Balurghat is a city and municipality located in the

Dakshin Dinajpur district Dakshin Dinajpur (), also known as South Dinajpur, is a district in the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, India. It was created on 1 April 1992 by the division of the erstwhile West Dinajpur District. The head ...

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, serving as the district headquarters. Strategically positioned on National Highway 512, it is well-connected by road and rail, facilitating trade and travel within the state and to neighbouring regions. The

Atrai River Atrai River (also spelt as Atreyee) () flows in West Bengal in India and northern parts of Bangladesh. In ancient times the river was called Atreyee and finds a mention in the Mahabharata, one of the two Sanskrit epics of ancient India. It is ...

flows through Balurghat, contributing to the area's agricultural prosperity by providing vital water resources for both the city and its surrounding areas. Known for its rich cultural heritage, the town blends rural and urban characteristics and is a major hub for commerce, education, and government administration in the region. Balurghat has a strong agricultural base, primarily focused on rice cultivation, and hosts numerous small-scale industries. The town has also seen gradual urbanisation, with significant developments in infrastructure, healthcare, and public services, which have enhanced the quality of life for its residents. With a tropical climate featuring hot summers and moderate winters, the city thrives in agricultural productivity and continues to grow as a key center in southern West Bengal, near the

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

border, adding geopolitical significance.

History

Ancient period

Balurghat and its surrounding regions have a history that dates back to ancient times. Archaeological evidence suggests that the area was part of the

Pundravardhana Pundravardhana or Pundra kingdom (), was an ancient kingdom of Iron Age India located in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent with a territory that included parts of present-day Rajshahi and parts of Rangpur Division of Bangladesh a ...

kingdom, which flourished between the 4th century BCE and the 6th century CE. Inscriptions and artefacts from the

Gupta period The Gupta Empire was an Indian empire during the classical period of the Indian subcontinent which existed from the mid 3rd century to mid 6th century CE. At its zenith, the dynasty ruled over an empire that spanned much of the northern Indian ...

found near the Balurghat region indicate its historical significance as a center of trade and culture. The presence of ancient terracotta and pottery artefacts further underscores its cultural and commercial connections during this era.

Medieval period

During the medieval period, the region came under the influence of various dynasties, including the

Palas A ''palas'' () is a German term for the imposing or prestigious building of a medieval '' Pfalz'' or castle that contained the great hall. Such buildings appeared during the Romanesque period (11th to 13th century) and, according to Thompson ...

and Senas. The strategic location of Balurghat, near the banks of the Atrai River, made it an important hub for trade and agriculture. With the establishment of Islamic rule in Bengal in the 13th century, the area experienced significant socio-economic and cultural transformations. The remnants of mosques and tombs from this period are evidence of the Islamic architectural influence in the region.

Colonial period

The modern history of Balurghat began to take shape during the

British colonial era British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

. It was a part of the Dinajpur district under the

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal until 1937, later the Bengal Province, was the largest of all three presidencies of British India during Company rule in India, Company rule and later a Provinces o ...

. The region witnessed significant administrative and infrastructural development during the 19th and early 20th centuries, including the introduction of railways and educational institutions. However, the Partition of Bengal in 1947 profoundly impacted Balurghat, as it became a border town with

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

(now

). This led to demographic changes due to migration and economic shifts caused by the disruption of traditional trade routes.

Post-independence period

After Indian independence, Balurghat became the district headquarters of West Dinajpur in

. The town developed as an administrative and cultural center. Over the years, it has grown in prominence due to its strategic location near the India-Bangladesh border. Initiatives for regional connectivity and cross-border trade have further boosted its economic importance. The establishment of institutions like Balurghat College in 1948 contributed to the town's educational growth.

Modern developments

In recent years, Balurghat has witnessed urbanisation and infrastructural development, including improved road and rail connectivity. Cultural festivals like the

Durga Puja Durga Puja (ISO 15919, ISO: , ), also known as Durgotsava or Shaaradotsava, is an annual festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which pays homage to the Hinduism, Hindu goddess Durga, and is also celebrated because of Durga's victo ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

highlight the town's rich heritage and attract visitors. Its proximity to significant natural and historical sites makes Balurghat a growing center for tourism in West Bengal.

Geography

Location

In the map alongside, all places marked on the map are linked in the full screen version. Balurghat is at . It has an average elevation of 25 metres (82 feet). The town covers of area. River Atreyee runs across the city, dividing it into disproportionate halves. The heart of the city, with important administrative, cultural and entertainment hubs, is on the eastern bank of the river. India-Bangladesh border is approximately 3 km from the town.

Police stations

Balurghat police station under West Bengal police has jurisdiction over Balurghat municipal area and

Balurghat Balurghat is a city and municipality located in the Dakshin Dinajpur district of West Bengal, India, serving as the district headquarters. Strategically positioned on National Highway 512, it is well-connected by road and rail, facilitating trad ...

CD Block.Balurghat Women police station has jurisdiction over

Balurghat subdivision Balurghat subdivision is an administrative subdivision of the Dakshin Dinajpur district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Subdivisions Dakshin Dinajpur district is divided into two administrative subdivisions: .*2011 Administrative units Ba ...

Subdivision and CD block HQ

has its headquarters at Balurghat.The headquarters of

CD block is at Balurghat.

Climate

Demographics

In the 2011 census, Balurghat municipality had a population of 153,279 of which 76,730 were males and 76,549 were females. The Balurghat

urban agglomeration An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

had a population of 164,593, out of which 82,466 were males and 82,127 were females. The 0–6 years population was 10,349. Effective literacy rate for the 7+ population was 91.66 per cent. India

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, Balurghat municipality had a population of 151,416, of which 75,794 were males and 75,622 were females. Balurghat has an average literacy rate of 84.8%, with 87% of the males and 82.5% of females literate. Population in the age range of 0-6 years is 10,677. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes have a population of 15,204 and 3,008 respectively. Balurghat had 37,507 households in 2011. 98.7% of the population are Hindus, with small percentages (below 1%) of Muslims and Sikhs. At the time of the 2011 census, 75.55% of the population spoke

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

, 12.61% Santali, 2.86%

Sadri Sadri is a municipality in the Pali district of Rajasthan, India. Before it was formally founded, there were various settlements in the area which fell under the Jagir of the Rajput clan Sindhal Rathore who still reside in the central part of ...

, 2.00% Mundari, 1.61% Kurukh, 1.50%

Kurmali Kurmali or Kudmali (ISO: Kuṛmāli) is an Indo-Aryan language classified as belonging to the Bihari group of languages spoken in eastern India. As a trade dialect, it is also known as Panchpargania ( Bengali: পঞ্চপরগনিয� ...

and 1.45%

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

as their first language.

Economics

Balurghat is a distribution centre in northern West Bengal. The main goods traded include

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

jute Jute ( ) is a long, rough, shiny bast fibre that can be Spinning (textiles), spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', of the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is ...

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

, fisheries and oilseeds.Balurghat
from

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

Transport

Railway

Balurghat Railway Station is the terminus station of the Eklakhi–Balurghat branch line Trains connecting Balurghat to

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

directly include ''Sealdah Balurghat express'',

Tebhaga Express The 13161 / 13162 Tebhaga Express is an express train belonging to Eastern Railway Zone that runs between Kolkata and Balurghat via Rampurhat , Malda Town. It is operated with 13161 / 13162 train numbers on a hexa-weekly basis. Overview Th ...

and Howrah–Balurghat Bi-Weekly Express. Train services also connect Balurghat to

Siliguri Siliguri (, ; ), also known as Shiliguri, is a major Tier ii cities in india, tier-II city in West Bengal. It forms the twin cities, Twin Cities with the neighbouring city of Jalpaiguri. The city spans areas of the Darjeeling district, Darjeel ...

in the north through Balurghat-Siliguri Intercity Express. Balurghat is also connected to Malda through Balurghat-Malda Court Passenger Train. Besides, ''Balurghat-Nabadwip Dham Express'' connects

Nabadwip Nabadwip (), also spelt Navadwip, historically known as Nadia, is a heritage city in Nadia district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is regarded as a holy place by Hindus, and is the birthplace of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Located on the wes ...

with Balurghat.

Highways

Indian National Highway 512 passes through Balurghat (from Gazole To Hili). At Balurghat, there is a Government bus and a separate private bus stand. The

NBSTC North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC) is a state government run transport corporation in West Bengal, India. It plies buses mainly in North Bengal but operates services to other parts of West Bengal and neighboring states like Sikkim ...

(), SBSTC() and WBTC() are the government bus service provides majority of bus rides to distant places. Many buses (both Government and private) run from Balurghat to Kolkata, Siliguri,

Jalpaiguri Jalpaiguri (), is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Jalpaiguri district as well as of the Jalpaiguri division of West Bengal, covering the jurisdiction of the five districts of North Bengal. The city is ...

, Coochbehar, Kalna,

Durgapur Durgapur (), is an industrial hub and a planned urban agglomeration in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is stands on the northern bank of the Damodar river and located in Paschim Bardhaman district. Durgapur is a major centre for producin ...

, Malda, and

Raiganj Raiganj (), is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal and it stands on the bank of the Kulik river. This city is the headquarters of the Uttar Dinajpur district. The city situated in the narrow strip which joins the Northern and Southern p ...

Airways

Balurghat Airport Balurghat Airport is located from Balurghat and away from Gangarampur, a city in West Bengal, India. The airport is currently not in operation. History During the World War II, a temporary airport was built by the British Air Force in Bal ...

is situated at the entrance of the town, at Mahinagar, although the airport is not operating right now due to construction and executive issues. A

- Malda-Balurghat- Coochbehar flight service has been planned for this airport. Previously, there was a

- Malda-Balurghat helicopter service for some years.

Education

Festivals

Durga Puja is widely celebrated throughout the town. Major places to visit during festival are Avijatri Club, Kachikala Club, Srijoni Sangha, Newtown, Sanket Club and various others. The next big festival is

Kali Puja Kali Puja (ISO: ), also known as Shyama Puja or Mahanisha Puja, is a festival originating from the Indian subcontinent, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Kali. It is celebrated on the new moon day (Dipannita Amavasya) of the Hindu calendar month o ...

which is also a major festival celebrated during Deepawali. Majour places are Milan Sangha Club, Balurghat College more, Yubashree Sangha and various others places. Some other festivals like Chhath Puja, Rath Yatra, Biswakarma Puja, Ganesh Chaturthi and Saraswati puja are widely celebrated at Balurghat. Bolla Kali Puja is celebrated at

Bolla The kulshedra or kuçedra is a water, storm, fire and chthonic demon in Albanian mythology and folklore, usually described as a huge multi-headed female serpentine dragon. She is the archetype of darkness and evil, the complementary and opposi ...

approximately 15 kilometres (9 miles) from Balurghat, in November each year, for which millions of devotees come to see the festival. Festivals of non-hindu religions are also celebrated i,e

, Ramadaan, and

Buddha Purnima Buddha's Birthday or Buddha Day (also known as Buddha Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, and Buddha Pournami) is a primarily Buddhist festival that is celebrated in most of South, Southeast and East Asia, commemorating the birth of the prince Siddhartha ...

Sports

Balurghat is also home to district's 1st ever stadium to host the top tier national level

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

match like a

Ranji Trophy The Ranji Trophy is a premier domestic first-class cricket championship played in India and organized annually by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The teams representing regional and state cricket associations participate. BCCI ...

Match. Balurghat Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium used for sports like cricket and football. A major cricket tournament called ''Bijay Kumar Saha Memorial T-20 Tournament'' held annually at this stadium where various teams from West Bengal, India & even from Bangladesh participate. An indoor sports complex in Balurghat is also inaugurated in 2023 for various indoor sports activities like badminton, table tennis, marshal arts etc. The Police line playground is one of the major playground and has the best infrastructure after the main stadium which is used by both the

West Bengal Police The West Bengal Police () is the primary law enforcement agency for the Indian state of West Bengal, excluding the metropolitan area of Kolkata, which has its own separate police force. It is responsible for maintaining public order, preventing ...

& general public. Some other major playgrounds are Balurghat College Playground (''Uttamasaha''), Balurghat High School Playgrounds, Netaji Sporting Club, Railway Station ground etc.

Healthcare

*Dakshin Dinajpur District Hospital has 600 beds *Balurghat Super Specialty Hospital *Balurghat Police Hospital has 50 beds *Balurghat Municipal Hospital or ''Matri Sadan'' has 32 beds

Notable people

* Dhiren Banerjee, Indian Revolutionary & Physician * Sukanta Majumdar, honourable Union Minister of State for Education & Union Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region,

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

* Palas Barman, former MP * Ranen Barman, former MP * Rasendra Nath Barman, former MP * Susil Ranjan Chattopadhyay, former MP * Sankar Chakraborty, former MLA * Abhijit Mondal, footballer * Madhubanti Bagchi, singer

References

External links

* * * * {{Commons category, Balurghat Cities and towns in Dakshin Dinajpur district Cities in West Bengal