Sindri - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Overview

Sindri is an industrial township within the Dhanbad municipal limits of the Dhanbad District of Jharkhand state. Sindri was well known because of a large Fertilizer factory (Fertilizer Corporation of India - FCIL, closed in 2002) conceived here in the early industrialized India. It was also known for few other companies situated here such as Associated Cement Companies (ACC), Coal Mines of Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCo), which has been taken over by The Steel Authority of India Limited SAIL

Steel Authority of India Limited

Steel Authority of India Limited from 116950 The company's current chairman is C.S Verma. With an annual production of 13.5 million metric tons, SAIL is the 14th largest steel producer in the world....

and Projects and Development India Limited PDIL, formerly Planning & Development Division of FCIL and Coal Mines of The Bharat Coking Coal Limited, a subsidiary company of Coal India Limited

Coal India Limited

Coal India Limited is an Indian state-controlled coal company headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal, India and the world's largest coal miner with revenue exceeding 60,245 Crore . It was formerly owned entirely by the Union Government of India, under the administrative control of the Ministry of...

. Another subject of topographical importance is the Damodar river which acted both as source of water and electricity for the township. A hydro-power power project called Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) is located at Maithon and Panchet near Sindri. DVC supplies eco-friendly electricity to some its neighbouring states like West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa.

Origin of its name

As per the records of the now-closed fertilizer plant (FCIL), the name Sindri was the corrupt form of the word Sindoori (Vermilion). Also the meaning of sindri in Hindi is sundari. The small town is green and beautiful. The name is said to be given by the local tribals because of the vermilion coloured soil found here. Technically the type of soil available in the area is Laterite which has got a vermilion coloured or reddish hue.

The word Sindri is also said to be a part of the Mundari

Munda people

The Munda are tribal people of the Chota Nagpur Plateau region.They are found across Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Assam states of India, and into parts of Bangladesh...

lexicon. Mundari is a language spoken by the indigenous people who have lived in and around this place for a long time. It roughly translates into "Ridge" or "Frontier." There are some evidences available that centuries ago the Santhals, Mundas

Munda people

The Munda are tribal people of the Chota Nagpur Plateau region.They are found across Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Assam states of India, and into parts of Bangladesh...

and Hos inhabited the banks of the Sindhu River

Indus River

The Indus River is a major river which flows through Pakistan. It also has courses through China and India.Originating in the Tibetan plateau of western China in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar in Tibet Autonomous Region, the river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and...

. They were later forced to move to Eastern part of the country by the Aryan

Aryan

Aryan is an English language loanword derived from Sanskrit ārya and denoting variously*In scholarly usage:**Indo-Iranian languages *in dated usage:**the Indo-European languages more generally and their speakers...

Connectivity

Sindri is well connected by road and rail to the district headquarters of Dhanbad

Dhanbad

Dhanbad features climate that is transitional between a humid subtropical climate and a tropical wet and dry climate. Summer starts from last week of March and ends in mid-June. Peak temperature in summer can reach 47oC. Dhanbad also receives heavy rainfall...

and is very close to the Bokaro Steel City

Bokaro Steel City

Bokaro Steel City is one of the largest Industrial city situated in the State of Jharkhand, in India. Bokaro is the 48th cleanest city in India and second in Jharkhand after Jamshedpur and one of the best cities to live in India...

just 60 km (37.3 mi). The road between Sindri and Dhanbad

Dhanbad

has usually been in a state of disarray due to the regular movements of lorries loaded with fertilizer

Fertilizer

Fertilizer is any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. A recent assessment found that about 40 to 60% of crop yields are attributable to commercial fertilizer use...

, cement

Cement

In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...

, coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

and sand

Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

. There is a local train available between the place and the district headquarters many times a day. There are three small railway stations/halts in the 27 kilometre long broad gauge line between Sindri Town and Dhanbad Junction namely - Sindri Marshalling Yard, Sindri (Block Hut), Rakhitpur, Pradhan Khanta and Dokra Block Halt. Visitors wanting to reach the township should not confuse between Sindri (Block Hut) and Sindri Town railway station. The rail line connects Sindri (via Dhanbad) to the all important cities of India which includes 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...

, New Delhi

New Delhi

New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...

, Mumbai

Mumbai

Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

, Chennai

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

, Jabalpur, Patna

Patna

Paṭnā , is the capital of the Indian state of Bihar and the second largest city in Eastern India . Patna is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world...

, Ranchi

Ranchi

-Climate:Ranchi has a humid subtropical climate. However, due to its position and the forests around the city, it is known for its pleasant climate. Its climate is the primary reason why Ranchi was once the summer capital of the undivided State of Bihar...

, Bokaro

Bokaro Steel City

, Gwalior, Nagpur

Nagpur

Nāgpur is a city and winter capital of the state of Maharashtra, the largest city in central India and third largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune...

, Pune

Pune

Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...

Jammu

Jammu , also known as Duggar, is one of the three administrative divisions within Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state in India.Jammu city is the largest city in Jammu and the winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir...

, Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad also known as Karnavati is the largest city in Gujarat, India. It is the former capital of Gujarat and is also the judicial capital of Gujarat as the Gujarat High Court has its seat in Ahmedabad...

and regional industrial city of Jamshedpur with the most important train through Sindri being the Subarnarekha Express.

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...

(260 km (161.6 mi)), Ranchi

Ranchi

(180 km (111.8 mi)) and Patna

Patna

Paṭnā , is the capital of the Indian state of Bihar and the second largest city in Eastern India . Patna is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world...

(290 km (180.2 mi)) provide air connectivity to Sindri which connects it to Delhi

Delhi

Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...

, Mumbai

Mumbai

, Chennai

Chennai

, Nagpur

Nagpur

Nāgpur is a city and winter capital of the state of Maharashtra, the largest city in central India and third largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune...

, Kolhapur, Pune

Pune

, Nagpur

Nagpur

Nāgpur is a city and winter capital of the state of Maharashtra, the largest city in central India and third largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune...

, Pune

Pune

, Indore

Indore

Indore is one of the major city in India, the largest city and commercial center of the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India. Indore is located 190 km west of the state capital Bhopal. According to the 2011 Indian census, Indore city has a population of 1,960,631...

and Hyderabad.

History

Sindri was a place with rich reserves of flora and fauna. The place was initially occupied by the local tribals which later on attracted people from neighbouring states. The chapter of its industrialization started when it was selected as best option for a fertilizer factory due to its apt geographical conditions in the year 1944 by the Viceroy's Executive Council following recommendations submitted in November 1944 by a three members technical mission consisting of G S Gowing and J Rigg, both of Imperial Chemical Industries and T H Riley of the Association of British Chemical Plants Manufacturers, Britain for setting up a single large fertilizer factory to produce 3,50,000 tons Ammonium Sulphate per annum with Gypsum as raw material.

A separate project organisation was set by the Government of India in 1945 under the Chief Technical Advisor, Brig. M H Cox. To end the system of diarchy and to replace the same with one of autonomy, a company named Sindri Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited was formed under the Companies Act, which came into being in December 1951 as the first Public Sector Company, wholly owned and governed by the Government of India.

The production of Ammonium Sulphate in the factory was started on 31 October 1951 and the factory inaugurated in March 1952. In his inauguration speech, the then Prime Minister of India, Jawahar Lal Nehru said that he was not just inaugurating a fertilizer factory but he was inaugurating a temple of modern India. The Company Sindri Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited was merged in January 1961 with another fertilizer manufacturing company Hindustan Chemical and Fertilizers Limited floated by the Government of India in July 1959 to form a bigger Company the Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited.

The factory was first in India to produce Ammonium Sulphate (1951), Urea (1959), Ammonium Nitrate-Sulphate, commonly called the Double salt (1959) and was the first fertilizer factory to have its own captive power plant in 1951 and to introduce planning, research and development facilities in 1951. The raw materials used initially for its final products were gypsum, coal and naptha.

A number of new plants were added to the factory as need arose time to time. A rationalization scheme was completed in 1976 and a modernization project was commissioned in 1979 with product-mix of ammonia, urea, nitric acid, ammonium nitrate and ammonium bicarbonate with low-sulphur heavy stock/furnace oil and coal as basic raw materials.

In 1978, the Government of India decided to reorganise the Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited and the National Fertilizer Corporation Limited, which was incorporated for fertilizer projects at Panipat and Bhatinda into five new companies. The Sindri fertilizer factory continued with the Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited along with aged-old Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh) Plant and three coal based fertilizer projects at Talcher (Orissa), Ramagundem (Andhra Pradesh) and Korba (Chattisgarh) and newer plants and its Planning & Development Division were included in new companies, namely, Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizer Limited (RCF), National Pertilizers Limited (NFL), Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited (HFC) and Fertilizer (Planning & Development) India Limited (FPDIL), latter renamed as Projects and Development India Limited (PDIL).

The Sindri fertilizer plant operated consistently in profit till 1967-68 and again in 1969-70. But in spite of modernisation, the factory could not maintain profit thereafter even after exceeding rated (attainable) capacity mainly because of unscientific division of the company, higher production cost and comparatively lower sale price of fertilizers, mounting wage bills, higher maintenance expenditure due to ageing of plants, availability of raw materials of low specifications/quality large infrastructure cost, and eventually the Government of India decided to close of the factory operation in September 2002.

Though the fertilizer plant was, of late, not an eventual commercial success but it certainly provided a wonderful social environment for a many of generations of people during its existence. The Bihar Institute of Technology now renamed as Birsa Institute of Technology

Birsa Institute of Technology Sindri

BIT Sindri or Birsa Institute of Technology, Sindri is an engineering college in Jharkhand, India...

was also established to meet the growing demand of technology experts in this new industrialized area. The institute still remains as one of the premier institutions for technical education in the state of Bihar and Jharkhand.

Localities

The township of Sindri can be divided into three different areas. The first part was the residential area for the employees of FCIL and PDIL, the second part was occupied by the employees of ACC. The third part was occupied by the students and staff of erstwhile Bihar Institute of Technology. The division of the town in terms of localities can be done as - Domgarh, Rohrabandh, Saharpura, Manohartand, Gaushala and Rangamati.
Domghar was the older tribal village of Sindri, or better associated as the residence of Doms. Other localities like Rohrabandh, Domgarh, Shaharpura and Rangamati were all housing colonies for the employees of FCIL and PDIL. Gausala was the area just outside the campus of erstwhile Bihar Institute of Technology.

The Sindri township was well-planned township with lush green avenues all over with all possible amenities. It had limited power supply, drinking water supply not available from water treatment plant situated at Domgarh, spacious Quarters with lawns in front and space for garden in the backyard, trees like gulmohor, Kadam, Nim, Chhatim flanked the streets. A green town with enviable landscape in the seventies had 4- Dispensaries and a main Hospital with 206 beds, Kalyan Kendra - The Sports club, Officer's club, - A club for FCI executives, Rabindra Bhawan- a place for cultural conglomeration. Houses were laid out neatly in the form of layouts with ample open spaces for garden lovers. Uninterrupted Power supply was made available to the township locally produced in FCI Power Plants. Damodar river was the source of water for the entire township. A highly sophisticated water purification system was designed to supply water in the township. If Sindri was a temple of Modern India, its altar was the immaculately landscaped design and well staffed Hospital and other amenity centres.

Social life

The fertilizer plant brought together people from many different locations of India to work in various roles. Sindri was truly the mixing pot for various cultures and regions in India. It was not unusual to find a Bengali, a Bihari, a Sikh, a Tamil, a Kannada and a Jain family living in the same block of the town. The communal harmony and social acceptance which was instilled in youngsters growing up in the town made it much easier for them to adapt to a diverse culture. The greatest contribution of Sindri Fertilizer Plant may be in creating a generation of Indians born with multi-cultural values. Such multi-cultured adaptive people are now spread all over the world.

Shaharpura hosted the downtown shopping area where established dry goods merchants, tailors and butchers shared their space with farmers and other small time merchants. Every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday a lively open air market was held featuring fresh locally raised produce, poultry and locally crafted artefacts. Wandering minstrels and traditional medicine men from as far away as Afghanistan brought with them unexpected services and concoctions like low cost street side tooth extraction and "lizard oil" for arthritis sufferers that was brewed in-situ at low heat in wide mouthed vats of oil in which a few exotic looking lizards lounged around (unharmed) for the afternoon. Marathon bicyclists occasionally came to town to ride around in circles for days on end without setting their foot down. This form of theatre elevated everyday activities like shaving, showering and eating to heroic levels and got the salaried men of Sindri to spare some change for their more venturesome if less fortunate compatriots. The open air market was Sindri's window to the rest of India and brought a splash of colour to an otherwise pastel town.

A well stocked library was a great place to relax and spend time. The local club barber Moinuddin was a popular figure and was responsible for a quite a few latest haircuts in the town. With an ever ready smile and a latest gossip he was the most popular barber in town.

Sindri was also known for its active socially conscious Ladies Club and Vanita Samaj, two prominent organizations for the wives of the officers in Sindri.

Literature in different languages thrived in Sindri with organizations like Hindi Sahitya Parishad, Vidyapati Parishad, Urdu-Hindi Sangam and Anjuman-i-Urdu. Various Mushaira's (Urdu Poetry) and Kavi samelans were held in between 1965 and 1995. From a literature perspective, this was the glorious era of Sindri due to people like Mr. Gosai and Mr. Maheshwar Mishra who worked actively for conducting literary activities in the town, specially in the field of Hindi literature.

Theatre, Drama and Music had a significant role in the social lives and the Bengali community played a significant part in this. This part of Sindri life was heavily influenced by Calcutta (now Kolkata, just 250 km away). Ajanta Kala Mandir was a significant part of the children growing up in Sindri. Children learnt Kathak dance and Hindustani Classical music from Mrs. Ajanta Jha (TV and radio-artist,municipal councilor). Mrs Ajanta Jha is still running the institution but student-count has decreased immensely. In its days of glory, this institution had won many awards for Sindri.

The Kalyan Kendra (Welfare Centre) located between Rohrabandh and Shaharpura had a sprawling ground adjacent to it. The complex boasted of a traditional gym and a modern one too. Later a swimming pool was built as part of this complex. It was the venue for Independence Day and Republic Day parades and location of choice for staging plays and poetry readings by groups that believed that watching movies (along with chewing tobacco, imbibing tea, gambling and playing chess or cards,) was a bad habit. The one western influence that seeped into Kalyan Kendra was table tennis and of course carrom board. The Bengali literati staged night long yatras and durga pujas, the Bihari Literati (and those from Eastern UP) staged Kavi Samelans and observed Chaat, the Tamil literati arranged for Kacheris and staged Ayyappan Puja. Nehru would have been proud of the melting pot he had helped create. He would probably have been less proud of the unauthorized but quite popular late night transvestite cabarets that popped up in the wild. Now Goushala is also known as tower city because, all telecom companies of Sindri have tower in Goushala.

Educational institutes

In order to provide educational services to children of its employees and wards of other residents of Sindri and nearby localities, the FCIL management started the first school in Sindri in 1948. The management of the fertilizer factory ran seven Rajendra schools, - three high Schools affiliated to the Jharkhand Academic Council, four middle schools following curricula under the Jharkhand State Education Policy in Shaharpura and Domgarh areas of the Township, all named after Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first President of the independent India and one English medium integrated senior secondary school, Model High English School, affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education, New Delhi in Rohrabandh area of the Township. Rajinder High School for girls in Saharpura area were imparting education exclusively to girl students.

In addition to the FCIL schools, various private schools also provide excellent education to residents viz. DeNobili School (chain of schools run by Society of Jesuits in the Jharia coal belt), Lions Public School, DAV Public School (managed by the DAV Education Society, New Delhi) and Saraswati Sishu Vidya Mandir (managed by the Saraswati Vidya Mandir Trust, New Delhi). There are numerous preparatory schools as well, leading among which was Ravindra Parishad.

To provide for higher education FCIL established a co-educational degree college [Sindri College] with science, humanities and commerce streams, which is presently a constituent unit of the State run Vinoba Bhave University, Hazaribagh

Sindri has created so many engineers over the last half century through the prestigious engineering college, BIT Sindri. Founded in 1949, BIT Sindri is a premier technical institution offering undergraduate and postgraduate courses in various branches of engineering approved by All India Council of Technical Education, New Delhi. The institutes operates under the aegis of Department of Science & Technology, Govt. of Jharkhand, Ranchi. BIT Sindri was formerly known as Bihar Institute of Technology, Sindri which was renamed as Birsa Institute of Technology (BIT), Sindri after the creation of Jharkhand state in November 2000.

Sindri is the best place for the preparation of entrance examinations. The town is full of experienced teachers from all the fields. More than 50 coaching centres are running who helps students in preparation.

Current status

The Government of India in April 2007 decided in principle to revive the closed Sindri fertilizer factory subject to availability of Natural Gas as input. The GAIL India Limited has planned to lay Natural Gas pipeline from Jagdishpur to Haldia which would be laid at around 20-25 kilometres from the factory area. Coal Bed Methane (CBM) exploration in the vicinity and factory location amidst coal mines has further added the interest for revival activity of the Sindri fertilizer factory. In 2010, the Government of India has decided to revive the Sindri fertilizer complex with [{SAIL}] as strategic partner. A 5 million tonne integrated steel plant together with one 1.14 million tonne Gas based Urea fertilizer Plant and 500 MW Power Plant is being contemplated.

Geography

Sindri is located at 22.8°N 85.98°E. It has an average elevation of 178 metre

Metre

The metre , symbol m, is the base unit of length in the International System of Units . Originally intended to be one ten-millionth of the distance from the Earth's equator to the North Pole , its definition has been periodically refined to reflect growing knowledge of metrology...

s (583) feet

Demographics

India census

Census

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...

, Sindri had a population of 76,827. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Sindri has an average literacy rate of 68%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy rate is 77%, and female literacy rate is 57%. In Sindri, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

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