Malancha is a town in the

Minakhan Minakhan is a community development block that forms an administrative division in Basirhat subdivision of North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Geography Minakhan is located at . Minakhan CD Block is bounded by Basirha ...

CD block in the

Basirhat subdivision Basirhat subdivision is an administrative subdivision of the North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. History In 1757, the East India Company obtained the ''zamindari'' or land-holders rights of the 24 Parganas Zamindari ...

of the

North 24 Parganas district North 24 Parganas (abv. 24 PGS (N)) or sometimes North Twenty Four Parganas is a district in southern West Bengal, of eastern India. North 24 Parganas extends in the tropical zone from latitude 22° 11′ 6″ north to 23° 15′ 2″ north and ...

in the state of

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 ...

Geography

Location

Malancha is located at .

Area overview

The area shown in the map is a part of the Ichhamati-Raimangal Plain, located in the lower

Ganges Delta The Ganges Delta (also known the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, the Sundarbans Delta or the Bengal Delta) is a river delta predominantly covering the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, consisting of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Be ...

. It contains soil of mature black or brownish

loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–si ...

to recent

alluvium Alluvium (, ) is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit. Alluvium is ...

. Numerous rivers, creeks and ''khals'' criss-cross the area. The tip of the

Sundarbans National Park Sundarbans National Park is a national park in West Bengal, India, and core part of tiger reserve and Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve, biosphere reserve. It is part of the Sundarbans on the Ganges Delta and adjacent to the Sundarban Reserve Fores ...

is visible in the lower part of the map (shown in green but not marked). The larger full screen map shows the full forest area. A large section of the area is a part of the

Sundarbans settlements Sundarbans (; pronounced ) is a mangrove forest area in the Ganges Delta formed by the confluence of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna Rivers in the Bay of Bengal. It spans the area from the Hooghly River in India's state of West Bengal to t ...

. The densely populated area is an overwhelmingly rural area. Only 12.96% of the population lives in the urban areas and 87.04% of the population lives in the rural areas. 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.

Demographics

According to the 2011 Census of India, Malancha had a total population of 2,610, of which 1,399 (51%) were males and 1,271 (49%) were females. Population in the age range 0–6 years was 401. The total number of literate persons in Malancha was 1,607 (72.75% of the population over 6 years).

Transport

The originating/ starting point of State Highway 2 is at its junction with State Highway 3 at Malancha.

Tourist attraction

Malancha has attractions for tourists passing by: “This small town has one of the biggest Fish Markets in West Bengal. At Malancha you would see the mighty Icchamati River meeting the Bidyadhari River. You can also stop over the bridge over Bidyadhari River and enjoy the sunset. This side of the riverbank is dotted with brick kilns and their towering chimneys line up the riverbank for miles – it’s an amazing sight.”

Fish market

Malancha has one of the largest fish markets in south Bengal, where about 15,000 kg of fish is auctioned every day. There are at least 15 such wholesale fish markets in south Bengal, all supplying fish to cities like

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 ...

Basirhat Basirhat is a city and a municipal urban region of North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Basirhat subdivision. Established on April 1, 1869, Basirhat is one of the oldest municipal board ...

Asansol Asansol is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the second largest city in West Bengal. It is the 33rd largest urban agglomeration in India by population. Asansol is the district headquarters of Paschim Bardhaman district. Accordi ...

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 ...

Kharagpur Kharagpur () is a semi- planned urban agglomeration and a major industrial city in the Paschim Medinipur district of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Kharagpur subdivision and the largest city of the district. It is located 1 ...

and nearby areas.

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=May 2019 Villages in North 24 Parganas district