Shyamnagar, West Bengal
Encyclopedia
Shyamnagar is a town in the district of North 24 Parganas, West Bengal
. Its considered as one of the major development hubs in the district. Its situated around 30 km away from Kolkata
.
at an elevation of 2 m (6.6 ft). It is spread linearly along the banks of the River Hooghly
in a north-south direction. Much of the city was originally a vast wetland, reclaimed over the decades to accommodate the city's burgeoning population. The remaining wetland, known as East Calcutta Wetlands
has been designated a "wetland of international importance" under the Ramsar Convention
.
Like the most of the Indo-Gangetic plain
s, the predominant soil and water type is alluvial. Quaternary sediments consisting of clay, silt, various grades of sand and gravel underlie the city. These sediments are sandwiched between two clay beds, the lower one at depths between 250 m (820 ft) and 650 m (2,133 ft) and the upper one ranging between 10 m (33 ft) and 40 m (131 ft) in thickness. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards
, the town falls under seismic zone-III
, in a scale of I to V (in order of increasing proneness to earthquakes) while the wind and cyclone
zoning is "very high damage risk", according to UNDP
report.
, Shyamnagar under Barrackpur sub div. had a population of 441,956. Males constitute 55% of the population and females 45%. Shyamnagar has an average literacy rate of 72%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 78% and female literacy of 66%. 9% of the population is under 6 years of age.
The jute mills drew in a large labour force from the neighbouring states of Bihar and Orissa, as well as eastern Uttar Pradesh, quite often forming an overwhelming majority of the population in the area, living in shanty town
s and bustees dotting the mill area.
-:HISTORY OF SHYAMNAGAR MULAJORE KALIBARI:-:
Relatives of Rabindranath Tagore had set up Mulajor Kalibari at Shyamnagar in North 24 Parganas and it is unknown to many people. Visit the temple beside Hooghly River that is located in a very eye soothing natural scene. One of the priests Asit Ghatak said the temple was constructed on 31 Baishak in 1219 Bengali year around 200 years ago beside Hooghly River even before Dakhineswar Kali temple was set up by Rani Rasmoni Devi. Six priests are engaged for offering puja to goddess Kali and 65-year-old Ghatak is one of the temple priests. “No dedicated book had been written on this temple and gradually history is fading away but we know relatives of Rabindranath Tagore constructed this temple, said the priest.
Srijit Thakur is the surviving member of the Thakur family whose ancestors set up the temple. He has one son and daughter, live in ‘Rajbari’at Pathuriaghata Street near Natunbazar in Kolkata.Once upon a time Rabindranath Tagore’s ancestor Khitish Kusari came from Jessore in Bangladesh to West Bengal and his next generation was Bhattanaryan and later Dinanath Kusari. Dinanath’s son Panchanan got the title thakur since then his family member used to write the title Thakur instead of Kusari,” said Ghatak. Jairam Thakur (Kusari) was latter generation had four sons- Anandiram, Nilmoni, Darpanarayan and Gobindaram. Prince Dwarakanath Thakur was the next generation of Anandiram, whose son was Debendranath and Rabindranath was his eighth son. Rabindranath however became “bramho” and did not believe in idol worshipping. It had not been known whether he ever visited the temple. Gopimohan Thakur, the son of Darpanarayan founded the temple. Gopimohan had two sons Prsanna Kumar and Harakumar and daughter Brahmamoyee.
Prasanna Kumar had one son Pradut Kumar and Harakumar had Jatindramohan. Surviving member Srijit Thakur is the son of Prabirendra mohan, who was the son of Pradut Kumar. According to local tale that the present place of the Kali temple was occupied of ‘Nandi’(caste) and ‘Pirali’ so experienced priest from ‘Bhatpara toll (Sanskrit educational institution) ’ used to refuse offering puja to the goddess Mulajore Shyamnagar Kali as a result priests were brought from Bankura, Burdwan and other places. Later a Sanskrit College was set up by the king Gopimohan Thakur as a matter of pride and to make erudite Sanskrit students. Students were accommodated in this college hostel they used to take Prasad in the temple as a lunch and dinner. Ramkumar Chattopadhya, elder brother of Ramakrishna Dev was the student of this college. But that building was dilapidated and Rabindra Bhawan was set up by municipality replacing the college. “History is very interesting. But we are mostly depressed when the Sanskrit College, a piece of history was wiped out,” said Amit ghatak son of Asit ghatak
Municipality by the side of this Kali Temple.A fair called Poush Mela
is organised every year in Poush Mash according to Bengali calendar and between December and January in English calendar. The place becomes holy with the blessings of Goddess Kali and Ganga.
Other than the Mulajore Kalibari there are two other famous KaliBari(Kali Temple) situated in Shyamnagar. They are Chowrangi Kalibari and Sidhheswari Kalibari.Another famous Kali temple here is Rakshakali temple.
and sports especially football.It is proud of the two exponents, Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty in classical music and Subroto Bhattacharya in football. Other prominent footballers from Shyamanager are ex-olympian Kesto Pal, Mahabir Prasad & Asoklal Banerjee, Prasanta Mitra, Sumit Mukherjee etc.An annual book fair is held in the KaliBari grounds during the first week of January. Notable bengali writer Troilakyonath Mukhopadhyaya had his origin from Rahuta in Shyamnagar.
The most Prominent Clubs of Shyamnagar are:
Tarun Dal,
Sabuj Sangha,
Yuger Pratik,
Tarun Sangha,
Probhati Sangha,
Nabajiban Sangha.
Local and passenger trains are available every now and then to go to Kolkata.Sealdah-Ranaghat and Barddhaman(via Bandel) main railway line crosses from the heart of the town.The famous MAITRI express, connecting not just two cities Kolkata to Dhaka but two countries, passes from this town.
AEROPLANES :
Dum Dum Airport, better known as Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport
is less than 30 k.m. away from here.
BUSES :
It is served by two major roadways of the district - Ghoshpara Road and Kalyani Expressway. Both of them are well connected with the capital city of west bengal,KOLKATA.
Few bus services available from various locations are:
1. Route no. 85 - a private bus service connecting Kanchrapara on one side to Barrackpore on the other.
2. WBSTC - a government bus service connecting shyamnagar to Garia (South Kolkata).
3. WBSTC - a government bus service connecting shyamnagar to Technopolis (From Naihati).
4. CSTC - an another bus service connecting Shyamnagar to Digha (From Habra Bus Depot).
FERRY :
Regular ferry services are available on river hooghly from Shyamnagar to Bhadreshwar (Chandanagore) at a regular interval of 15 minutes.
or English
as the medium of instruction
, though Hindi
is also used. The schools are affiliated with any of the following — West Bengal Board of Secondary Education
, the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE)
, and the National Institute of Open School (NIOS)
. Under the 10+2+3 plan, after completing their secondary education, students typically enroll in a 2 year junior college
(also known as a pre-university) or in schools with a higher secondary facility affiliated with West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education
, ICSE or CBSE. Students usually choose from one of three streams — liberal arts
, commerce
, or science
, though vocational streams are also available. Upon completing the required coursework, students may enrol in general or professional degree programmes.
List of some Reputed Schools in Shyamnagar :
1. St. Augustines' Day School ;
2. Shyamnagar Kantichandra High School ;
3. Shyamnagar Balika Vidyalaya (HS) ;
4. Jawharlal Nehru Smrity Vidya Mandir ;
5. Rishi Aravinda School(Boys) ;
6. Rishi Aravinda Balika Vidyalaya (Girls) ;
7. Swami Vivekananda High school ;
8. Mulajore Sitanath Pathsala High School ;
9. Authpur High (H/S) School ;
10. Authpur Balika Vidyalaya (HS) ;
11. Bimalyameeye Vidyamandir ;
12. Authpur National Model H.S School ;
13. Mandalpara Boys' High School ;
14. Mandalpara Girls' High School ;
Contact No.: (033) 2586-5486, (+91) 9433062233
2. Sri Arjun Singh,MLA-Bhatpara AC,Chairman Bhatpara Municipality,
Contact No.: (033) 2581-2301, (+91) 9830069908
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...
. Its considered as one of the major development hubs in the district. Its situated around 30 km away from 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...
.
Geography
Shyamnagar is located at 22.83°N 88.37°E in the Ganges DeltaGanges Delta
The Ganges Delta is a river delta in the South Asia region of Bengal, consisting of Bangladesh and the state of West Bengal, India. It is the world's largest delta, and empties into the Bay of Bengal...
at an elevation of 2 m (6.6 ft). It is spread linearly along the banks of the River Hooghly
River Hooghly
The Hooghly River or the Bhāgirathi-Hooghly, is an approximately long distributary of the Ganges River in West Bengal, India. It splits from the Ganges as a canal in Murshidabad District at the Farakka Barrage...
in a north-south direction. Much of the city was originally a vast wetland, reclaimed over the decades to accommodate the city's burgeoning population. The remaining wetland, known as East Calcutta Wetlands
East Calcutta Wetlands
The East Calcutta Wetlands, also known as the East Kolkata Wetlands, are a complex of natural and human-made wetlands lying east of the city of Calcutta , West Bengal in India. The wetlands cover 125 square kilometres, and include salt marshes and salt meadows, as well as sewage farms and settling...
has been designated a "wetland of international importance" under the Ramsar Convention
Ramsar Convention
The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, i.e., to stem the progressive encroachment on and loss of wetlands now and in the future, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural,...
.
Like the most of the Indo-Gangetic plain
Indo-Gangetic plain
The northern Plains also known as the Indo - Gangetic Plain and The North Indian River Plain is a large and fertile plain encompassing most of northern and eastern India, the most populous parts of Pakistan, parts of southern Nepal and virtually all of Bangladesh...
s, the predominant soil and water type is alluvial. Quaternary sediments consisting of clay, silt, various grades of sand and gravel underlie the city. These sediments are sandwiched between two clay beds, the lower one at depths between 250 m (820 ft) and 650 m (2,133 ft) and the upper one ranging between 10 m (33 ft) and 40 m (131 ft) in thickness. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards
Bureau of Indian Standards
The Bureau of Indian Standards is the national Standards Body of India working under the aegis of Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Government of India. It is established by the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986 which came into effect on 23 December 1986...
, the town falls under seismic zone-III
Earthquake hazard zoning of India
The Indian subcontinent has a history of devastating earthquakes. The major reason for the high frequency and intensity of the earthquakes is that India is driving into Asia at a rate of approximately 47 mm/year. Geographical statistics of India show that almost 54% of the land is vulnerable...
, in a scale of I to V (in order of increasing proneness to earthquakes) while the wind 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...
zoning is "very high damage risk", according to UNDP
United Nations Development Programme
The United Nations Development Programme is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP operates in 177 countries, working with nations on their own solutions to...
report.
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...
, Shyamnagar under Barrackpur sub div. had a population of 441,956. Males constitute 55% of the population and females 45%. Shyamnagar has an average literacy rate of 72%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 78% and female literacy of 66%. 9% of the population is under 6 years of age.
The jute mills drew in a large labour force from the neighbouring states of Bihar and Orissa, as well as eastern Uttar Pradesh, quite often forming an overwhelming majority of the population in the area, living in shanty town
Shanty town
A shanty town is a slum settlement of impoverished people who live in improvised dwellings made from scrap materials: often plywood, corrugated metal and sheets of plastic...
s and bustees dotting the mill area.
History
During the rule of Raja Krishna Chandra of Kirshna nagar, the king gifted the village called MULAJORE along with a title of ROY GUNAKAR to his court poet Bharat Chandra Roy. In memory of Bharat Chandra Roy Gunakar there is a very old and historic library named Bharat Chandra Library. It is situated very close to the railway station.-:HISTORY OF SHYAMNAGAR MULAJORE KALIBARI:-:
Relatives of Rabindranath Tagore had set up Mulajor Kalibari at Shyamnagar in North 24 Parganas and it is unknown to many people. Visit the temple beside Hooghly River that is located in a very eye soothing natural scene. One of the priests Asit Ghatak said the temple was constructed on 31 Baishak in 1219 Bengali year around 200 years ago beside Hooghly River even before Dakhineswar Kali temple was set up by Rani Rasmoni Devi. Six priests are engaged for offering puja to goddess Kali and 65-year-old Ghatak is one of the temple priests. “No dedicated book had been written on this temple and gradually history is fading away but we know relatives of Rabindranath Tagore constructed this temple, said the priest.
Srijit Thakur is the surviving member of the Thakur family whose ancestors set up the temple. He has one son and daughter, live in ‘Rajbari’at Pathuriaghata Street near Natunbazar in Kolkata.Once upon a time Rabindranath Tagore’s ancestor Khitish Kusari came from Jessore in Bangladesh to West Bengal and his next generation was Bhattanaryan and later Dinanath Kusari. Dinanath’s son Panchanan got the title thakur since then his family member used to write the title Thakur instead of Kusari,” said Ghatak. Jairam Thakur (Kusari) was latter generation had four sons- Anandiram, Nilmoni, Darpanarayan and Gobindaram. Prince Dwarakanath Thakur was the next generation of Anandiram, whose son was Debendranath and Rabindranath was his eighth son. Rabindranath however became “bramho” and did not believe in idol worshipping. It had not been known whether he ever visited the temple. Gopimohan Thakur, the son of Darpanarayan founded the temple. Gopimohan had two sons Prsanna Kumar and Harakumar and daughter Brahmamoyee.
Prasanna Kumar had one son Pradut Kumar and Harakumar had Jatindramohan. Surviving member Srijit Thakur is the son of Prabirendra mohan, who was the son of Pradut Kumar. According to local tale that the present place of the Kali temple was occupied of ‘Nandi’(caste) and ‘Pirali’ so experienced priest from ‘Bhatpara toll (Sanskrit educational institution) ’ used to refuse offering puja to the goddess Mulajore Shyamnagar Kali as a result priests were brought from Bankura, Burdwan and other places. Later a Sanskrit College was set up by the king Gopimohan Thakur as a matter of pride and to make erudite Sanskrit students. Students were accommodated in this college hostel they used to take Prasad in the temple as a lunch and dinner. Ramkumar Chattopadhya, elder brother of Ramakrishna Dev was the student of this college. But that building was dilapidated and Rabindra Bhawan was set up by municipality replacing the college. “History is very interesting. But we are mostly depressed when the Sanskrit College, a piece of history was wiped out,” said Amit ghatak son of Asit ghatak
Overview
Shyamnagar is situated on the east bank of river Ganges. A famous Kali Temple is situated in between Shyamnagar railway station and river Ganga is known as Mulajore Kalibari. An auditorium named Rabindra Bhavan was built by BhatparaBhatpara
Bhatpara is a city and a municipality under Jagatdal police station of Barrackpore subdivision in North 24 Parganas district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is situated on the bank of Hoogly river. It is mainly known for its rich traditions in the field of Sanskrit learning...
Municipality by the side of this Kali Temple.A fair called Poush Mela
Poush Mela
Poush Mela is an annual fair and festival that takes place in Santiniketan, in Birbhum District in the Indian state of West Bengal, marking the harvest season. Commencing on the 7th day of the month of Poush, the fair officially lasts for three days, although vendors may stay up until the month-end...
is organised every year in Poush Mash according to Bengali calendar and between December and January in English calendar. The place becomes holy with the blessings of Goddess Kali and Ganga.
Other than the Mulajore Kalibari there are two other famous KaliBari(Kali Temple) situated in Shyamnagar. They are Chowrangi Kalibari and Sidhheswari Kalibari.Another famous Kali temple here is Rakshakali temple.
Culture
The place is rich in cultureCulture of Bengal
The culture of Bengal encompasses cultures in the Bengal region, which today consists of the independent nation of Bangladesh , and the Indian federal republic's constitutive state of West Bengal. The two geographical entities share many cultural traits which root from their historical...
and sports especially football.It is proud of the two exponents, Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty in classical music and Subroto Bhattacharya in football. Other prominent footballers from Shyamanager are ex-olympian Kesto Pal, Mahabir Prasad & Asoklal Banerjee, Prasanta Mitra, Sumit Mukherjee etc.An annual book fair is held in the KaliBari grounds during the first week of January. Notable bengali writer Troilakyonath Mukhopadhyaya had his origin from Rahuta in Shyamnagar.
The most Prominent Clubs of Shyamnagar are:
Tarun Dal,
Sabuj Sangha,
Yuger Pratik,
Tarun Sangha,
Probhati Sangha,
Nabajiban Sangha.
Transport
TRAINS :Local and passenger trains are available every now and then to go to Kolkata.Sealdah-Ranaghat and Barddhaman(via Bandel) main railway line crosses from the heart of the town.The famous MAITRI express, connecting not just two cities Kolkata to Dhaka but two countries, passes from this town.
AEROPLANES :
Dum Dum Airport, better known as Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport is an airport located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, serving the greater Kolkata metro area. The airport was originally known as Dum Dum Airport before being renamed in the honour of Subhas Chandra Bose...
is less than 30 k.m. away from here.
BUSES :
It is served by two major roadways of the district - Ghoshpara Road and Kalyani Expressway. Both of them are well connected with the capital city of west bengal,KOLKATA.
Few bus services available from various locations are:
1. Route no. 85 - a private bus service connecting Kanchrapara on one side to Barrackpore on the other.
2. WBSTC - a government bus service connecting shyamnagar to Garia (South Kolkata).
3. WBSTC - a government bus service connecting shyamnagar to Technopolis (From Naihati).
4. CSTC - an another bus service connecting Shyamnagar to Digha (From Habra Bus Depot).
FERRY :
Regular ferry services are available on river hooghly from Shyamnagar to Bhadreshwar (Chandanagore) at a regular interval of 15 minutes.
Education
Shyamnagar's schools are either run by the state government or by private organisations. Schools mainly use BengaliBengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
or English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as the medium of instruction
Medium of instruction
Medium of instruction is a language used in teaching. It may or may not be the official language of the country or territory. Where the first language of students is different from the official language, it may be used as the medium of instruction for part or all of schooling. Bilingual or...
, though Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
is also used. The schools are affiliated with any of the following — West Bengal Board of Secondary Education
West Bengal Board of Secondary Education
The West Bengal Board of Secondary Education is the West Bengal state government administered autonomous examining authority for the Standard 10 examination of West Bengal, India. The examination for the 10th standard is called the Madhyamik Pariksha or secondary examination...
, the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE)
Indian Certificate of Secondary Education
The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education or ICSE examination is an examination conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, a private, non-governmental board of school education in India, for class 10, i.e., grade 10...
, and the National Institute of Open School (NIOS)
National Institute of Open Schooling
The National Institute of Open Schooling , is the Board of Education for open schools in India. It was established by the Ministry of Human Resource Development of the Government of India in 1989 to provide education inexpensively to remote areas...
. Under the 10+2+3 plan, after completing their secondary education, students typically enroll in a 2 year junior college
Junior college
The term junior college refers to different educational institutions in different countries.-India:In India, most states provide schooling through 12th grade...
(also known as a pre-university) or in schools with a higher secondary facility affiliated with West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education
West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education
West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education is the West Bengal state government administered autonomous examining authority for the Standard 12 examination of West Bengal, India...
, ICSE or CBSE. Students usually choose from one of three streams — liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
, commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
, or science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, though vocational streams are also available. Upon completing the required coursework, students may enrol in general or professional degree programmes.
List of some Reputed Schools in Shyamnagar :
1. St. Augustines' Day School ;
2. Shyamnagar Kantichandra High School ;
3. Shyamnagar Balika Vidyalaya (HS) ;
4. Jawharlal Nehru Smrity Vidya Mandir ;
5. Rishi Aravinda School(Boys) ;
6. Rishi Aravinda Balika Vidyalaya (Girls) ;
7. Swami Vivekananda High school ;
8. Mulajore Sitanath Pathsala High School ;
9. Authpur High (H/S) School ;
10. Authpur Balika Vidyalaya (HS) ;
11. Bimalyameeye Vidyamandir ;
12. Authpur National Model H.S School ;
13. Mandalpara Boys' High School ;
14. Mandalpara Girls' High School ;
Administrative Personnels
1. Sri Parash Dutta, MLA-Jagaddal Assembly Constituency,Contact No.: (033) 2586-5486, (+91) 9433062233
2. Sri Arjun Singh,MLA-Bhatpara AC,Chairman Bhatpara Municipality,
Contact No.: (033) 2581-2301, (+91) 9830069908