Malda, West Bengal Explained

Malda
Other Name:Old Malda, English Bazar
Settlement Type:City
Nickname:Mango City
Pushpin Map:India West Bengal#India3#Asia
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in West Bengal, India
Coordinates:25.0119°N 88.1433°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: India
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Type3:Division
Subdivision Type4:Total wards
Subdivision Name1: West Bengal
Subdivision Name2:Malda
Subdivision Name3:Malda
Subdivision Name4:49
Government Type:Municipality
Governing Body:English Bazar Municipality
Old Malda Municipality
Leader Party:TMC
Leader Title1:Chairman
Leader Name1:Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury
Leader Title2:Chairman
Leader Name2:Kartik Ghosh
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:13.25
Area Urban Km2:22.79
Area Urban Footnotes:[2]
Area Metro Km2:206.6
Elevation M:17
Population Total:216,083
Population As Of:2011
Population Density Km2:auto
Population Urban:300,088
Population Metro:324,237
Population Rank:6th in West Bengal
Population Demonym:Maldabasi
Demographics Type1:Languages
Demographics1 Title1:Official
Demographics1 Info1:Bengali[3] [4]
Demographics1 Title2:Additional official
Demographics1 Info2:English
Timezone1:IST
Utc Offset1:+5:30
Postal Code Type:PIN
Postal Code:732101, 732102, 732103, 732141, 732142, 732128
Area Code:91-3512-2xxxxx
Area Code Type:Telephone code
Registration Plate:WB-65/WB-66
Blank1 Name Sec1:Lok Sabha constituency
Blank1 Info Sec1:Maldaha Uttar, Maldaha Dakshin
Blank2 Name Sec1:Vidhan Sabha constituency
Blank2 Info Sec1:Malda, English Bazar
Blank3 Info Sec1:Mahananda River
Blank3 Name Sec1:River

Malda, also known as English Bazar, is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the sixth largest city (urban agglomeration) in West Bengal.[5] It is the headquarters of the Malda district as well as of the Malda division of West Bengal. It consists of two municipalities, viz. English Bazar Municipality and Old Malda Municipality, under Malda Metropolitan Area. The city is located on the banks of the Mahananda River. Malda was an undeveloped city which was enlarging from 1925 to 1930. The city is growing rapidly nowadays with its population inching towards half a million.

Etymology

The name English Bazar is a calque of Angrezābād ("English-town"), applied in the 17th century to the surroundings of the English factory.[6] It was named in accordance with the factories built on the banks of River Mahananda by the British. The English traders set their factories here for the high profitable trade.

Geography

Location

Malda is located at .[7] It has an average elevation of 17 metres (56 feet). It is situated on both the western and eastern banks of the river Mahananda.

Climate

Like the most other places in West Bengal, the weather of Malda is usually extremely humid and tropical. Temperatures can reach as high as during the day in May and June and fall as low as overnight in December and January. Malda's highest recorded temperature was on 27 May 1958 and lowest recorded temperature was on 3 February 1905.

In Malda, the average annual temperature is . Precipitation is about per year. The driest month is December. There is of precipitation in December. The greatest amount of precipitation occurs in July, with an average of .

Demographics

See also: List of cities in West Bengal by population. 2011 census, Malda metropolitan city had a total population of 324,237.[8]

2011 census, English Bazar municipality had a population of 216,083.[9] The municipality had a sex ratio of 877 females per 1,000 males and 14.9% of the population were under six years old. Effective literacy was 84.69%; male literacy was 85.44% and female literacy was 83.86%.

India census,[10] Old Malda Municipality had a population of 62,944. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Old Malda has an average literacy rate of 61%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 67%, and female literacy is 54%. In Old Malda, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Religion

As of 2011 census, the majority of the population of the English Bazar municipality were Hindus with 86.95% adherents, followed by 11.02% Muslims and small populations of Sikhs and Christians.[11]

Civic administration

There are two municipalities in Malda, i.e. the English Bazar Municipality and the Old Malda Municipality.

The municipality of English Bazar is divided into 29 wards. The Trinamool Congress (with 25 councillors) holds the power in this municipality (as of 2022).

The municipality of Old Malda is divided into 20 wards.[12]

Transport

Road

crosses through the city. The Gour Kanya Bus Terminus serves as the bus depot for both private buses and government bus service operated by the North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC).

Rail

There are four railway stations which serves the metropolitan city. Malda Town railway station serves the English Bazar area; Old Malda Junction serves the Old Malda area; Malda Court serves Mangalbari and Naldubi area, and Gour Malda serves Mahadipur and Gauḍa (Gour) area.

Air

Malda Airport (IATA: LDA, ICAO: VEMH) was closed in 1972 due to the Bangladesh War. Before that there were direct daily flights from Malda to Kolkata, Delhi, and Guwahati. In 2014, direct helicopter services were started between Malda and Kolkata, by the government of West Bengal. As of 2017, the airport is under construction and the flight service will start very soon but the construction work has not been started yet.

Education

University

Colleges

General degree colleges
Engineering colleges
Polytechnic colleges
Medical colleges

Schools

Some of the notable high schools of the city includeKendriya Vidyalaya Malda (Co-education)

Boys' high schools
Girls' high schools
Rail schools
English medium schools

Notable people

See also

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: English Bazar Municipality. https://web.archive.org/web/20210727130917/https://www.sudawb.org/wbdma_oldversion/HTM/DIS/MUNI_ULB_English_bazar.htm. 27 July 2021. sudawb.org. 7 February 2024.
  2. Web site: Old Malda Municipality. https://web.archive.org/web/20210727130919/https://www.sudawb.org/wbdma_oldversion/HTM/DIS/MUNI_ULB_Old_Malda.htm. 27 July 2021. sudawb.org. 7 February 2024.
  3. Web site: Fact and Figures. www.wb.gov.in. 15 January 2019.
  4. Web site: 52nd Report of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in India. nclm.nic.in. Ministry of Minority Affairs. 15 January 2019. 85. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20170525141614/http://nclm.nic.in/shared/linkimages/NCLM52ndReport.pdf. 25 May 2017.
  5. Web site: Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 1 lakh and above . Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011 . 10 October 2011 .
  6. Book: Yule . Henry . Burnell . Arthur . Hobson-Jobson . 1903 . William Crooke, B.A. . London . 344 . New . en . E. English-Bazar
  7. Web site: Maps, Weather, and Airports for Ingraj Bazar,India. fallingrain.com.
  8. Web site: Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011; Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 1 lakh and above . Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India . 27 March 2012.
  9. Web site: Provisional Population Totals, Census of India 2011; Cities having population 1 lakh and above . Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India . 27 March 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120507135928/http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011-prov-results/paper2/data_files/India2/Table_2_PR_Cities_1Lakh_and_Above.pdf . 7 May 2012.
  10. Web site: Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional). https://web.archive.org/web/20040616075334/http://www.censusindia.net/results/town.php?stad=A&state5=999. 16 June 2004. 1 November 2008. Census Commission of India.
  11. Web site: C-1 Population By Religious Community . census.gov.in . 27 December 2020.
  12. News: Maitra . Subhro . Battle of couples in Malda civic polls . 19 September 2023 . The Times of India . 25 March 2015.