Katihar (; ), is the tenth largest city in the state of

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

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 ...

in terms of population, Along with being one of the largest economic, educational and administrative centre in the eastern part of Bihar. The city situated in the eastern bank of Kari Kosi river. It is the headquarters of Katihar district and Katihar railway division of Northeast Frontier Railway. Historically, it was an important

metre gauge Metre-gauge railways ( US: meter-gauge railways) are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre. Metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by several European colonial powers including France, Britain and ...

railway station in 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 ...

that linked

North India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...

with the regions of North Bengal and

Northeast India Northeast India, officially the North Eastern Region (NER), is the easternmost region of India representing both a geographic and political Administrative divisions of India, administrative division of the country. It comprises eight States and ...

. The main railway station of the city is Katihar Junction, a very important railway station on the Guwahati - Barauni railway line.

Transport

Road

Katihar is connected through road network to the neighboring cities of

and

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 ...

. Interstate bus services are not available. A highway , however, connects it to Purina, from where ,,,,,, and passes through or starts through. Katihar is near to

Bhagalpur Bhagalpur, historically known as Champapuri, Champa Nagari, is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern bank of the Ganges river. It is the Bihar#Government and administration, third largest city of Bihar by population and ...

, Purnia

Air

The nearest airport is located at Purnia Airport near Purnia (30 km), but it is an Airforce station. The nearest commercial airport is located at Bagdogra Airport (160 km) near

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 ...

(

). However, recently the government has announced to open an air force base airport in Chunapur, Purnia to be allowed to use for commercial use. However, it is not operational yet.

Rail

Katihar Junction is a major strategic Railway Junction under Northeast Frontier Railway which connects North East India with the rest of India.

Education

* Katihar Medical College and Hospital (KMCH), a private medical college in Katihar City suburbs, recognized by the Medical Council of India (MCI), * Katihar Engineering College * Al-Karim University * Suryadeo Law College, Katihar

Demographics

As per the 2011 census, Katihar Urban Agglomeration had a population of 240,565. Katihar Urban Agglomeration includes Katihar (municipal corporation plus outgrowth) and Katihar Railway Colony (outgrowth). Katihar Municipal Corporation had a total population of 225,982, out of which 119,142 were males and 106,840 were females. It had a sex ratio of 897. The population below 5 years was 31,036. The literacy rate of the 7+ population was 79.87 per cent. Katihar is at 193rd rank in terms of its population among the top 200 cities of India as per the 2011 census.

Religion

Hinduism is major religion in Katihar city with 185,196

Hindus Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

(76.9%) and 53,213

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

(22.1%). Other religions include 794

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

(0.33%), 373

Sikhs Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Sikh'' ...

(0.15%), 221 Jains (0.09%), 70 Buddhists (0.03%) and 960 (0.4%) not stated.

Languages

Climate

The climate of Katihar has widespread rainfall during the

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

s, sometimes bringing floods to the adjoining rural areas of the Katihar District.

Rivers

Rivers in Katihar include: *

Ganges The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary rive ...

* Kosi River *

Mahananda River The Mahananda ( ) is a trans-boundary river that flows through the Indian states of Bihar and West Bengal before crossing into Bangladesh. It is an important tributary of the Ganges. Course The Mahananda river system consists of two streams- ...

References

External links

katihar.bih.nic.in

District Court, Katihar
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Katihar district