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Sirsa district is the largest district of
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...
state.
Sirsa Sirsa is a city and a municipal council in Sirsa district in the westernmost region of the Indian state of Haryana, bordering Punjab and Rajasthan. It is located in Thar desert. It is located 250 kilometres north-west of New Delhi and 260 kilom ...
is the district headquarters. It is located on National Highway 9 and from the capital Delhi.


Etymology

The district is named after its headquarters, Sirsa. The name, Sirsa is derived from its ancient Sanskrit name ''Sairishaka'', which is mentioned in the Mahabharata, the Ashtadhyayi and the
Divyavadana The ''Divyāvadāna'' or Divine narratives is a Sanskrit anthology of Buddhist avadana tales, many originating in Mūlasarvāstivādin vinaya texts. It may be dated to 2nd century CE. The stories themselves are therefore quite ancient and may be ...
. In ''Mahabharata'', Sairishaka is described as being taken by Nakula in his conquest of the western quarter. It must have been a flourishing city in the 5th century B.C. as it has been mentioned by Panini. There are a number of legends about the origin of the name of the town. Its ancient name was Sairishaka and from that it seems to have been corrupted to Sirsa. According to local tradition, an unknown king named Saras founded the town in the 7th century A.D. and built a fort. The material remains of an ancient fort can still be seen in the south-east of the present town. It is about 5 km in circumference. According to another tradition, the name has its origin from the sacred river
Sarasvati Saraswati ( sa, सरस्वती, ) is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music, art, speech, wisdom, and learning. She is one of the Tridevi, along with the goddesses Lakshmi and Parvati. The earliest known mention of Saraswati as a ...
which one flowed near it. During the medieval period, the town was known as Sarsuti. It has been mentioned as Sarsuti by a number of medieval historians. The derivation of name Sirsa, is also attributed to the abundance of siris trees (''
Albizia lebbeck ''Albizia lebbeck'' is a species of '' Albizia'', native to Indomalaya, New Guinea and Northern AustraliaUSDA (1994) and widely cultivated and naturalised in other tropical and subtropical regions. English names for it include Sirisa, Siris, lebb ...
'' (
Benth George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studie ...
)) in the neighborhood of Sirsa which seems quite plausible for it finds some corroboration also in Panini and his commentator. In the ancient period, Sirsa was also known as Sirsapattan.However some local still believes that name may be derived from famous Sarsai Nath whose temple is there in the city.


History

In 1819, the territory occupied by the present district was taken over by the British and it became part of the North Western district of the Delhi territory. In 1820, the North Western district was bifurcated into Northern and Western districts and this territory became part of Western district, which was later renamed Haryana district. In 1837, it was separated from Haryana district and merged with newly formed
Bhattiana Bhattiana is a tract of land lying in the Indian states of Haryana and Punjab between Hisar and the Garra. It was named ''Bhattiana'' because of being ruled by Bhatti Rajputs. Origin of name This geographical area derives its name from the ...
district. In 1858, Bhattiana district was transferred to Punjab Province along with the rest of Haryana region and renamed Sirsa district. In 1884, Sirsa district was abolished, its two tehsils, Sirsa and Dabwali were merged to form Sirsa tehsil, which became part of Hissar district of Punjab Province. On 1 November 1966, it became part of newly formed state of Haryana. In 1968, Sirsa tehsil was again bifurcated to Sirsa and Dabwali tehsils. The present district was carved out on 1 September 1975 by amalgamating Sirsa and Dabwali tehsils of erstwhile Hissar district.


Economy

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Sirsa one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of
640 Year 640 ( DCXL) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 640 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the pr ...
). It is one of the two districts in Haryana that used to receive funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).


Divisions

The district comprises five tehsils: Sirsa,
Dabwali Mandi Dabwali is a municipal committee town, near Sirsa City in Sirsa district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is located on the border of Haryana and Punjab. It is at a distance of 60 km from district headquarter Sirsa and 40 km ...
,
Rania Rania may refer to: Places * Rania, Haryana, a City in Sirsa District, Haryana state of India. * Ranya, a district in Sulaymaniyah Governorate, Iraqi Kurdistan * Rania block, a community development block, in Jharkhand, India ** Rania, Khunti, ...
, Kalanwali and Ellenabad. These tehsils are further sub-divided into 7 blocks: Baragudha, Dabwali, Ellenabad, Nathusary Chopta, Odhan, Rania and Sirsa. There are 5 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in this district: Kalanwali, Dabwali,
Rania Rania may refer to: Places * Rania, Haryana, a City in Sirsa District, Haryana state of India. * Ranya, a district in Sulaymaniyah Governorate, Iraqi Kurdistan * Rania block, a community development block, in Jharkhand, India ** Rania, Khunti, ...
, Sirsa and Ellenabad. All of these are part of Sirsa Lok Sabha constituency.


Demographics

According to the 2011 census Sirsa district has a population of 1,295,189, roughly equal to the nation of Mauritius or the US state of New Hampshire. This gives it a ranking of 378th in India (out of a total of
640 Year 640 ( DCXL) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 640 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the pr ...
). The district has a population density of . As of the 2011 census, its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 15.99%, with a sex ratio of 897 females for every 1000 males and a
literacy rate Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...
of 68.82%. Scheduled Castes make up 29.91% of the population.


Religion


Languages

Hindi is the official language of the district with Bagri and Haryanvi as its major dialects.
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
is the additional official language.


Notable people from Sirsa district

* Barinder Sran - Indian cricketer * Devi Lal - former Deputy Prime Minister of India, Former
Chief Minister of Haryana The Chief Minister of Haryana is the chief executive of the Indian state of Haryana. As per the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Following elec ...
* Harpal Singh - Indian Hockey player *
Ganeshi Lal Ganeshi Lal (born 1 March 1941) is an Indian politician and the incumbent Governor of Odisha. Personal life Professor Ganeshi Lal was born in Sirsa, Haryana on 1 March 1941. With a brilliant educational career, he holds a degree in English H ...
- Governor of Odisha *
Gajendra Verma Gajendra Verma (born 20 April 1990) is an Indian singer, composer, lyricist and sound recordist. He came under the spotlight when he claimed that his song, titled "Emptiness", also known as "Tune Mere Jaana", which he had composed seven and a ...
- singer, composer, lyricist * Gopal Kanda - businessman and politician, member of the
Haryana Legislative Assembly The Haryana Legislative Assembly or the Haryana Vidhan Sabha is the unicameral state legislature of Haryana state in India. The seat of the Vidhan Sabha is at Chandigarh, the capital of the state. The Vidhan Sabha comprises 90 Members of L ...
* Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh - third master of
Dera Sacha Sauda Dera Sacha Sauda ("Camp True-Deal"; colloquially DSS) is an Indian non-governmental organization described as a "religious cult" and "non-profit social welfare dera" that was established on 29 April 1948 by Mastana Balochistani, an ascetic fol ...
, convicted rapist *
Hari Singh Dilbar Hari Singh Dilbar (c. 1929 – 3 May 2017) was a well-known Indian Punjabi language writer and poet. Born around 1929 in Layallpur, British Punjab (present-day Faisalabad, Pakistan) Dilbar has been writing and reciting poems since 1943. Ear ...
- Punjabi language poet *
Jagdish Nehra Jagdish Nehra ( – 18 January 2023) was an Indian politician who served as Education and Irrigation Minister in Haryana and Chairman of Haryana Hindi Granth Academy. He took a number of steps to improve the standard of education in Haryana. H ...
- former Education and Irrigation Minister * Jaswinder Brar - Punjabi folk singer *
Maninder Buttar Maninderjeet Singh Buttar is an Indian singer and songwriter known for his work in Punjabi music. He is best known for songs "Yaari", "Sakhiyaan", "Ik Tera", "Pani Di Gal"and "Laare". Career His song ''Sakhiyaan'' has gathered a total of over ...
- Punjabi Singer * Manmohan Singh - Famous Director, cinematographer, singer in Hindi & Punjabi Movies. * Om Prakash Chautala - former
Chief Minister of Haryana The Chief Minister of Haryana is the chief executive of the Indian state of Haryana. As per the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Following elec ...
* Rupinder Handa - Punjabi Singer * Sardara Singh - Former Indian Hockey team Captain *
Satwant Kaur Satwant Kaur is an Indian film and television actress who works in Indian films. She started her career through Punjabi music videos, television soap operas and telefilms in the earlier days and ended up appearing in the films. She is known for h ...
- Bollywood and Punjabi actress * Savita Punia - National Hockey player *
Sunil Grover Sunil Grover (born 3 August 1977) is an Indian actor and comedian from Mumbai. He came into limelight for his portrayal as Gutthi on television show '' Comedy Nights with Kapil'' but gained popularity for playing the role of Dr Mashoor Gulati ...
- comedian and actor * Vikram Singh - music producer - composer


References


External links


Sirsa District- Sirsa district official Government website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sirsa District Districts of Haryana Minority Concentrated Districts in India 1975 establishments in Haryana