Diamond Harbour

Diamond Harbour is a town and municipality located in the South 24 Parganas district of the Indian state of West Bengal. Situated on the eastern banks of the Hooghly River, it serves as the administrative headquarters of the Diamond Harbour subdivision and forms part of the larger Kolkata Metropolitan Area. Historically known for its strategic position near the river’s estuary, the town has evolved from a small port settlement into a local urban centre with educational institutions, administrative offices, and a growing population.

The town is known for its scenic riverside views, modest elevation, and proximity to Kolkata, making it a notable point for regional transit and tourism. Governed by the Diamond Harbour Municipality, the town covers an area of 10.36 square kilometres and had a population of 41,802 according to the 2011 Census. It is also an important constituency in both the state assembly and the national parliament.

History

Diamond Harbour was originally known as ''Hajipur'', as it was situated on the banks of the Hajipur creek. The name Diamond Harbour was applied by the British, who used it for both river and sea shipping.

Geography

Area overview

Diamond Harbour subdivision is a rural subdivision with patches of urbanisation. Only 14.61% of the population lives in the urban areas and an overwhelming 85.39% lives in the rural areas. In the western portion of the subdivision (shown in the map alongside) there are 11 census towns. The entire district is situated in the Ganges Delta and the western part, located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, is covered by the Kulpi Diamond Harbour Plain, which is 5–6 metres above sea level. Archaeological excavations at Deulpota and Harinarayanpur, on the bank of the Hooghly River indicate the existence of human habitation more than 2,000 years ago.

Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.

Location

Diamond Harbour is located at . It has an average elevation of .

Climate

Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as tropical wet and dry (Aw).

The overall climate of Diamond harbour is warm and humid. The summer temperature often crosses 35 °C when it drops 15 °C. The highest temperature ever was 43.0 °C, recorded on 21 May 2002. The lowest temperature dropped was 8.2 °C, on 13 January 2003. The annual average rainfall is 1600 mm. The air is moderately humid, around 76%.

Demographics

Population

According to the 2011 Census of India, Diamond Harbour had a total population of 41,802, of which 21,050 (50.36%) were males and 20,752 (49.64%) were females. It had a population density of with a sex ratio of 986 females for every 1000 males. There were 3,688 persons in the age range of 0 to 6 years which is 8.82% of the total population. The Scheduled Castes numbered 5,221 (12.49%) and the Scheduled Tribes numbered 72 (0.17%). The total number of literate persons was 32,753 (85.93% of the population over 6 years) out of which males numbered 17,193 (89.57% of the male population over 6 years) and females numbered 15,560 (82.25% of the female population over 6 years). Diamond Harbour had a total of 10,048 households as per report released by 2011 Census of India.

Language

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 99.14% of the population spoke Bengali, 0.82% Hindi and 0.03% Urdu as their first language.

Religion

According to the 2011 Census of India, 85.98% of the population is Hindu, 13.75% Muslim, 0.11% Christian, 0.10% Sikh, 0.01% Buddhist and 0.01%  Jain. 0.04% did not state a religion in the census.

Civic administration

Municipality

Diamond Harbour Municipality covers an area of . It has jurisdiction over the entire town of Diamond Harbour. The municipality was established in . It is divided into 16 administrative wards. According to the 2022 municipal election, it is being controlled by the All India Trinamool Congress.

Police stations

Diamond Harbour police station covers an area of . It has jurisdiction over parts of the Diamond Harbour Municipality, and the Diamond Harbour I and Diamond Harbour II CD blocks.

Diamond Harbour women police station has jurisdiction over parts of the Diamond Harbour Municipality, and the Diamond Harbour I and Diamond Harbour II CD blocks.

CD block HQ

The headquarters of the Diamond Harbour I CD block are located at Diamond Harbour.

Transport

Diamond Harbour is on the National Highway 12.Google maps

Diamond Harbour railway station is on the Sealdah–Diamond Harbour line of the Kolkata Suburban Railway.

Commuters

With the electrification of the railways, suburban traffic has grown tremendously since the 1960s. As of 2005–06, more than 1.7 million (17 lakhs) commuters use the Kolkata Suburban Railway system daily. After the partition of India, refugees from East Pakistan/ Bangladesh had a strong impact on the development of urban areas in the periphery of Kolkata. The new immigrants depended on Kolkata for their livelihood, thus increasing the number of commuters. Eastern Railway runs 1,272 EMU trains daily.

Education

* Diamond Harbour Government Medical College and Hospital, established in 2019, is a full-fledged tertiary referral government medical college.
* Diamond Harbour Government Polytechnic, established in 2014, offers diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in Engineering and Technology and other allied fields.
* Diamond Harbour Women's University, established in 2013, is the first university of the state for women.
* Fakir Chand College, established in 1948, is affiliated with the University of Calcutta. It offers honours courses in Bengali, English, Sanskrit, history, political science, philosophy, economics, geography, education, mathematics and accounting & finance, and general degree courses in arts, science, and accounting & finance.

Healthcare

Diamond Harbour Subdivisional Hospital, with 250 beds, is the major government medical facility in the Diamond Harbour subdivision.

References

External links

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{{Authority control

Cities and towns in South 24 Parganas district
Ports and harbours of West Bengal