Bhadrapur, Mechi

Bhadrapur ( ne, भद्रपुर) is a town and municipality in Jhapa District in the Province No. 1 of southeastern Nepal. It lies on the banks of the Mechi River, and shares borders with Bihar state, India on the south and West Bengal state on the north. There is a border crossing with a customs office for goods. Galgalia village in Kishanganj district borders with Bhadrapur

Bhadrapur is one of Nepal's oldest municipalities. At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, it had a population of 18,164. Bhadrapur Airport has flights to Kathmandu. This airport is the best way to reach Kathmandu from the eastern part of Nepal and India (i.e., West Bengal, Sikkim).

Bhadrapur is one of the most multi-cultural cities in Nepal. In this city live people from all the districts from Nepal and who migrated from India, Bhutan, and Bangladesh. Different ethnic and religious backgrounds, such as Rajbanshi, Dhimal, Meche, Brahmin, Chhetri, Rai, Limbu, Sherpa, Tamang, Madbadi, Bengali, Muslim, etc., are living in Bhadrapur by maintaining a cordial relation, peace, and harmony among the people. Bhadrapur is the "tea city" of Nepal. It is a starting point for tourist attractions. A few hours' ride north takes one close to the Himalayas. There are good roads up to a height of around .

Bhadrapur has important governmental and other important infrastructures, including a zonal hospital, airport, Mechi Multiple campuses, different schools, Mahendra park, stadium police and military headquarters, and hosts the Central District Offices.

However, due to the construction of the Mahendra Highway or ''East-West Highway'' (north of Bhadrapur), economic activities have shifted north to the junction of the highway Birtamod. This has left Bhadrapur with a receding population and crippled its once-booming economic activity.

In the last decade, Bhadrapur has slowly transformed itself into a tea hub with new plantations and tea factories being established every year. The much-awaited Mechi Bridge joining Bhadrapur to India ( Galgalia) is constructed now and acts as a lifeline to the revitalization of Bhadrapur as well as the far eastern part of Nepal. There is a checkpoint at the border.

History

Bhadrapur was a very prosperous city during the early 1900s. It was renowned for its rice cultivation due to its rich fertile soil. This period saw rice mills being established. The prosperous rice business led Bhadrapur to its most prosperous period. Now, Bhadrapur has transformed into a major city of tea factories as the old rice mills are no longer operating.

Industries

Bhadrapur is home to Momento Apparels, which was one of Nepal's largest exporters of ready-made garments. The factory has been forced out of operation since 2012. In its heyday, the factory had a workforce of 2,000, and supplied ready-made garments to the US (including retail outlets such as Walmart and JCPenney) and several European countries.

Education

College, +2 Level, and Schools

* National Marigold English School
* Chandra Bhanu Jyoti Higher Secondary School
* Mechi Multiple Campus
* Mechi Multiple College Science
* Bright Star English Boarding School
* Siddhartha Shishu Sadan
* Bhadrapur Higher Secondary School (est. 2002 B.S.)
* Birendra Higher Secondary School
* Araniko Higher Secondary School
* Emerald Academy Higher Secondary School
* Bibhuti vidya mandir higher secondary school
* Bidur English Secondary School
* Puhatu Janajyoti High School
* Bhanusmriti High School
* S.S. Niketan English High School
* Pragyan Academy
* Gyan Sarovar Niketan High School
* Shree Sharada Lower Secondary School (Balika School)
* Shree Prithvi Lower Secondary School (Namuna School)
* Maheshpur Lower Secondary School
* Jiwanjyoti Lower Secondary School
* Pashupatinath Lower Secondary School
* Kalwalguri Lower Secondary School
* Saraswati Lower Secondary School
* Janakalyan Lower Secondary School
* Krishna Primary School
* Bhagawati Primary School
* Bhrikuti Primary School
* Bhanu Primary School
* Pashupati Primary School
* Gautambuddha Primary School
* Pashupati Primary School (past Maheshpur VDC)
* Mechi Primary School
* Aadarsh Primary School
* Dolma Memorial
* Greenfield English School
* Galaxy International School
* Gurukul Kids School
* Montessori Kinderworld
* Modern English high school (estd -2052)
* Himali Higher Secondary School
* Aarambha Shikshyalaya
* HolyLand English School
* Moran Memorial School (estd-2056 )

Communication and entertainment

To promote local culture Bhadrapur has one FM radio station: Nagarik F.M 107.5  MHz. It is a community radio station.

Krishna Raj Complex has a cinema hall which is situated at Bhadrapur Bazar. Abala Chitra Mandir, which was the first cinema hall in Bhadrapur was reconstructed in the Krishna Raj Complex. Jawahar Talkies is a cinema between the Bhadrapur Municipality office and Mechi River.

Transport

Bus services from Bhadrapur
Kathmandu
janakpur,
Dhankutta,
Dharan
Biratnagar
Birjung
Damak
Gauriganj
gauradaha
jhapa
Illam
kakaritta
lahan
Gaighat
Baniyani
Banepa
Narayanghat
Manakamana gate
and local buses.

Bhadrapur Airport is served by Nepal Airlines, Saurya Airlines, Shree Airlines, Yeti Airlines and Buddha Air with daily flights. Nepal Airlines flies 3 times a week, the others have daily flights. The first flight to Kathmandu is at 06:30am and the last flight is 9:00 pm.

Hospitals

* Mechi Zonal Hospital GOVERNMENT HOSPITAL 023-520172
* Om Sai Pathibhara hospital private limited. 023-456581/456981

Image Gallery

File:Bridge Reinforcement.jpg, Bridge foundation reinforcements
File:Bridge being dewatered.jpg, Caisson being drained
File:Mechi Bridge in Construciton, 2011.JPG, Mechi Bridge under construction, 2011
File:Bhadrapur Airport.jpg, Bhadrapur Airport
File:Busy BDP Airport.jpg, Busy airport
File:Bhadrapur Bazaar,.jpg, Bhadrapur Bazaar
File:Bajra Tea Garden, Bhadrapur.jpg, Bajra Tea Garden, Bhadrapur
File:Bhadrapur Bus Park.jpg, Bhadrapur Bus Park
File:Kameshwar Complex.jpg, Kameshwar Complex in the heart of Bhadrapur Bazaar
File:Buddha mandir.jpg, Buddha Mandir

References

{{Authority control

Municipalities in Jhapa District
Municipalities in Province No. 1
Nepal municipalities established in 1953
Populated places in Jhapa District
Transit and customs posts along the India–Nepal border