also known as Ekhud Kokaideu, was a prominent Assamese novelist and poet.-Early life and education:...
(poet) also spent his childhood in Baruah Chuk. Late Dr Bhabendra Nath Saikia
Bhabendra Nath Saikia
Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was a novelist, short story writer and film director from Assam. He had a PhD in Nuclear Physics from the University of London and later taught at Gauhati University. He won many literary awards, including Sahitya Academy , and was also recognised with the Padma...
(author of award-winning fictions, director of award winning films) also spent quite some time in the Bhimar Gaon, which was his mother's native place.
In recent times, Bapon Chandra Barooah (National Award Winner Academician), Phanindranath Gayan (Noted Writer), Pranjit Borah (Poet), Chittaranjan Borah (Cultural activist and Director, Kolong Kala Kendra), Deepak Borah (Cultural activist) and few others are doing their best to keep the cultural heritage of the area bright and shining.
Accessibility
Puranigudam is easily accessible from the district headquarters and any other part through the Nation Highway no. 37; which is also said to be the artery of Assam, stretching through the state from one to the other end. The nearest airport is LGB airport, in Guwahati (~130 km away). There is a train station in Puranigudam and one can catch the morning inter-city train to Guwahati, which goes back in the evening from Guwahati.Education
There are several educational institutes in Puranigudam. The oldest and most famous one must be the Puranigudam Radha Kanta Barooah Higher Secondary School, established in 1930. This is the examination centre for the class X and XII board examination and hosts science and arts streams in the higher secondary section. Ex. Principal of this school, Mr. Bapon Chandra Barooah served record twenty five years as the Principal of this school and received National and State Awards. Most of the older generation known and unknown people have undoubtedly studied in this school. Dr Birinchi Kumar Barua College (only arts faculty), Puranigudam Girls' High School, Halowagaon Girls' High School etc. are some other pold educational institutions. There is no institutes for technical and professional education in Puranigudam; although there are few vocational training institutes.There are also some non-academic training centers, permanently of temporarily run by some non-profit/ non-govt. organizations. Anirban Drawing School, Gyanjyoti Drawing School, Rudra Barua Music Academy etc. are some such centres, to name a few; but most of them are not in progressive stage.
Health care
There is a Primary Health Center in Puranigudam business center, run by the state government. There are also few physicians practicing privately; but there are no full fledged hospital/ nursing home in the area.There was a public sponsored drinking water supply scheme established long before in Na-alimur. It was almost defunct for quite some time; which has been renovated recently, and has started working. But the exact mechanism of its functioning is not known to all.