'Jharkhand' (
Hindi: झारखंड,
Bengali: ঝাড়খণ্ড,) is a
state in eastern
India. It was carved out of the southern part of
Bihar state on
15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of
Bihar to the north,
Uttar Pradesh and
Chhattisgarh to the west,
Orissa to the south, and
West Bengal to the east.
The industrial city of
Ranchi is its
capital. Some of the other major cities and industrial centres are
Jamshedpur,
Bokaro,
Sindri,
Giridih,
Gumla,
Deoghar,
Daltonganj,
Hazaribagh and
Dhanbad once a part of
West Bengal.
Jharkhand is also popularly known as ''Vananchal'' (''vana'' plus ''anchal'', meaning ''land of woods''). Jharkhand is famed for its mineral wealth and forestry products.
Jharkhand is now improving much faster than its northern counterpart (Bihar). Its poverty rate declined 2% per year from 1994-2002. Unlike some other Indian states, Jharkhand's poverty reduction was faster in the rural areas than in the urban areas. Its percentage of children immunized improved from 9% in 1998-99 to nearly 50% now according to UNICEF. Jharkhand has made primary education so accessible that 95% of children ages 6-11 are enrolled in school as opposed to 56% in 1993-94.
History
The demand for a separate Jharkhand state can be traced back to the early
1900s, when
Jaipal Singh, an Indian
Hockey captain and
Olympian, suggested the idea of a separate state consisting of the southern districts of Bihar. The idea did not become a reality, however, until
August 2,
2000, when the
Parliament of India passed the Bihar Reorganisation Bill to create the state of Jharkhand, carving 18 districts out of Bihar to form Jharkhand state on
15 November,
2000. It became the 28th state of India.
However, according to some historians there was already a distinct geo-political, cultural entity called Jharkhand even before the period of
Magadha Empire. According to a legend, Raja Jai Singh Deo of Orissa was accepted as the ruler of Jharkhand by its people in the
13th century. The Singh Deo's of Orissa have been very instrumental in the early history of Jharkhand. The local tribal heads had developed into barbaric dictators who could govern the province neither fairly nor justly. Consequently, the people of this state approached the more powerful rulers of Jharkhand's neighbouring states who were perceived to have a more fair and just governance. This became the turning point in the history of the region wherein rulers from Orissa moved in with their armies and created states that were governed for the benefit of the people and involved their participation, thus ending the barbarism that had marked the region for centuries. The good tribal rulers continued to thrive and were known as the Munda Rajas, and exist to this day. (These are regions which are still semi- autonomous, the degree of autonomy depending on the size of each specific Munda Raja's domain.) Later, during the
Mughal period, the Jharkhand area was known as Kukara. After the year
1765, it came under the control of the
British Empire and became formally known under its present title, "Jharkhand" - the Land of "Jungles" (forests) and "Jharis" (bushes). Located on
Chhota Nagpur Plateau and
Santhal Parganas, has evergreen forests, rolling hills and rocky plateaus with many places of keen beauty like
Lodh Falls.
The subjugation and colonization of Jharkhand region by the
British East India Company resulted in spontaneous resistance from the local people. Almost one hundred years before
India’s First War of Independence (
1857),
adivasis of Jharkhand were already beginning what would become a series of repeated revolts against the
British colonial rule:
★
1772-
1780 Paharia revolt
★
1780-
1785 Tilka Manjhi led the tribal revolt and managed to injure the British army Chief. In 1785, Tilka Manjhi was hanged to death in
Bhagalpur
★
1795-
1800 Tamar revolt
★
1795-
1800 Munda revolt under the leadership of Vishnu Manaki
★
1800-
1802 Munda revolt under the stewardship of Dukhan Manaki of Tamar
★
1819-
1820 Munda revolt in
Palamu under the leadership of Bhukan Singh
★
1832-
1833 Khewar revolt under the leadership of Bhagirath, Dubai Gosai and Patel Singh
★
1833-
1834 Bhumji revolt under the leadership of Ganga Narain of Birbhum
★
1855 Santhals waged war against the permanent settlement of
Lord Cornwallis
★
1855-
1860 During late
1850s Sidhu had accumulated about ten thousands Santhal to run parallel government against British rule. The basic purpose was to collect taxes by making his own laws. British Government had announced an award of Rs. 10,000 to arrest Sidhu and his brother Kanhu
★
1856-
1857 Martyr Sahid Lal, Vishwanath Shahdeo, Sheikh Bhikhari, Ganpatrai and Budhu Veer led a movement against the British Government during
India’s First War of Independence,
1857, also called
Sepoy Mutiny
★
1874 Kherwar Movement shot into fame under the leadership of Bhagirathi Manjhi
★
1895-
1900 Movement against the
British raj led by
Birsa Munda (born
15 November,
1875). Birsa Munda was captured by British forces and declared dead on
9 June,
1900 in Ranchi Jail, due to
Cholera, according to records of the British colonial government.
All of these uprisings were quelled by the British through massive deployment of troops across the region.
In
1914 the Tana Bhagat resistance movement started, which gained the participation of more than 26,000
adivasis, and eventually merged with
Mahatma Gandhi's
Satyagraha and
Civil Disobedience movement.
Geography and climate
Most of the state lies on the
Chota Nagpur Plateau, which is the source of the
Koel,
Damodar,
Brahmani,
Kharkai, and
Subarnarekha rivers, whose upper watersheds lie within Jharkhand. Much of the state is still covered by forest. Forest preserves support populations of
tigers and
Asian Elephants.
Soil content of Jharkhand state mainly consist of soil formed from disintegration of rocks and stones, and soil composition is further divided into:
#
Red soil, found mostly in the
Damodar valley, and
Rajmahal area
#
Micacious soil (containing particles of mica), found in Koderma,
Jhumeritilaiya,
Barkagaon, and areas around the
Mandar hill
#
Sandy soil, generally found in Hazaribagh and Dhanbad
#
Black soil, found in Rajmahal area
#
Laterite soil, found in western part of Ranchi, Palamu, and parts of
Santhal Parganas and
Singhbhum
Flora and fauna
Jharkhand has a rich variety of
flora and
fauna. The National Parks and the Zoological Gardens located in the state of Jharkhand present a panorama of this variety.
Betla National Park (Palamu), 25 km from
Daltonganj covers an area of about 250 square kilometres. The national park has a large variety of wild life like
tigers,
elephants,
bisons locally called gaurs,
sambhars, hundreds of
wild boar and 15 to 20 feet long
python, herds of spotted
deer (
cheetals),
rabbits and
foxes. The mammalian fauna to be seen at Betla National Park also include
langurs,
rhesus,
blue bull and
wild boars. The lesser mammals are the
porcupine,
hare,
wild cats,
honey badgers,
jackals,
Malabar giant
squirrel,
mongoose,
wolf,
antelope, etc. In
1974, the park was declared
Project Tiger Reserve.
Part of the reason for the variety and diversity of flora and fauna found in Jharkhand state may be accredited to the
Project Tiger Reserve of
Palamu, which is abode to hundreds of species of flora and fauna
[1], as indicated within brackets: mammal (39), Snakes (8), Lizards (4), Fish (6), Insects (21), Birds (170), seed bearing Plants and Tress (97) , Shrubs and Herbs (46), Climbers, Parasites and semi-Parasites (25), and Grasses and Bamboo (17).
The Hazaribagh Wildlife Sanctuary, with scenic beauties, 135 km from Ranchi, is set in an ecosystem very similar to Betla National Park of Palamu.
One
Zoological Garden is also located about 16 km from Ranchi, and a number of mammalian fauna have been collected there for visitors.
Demographics
Jharkhand has a population of 26.90 million, consisting of 13.86 million males and 13.04 million females. The
sex ratio is 941 females to 1000 males. The population consists of 28% tribals, 12%
Scheduled Castes and 60% others. There are 274 persons for each square kilometer of land. However, the
population density varies considerably from as low as 148 per square kilometer in Gumla district to as high as 1167 per square kilometer in Dhanbad district.
Jharkhand has remained a home to a number of tribal communities since time immemorial. In fact, in some of the districts of Jharkhand, the tribal population predominates, the non tribal one. Jharkhand has 32 primitive tribal groups. These are the
Asur,
Baiga,
Banjara,
Bathudi,
Bedia,
Binjhia,
Birhor,
Birjia,
Chero,
Chick-Baraik,
Gond,
Gorait,
Ho,
Karmali,
Kharwar,
Khond,
Kisan,
Kora,
Korwa,
Lohra,
Mahli,
Mal-Paharia,
Munda,
Oraon,
Parhaiya,
Santal,
Sauria-Paharia,
Savar,
Bhumij,
Kol and
Kanwar.
The geographical area now comprising Jharkhand was previously part of Bihar. The area has witnessed migration of people from the adjoining areas of Bihar and West Bengal for last several decades. Industrial and mining centres like Jamshedpur, Dhanbad and Ranchi have attracted people from all parts of India. Jharkhand's poverty rate, while still high by Indian standards, has declined by 2% per year between the period of 1994-2002.
Hinduism is the majority religion in the state, with 68.6% of the population practicing the faith.
[1]. Islam is followed by 13.8% of the population, followed by Christianity with 4.1% of the population.
[1] Jainism and
Buddhism are religions present in the state as well, all with numbers less than 0.5%.
[1] Sikhism is also practiced in the state with 0.3% of the population. 13.0% of the population practices religions classified as 'Other' on the census as well, which is practiced by the tribal population.
[1] The tribal communities of Jharkhand have their own spiritual beliefs, commonly called ''Sarna''. During the colonization process the tribal religious beliefs were looked down upon as pagan and inferior. Through overt and covert conversions and other influences at assimilation, the Christian missionaries have contributed much for the demolition of many of the tribal ''Sarna'' beliefs.
Economy
Jharkhand's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $14 billion at current prices. Born out of partition from old Bihar state in 2000, Jharkhand produces about 40% of the output of the old Bihar state. Since it is rich in minerals, the state per capita income is likely to increase in the coming years.
Industry
Jharkhand has a concentration of some of the country’s highly industrialized cities such as Jamshedpur, Ranchi, Bokaro and Dhanbad. It also has several firsts in India, including:
★ Largest
fertilizer factory of its time in India (since shut down) at
Sindri
★ First
Iron & steel factory at Jamshedpur
★ Largest Steel plant in Asia, Bokaro steel plant.
★ Biggest
explosives factory at Gomia
★ First
methane gas well
On the other hand, it has several towns and innumerable villages with sub-standard
civic amenities. Urbanization ratio is only 22.25% and the per capita annual income is only US$ 90.
Jharkhand also has immense
mineral resources: minerals ranging from (ranking in the country within bracket) from
iron ore (1st),
coal (3rd),
copper ore (1st),
mica (1st),
bauxite (3rd),
Manganese,
limestone,
china clay,
fire clay,
graphite (8th),
kainite (1st),
chromite (2nd),
asbestos (1st),
thorium (3rd),
sillimanite,
uranium (Jaduguda mines, Narwa Pahar) (1st) and even
gold (Rakha mines) (6th) and
silver and several other minerals. Large deposits of coal and iron ore support concentration of
industry, in centers like
Jamshedpur,
Bokaro and Ranchi. Tata Steel, a ''S&P CNX 500'' conglomerate has its corporate office in Jharkhand. It reported a gross income of Rs.204,910 million for 2005.
Government and politics
The state is headed by a
Governor, who is appointed by the
President of India. However, the real executive power rests with the
Chief Minister and the cabinet. The political party or the coalition of political parties having majority in the
Legislative Assembly forms the Government.
The administrative head of the State is called Chief Secretary, under whose jurisdiction a hierarchy of officials drawn from the
Indian Administrative Service / State Civil Services function.
The
judiciary is headed by a
Chief Justice and Jharkhand has a separate
High Court, located in Ranchi.
Jharkand is one of the thirteen states in which the
Naxalite rebels have considerable influence.
On 5 March 2007,
Sunil Mahato, a member of the national parliament was shot dead by
Naxalite rebels while watching a football match on the Hindu festival of Holi near Kishanpur, some 160km (100 miles) east of state capital,
Ranchi.
[2]
Chief Ministers of Jharkhand
Administrative districts
The state was formed with 18 districts, which were formerly part of Bihar Some of these districts were reorganized to form 4 new districts, namely, Latehar, Saraikela Kharsawan, Jamtara and Sahebgunj. Presently, the state has 22 districts
Districts of Jharkhand:
#
Ranchi
#
Lohardaga
#
Gumla
#
Simdega
#
Palamu
#
Latehar
#
Garhwa
#
West Singhbhum
#
Seraikela Kharsawan
#
East Singhbhum
#
Dumka
#
Jamtara
#
Sahebganj
#
Pakur
#
Godda
#
Hazaribagh
#
Chatra
#
Koderma
#
Giridih
#
Dhanbad
#
Bokaro
#
Deoghar
''See also:
District-wise Map''
Language, literature & culture
Jharkhand is home to a number of languages belonging to three major language families.
Indo-Aryan languages include
Angika,
Bhojpuri,
Khortha,
Nagpuri,
Sadri,
Hindi,
Urdu,
Oriya and
Bengali. Jharkhand is also home to the
Munda languages,
Kurmali,
Korku,
Santhali,
Mundari,
Bhumij,
Kharia and
Ho, and the
Dravidian languages Korwa,
Oraon and
Paharia (
Malto). The primary languages are Hindi and English. Around 42% of the state population speaks Bengali.
Social infrastructure
Health
On account of salubrious climate, Jharkhand, particularly its capital Ranchi, has been like a health resort. As far back as
1918, facilities were set up for treatment of
mentally challenged – Central Institute of Psychiatry
[3], Ranchi.
In certain areas of Jharkhand, poverty and consequent malnutrition have given rise to diseases like
tuberculosis (TB). In fact, TB has assumed
epidemic proportions in certain areas of the state. For management and treatment of such diseases, organizations like
Ramakrishna Mission through Ramakrishna Mission Tuberculosis Sanatorium
[4] (set up in
1948), Ranchi, has been doing exemplary work, and supplementing the efforts of the Government and other agencies. Likewise, in the field of treatment of cancer, Tata Main Hospital, Jamshedpur,
[5] is rendering pioneering work.
Although several public and private health facilities are available in the state, overall infrastructure for dispensing health related services require improvements. An exception is the famous Tata Motors Hospital which is an example of a ISO 14001 and 18001 certified hospital with DNB teaching facilities.
Education
The literacy rate in Jharkhand is '59.13%' (2001) and female literacy rate is still lower at '49.38%'.
Jharkhand has a network of government and privately run schools, although standards of teaching vary considerably from place to place, as also from school to school.
Jharkhand has made primary education so accessible that 95% of children ages 6-11 are enrolled in school as opposed to 56% in 1993-94, so this will likely improve literacy a great deal.
Schools
The medium of instruction in schools is English with Hindi/Sanskrit as second language. After 10 years of schooling, students can join 2 years of Intermediate course (or +2 courses) in Arts, Science and Commerce. This is followed by 3 years of degree courses (graduation)or 4 years of Engineering degree.
Universities
Institute Main Building, BIT Mesra
A number of non-technical colleges are located in bigger cities as well as in small towns. The Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in particular, offer popular 3 year diploma courses.
Jharkhand has 3 Universities:
Ranchi University, Ranchi;
Sidhhu Kanhu University, Dumka and
Vinoba Bhave University, Hazaribagh.
Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi,
National Institute of Technology, Jamshedpur (Formerly known as RIT, Jamshedpur), and the
Indian School of Mines (ISM Dhanbad) are famous engineering colleges.
National Institute of Foundry and Forge Technology(NIFFT) and B.I.T SINDRI [among one of the oldest engineering colleges in eastern india (estd-1949)]. There are three medical colleges in Jharkhand namely
Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) at Ranchi,
M.G.M. Medical College Jamshedpur and
Patliputra Medical College And Hospital (PMCH) at Dhanbad.
The famous B-school
Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI) is at Jamshedpur. It's PMIR programme is regarded best in the entire Asia-Pacific region.
Sports
Jharkhand has earned itself an important place in the sports arena - thanks to the dashing wicketkeeper batsman -
Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Hockey, Football and Cricket are most loved games by the people of Jharkhand. Jharkhand has given some brilliant players like Jaipal Singh, a former Indian Hockey captain and Olympian and Vimal Lakra currently playing for Indian Hockey team.
Jharkhand is the host for upcoming
National Games.
Media
Hindi newspapers like the Ranchi Express
[6] and the Prabhat Khabar
[7] are the main newspapers, published from the state capital, Ranchi and are available in almost all parts of the state. All important Indian newspapers, in Hindi, English and Bengali are also available in bigger cities by the afternoon and after a day’s delay in smaller towns. Most of the national magazines in Hindi, English and Bengali are regularly available in bigger cities and at other places supply may be arranged through newspaper vendors.
All India Radio is the only
radio station in Jharkhand and covers the entire state.
Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster, is also available in almost all parts of the state. Bigger cities of Jaharkhand is served by all television channels available in India and channels are received through cable. In some interior regions, channels are received via satellite dishes.
Landline telephone connectivity is provided by
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Tata Teleservices (TATA INDICOM) and Reliance Infocomm and covers almost all parts of the state. Cellular service, covering all major centres of the state, is provided by BSNL, Aircel, Reliance Telecom and Airtel (GSM Service) and also by Tata Indicom and Reliance Infocomm (CDMA Service).
Internet connectivity is available in most of the district headquarters.
References
★
Official State Website
★
Official Government Website
★
The World Bank publication on Jharkhand
External links
★
★
Jharkhand State Government Official website
★
Jharkhand
★
Jharkhand-Chamber (Business Unlimited)
★
-Welcome to the Information Portal of Ranchi & Jharkhand,India
★
Everything about Jharkhand,India
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