Medininagar, formerly Daltonganj, is a city and

municipal corporation Municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally o ...

Palamu district Palamu district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand, India. It was formed in 1892. The administrative headquarters of the district is Medininagar, situated on the South Koel River, Koel River. Palamu district lies in north-western par ...

in the Indian

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...

. It is also the administrative headquarter of

and divisional headquarters of Palamu division, as well as the subdivision and block of the same name. The city is situated on the banks of the North Koel River. It is the main city in north-western part of Jharkhand.

Origin of name

The city was named Daltonganj during the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

after Irishman Colonel Edward Tuite Dalton (1815–1880), an anthropologist and the commissioner of Chota Nagpur in 1861. The name was changed to Medininagar in 2004 by the state government of Jharkhand, after Raja Medini Ray of the Chero dynasty. The former name is still retained in the name of the city's

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

. It is administered by the Medininagar Municipal Corporation, which was formed on 30 May 2015.

Geography

Medininagar is located at . It has an average elevation of . The Betla National Park is located about 20 km from the city. This park is known for

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is ...

s, and comes under the Palamau Tiger Project. Another picnic spot nearby is Kechki, located about 18 km from Medininagar, at the confluence of the Koel River and the Auranga River. Netarhat, a plateau covered with thick forests, is also situated near Medininagar.

Administration

Transport

Medininagar is located south east of

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

and is accessible by train to Daltonganj Railway station (DTO) from

Ranchi Ranchi (; ) is the capital city and also the largest district by population of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Ranchi was the centre of the Jharkhand movement, which called for a separate state for the tribal regions of South Bihar, northern ...

, Bhopal Junction,

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 ...

, Kota,

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ), also spelled Amdavad (), is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

Jabalpur Jabalpur, formerly Jubbulpore, is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the 3rd-largest urban agglomeration of the state and the 38th-largest of the country. Jabalpur is the administrative h ...

Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...

Varanasi Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.* * * * The city has a syncretic tradition of I ...

and Gaya. The nearest airport is away in Ranchi. It has an airport in Chianki, used occasionally by visiting dignitaries. Medininagar is well connected with

Jamshedpur Jamshedpur (; ), also known as Tatanagar, is a major industrial city in eastern India. It is the List of cities in Jharkhand by population, largest city in the state of Jharkhand. With a population of 629,658 in the city limits and 1.3 million ...

Dhanbad Dhanbad is the second-most populated city in the Indian state of Jharkhand after Jamshedpur and a major financial hub of Jharkhand. In terms of economy, Dhanbad has the largest economy in the state of Jharkhand and it is often referred to as th ...

, Raipur, Ambikapur,

, Durgapur,

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

, Kota,

Kanpur Kanpur (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), originally named Kanhapur and formerly anglicized as Cawnpore, is the second largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow. It was the primary ...

Gaya,

, and other locations by road. Chianki Airstrip is located on the south of the Medininagar. It is mostly used by private choppers and small aircraft. There is a plan to strengthen and extend the airstrip for operation of medium size planes.

Demographics

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 ...

, Medininagar had a population of 389,307. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. It has an average literacy rate of 87.29%, higher than the national average of 74.04%: male literacy is 91.92% and, female literacy is 82.10%. 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Culture

Major Hindu and Christian festivals are celebrated in Medininagar. The town is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Daltonganj. The town has several societies, clubs, and NGOs including Palamau Club, Rotary Club and Rida Foundation.

Satyajit Ray Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, author, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligraphy, calligrapher, and composer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influ ...

's Bengali film, Aranyer Din Ratri was shot in Palamu and the Bollywood movie, ''Nastik'' starring

Arjun Rampal Arjun Rampal (born 26 November 1972) is an Indian actor and model who mainly works in Hindi films. He made his acting debut in Rajiv Rai's romance film ''Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat'' (2001) and has since gone on to Arjun Rampal filmography, act in ...

was also shot in Medininagar. Masoom art Group is an active NGO engaged in promotion of art and culture in the city. Their motion picture Pratyavartan was focused on the issue of Naxal movement in the state.

Climate

Medininagar has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Cwa'').

Education

Nilamber-Pitamber University at Medininagar was established in 2009 and serves the Palamu division of Jharkhand. There are many colleges for undergraduate, post graduate & other higher education in and around Medininagar which includes: * DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology established by D.A.V College Managing Committee. * Bhishma Narain Singh Law College * Ganesh Lal Agrawal College * Elite Public B.Ed. College * Janta Shivratri College * Jyoti Prakash Mahila B.Ed. College * R K Brahman +2 High school, established in 1942 The major private schools in Medininagar include: * Heritage International School (CBSE) * M.K. DAV Public School, Chianki (CBSE) * Sacred Heart School, Chianki (ICSE) * Rotary School (Anand Shankar), Chainpur(CBSE)

Medical Facilities

Town has a lot of Public as well as private medical facilities and attracts patients from neighbourhood Villages and Cities. The List Includes: Public Hospitals: * Medini Rai Medical College and Hospital, Palamu– Medininagar, Palamu Private Hospitals: * Prakash Chandra Jain Seva Sadan * Aashi Care Hospital * Shree Narayan Multispeciality Hospital

Places of Interest

* Betla National Park, park hosts a wide variety of wildlife * Palamau Tiger Reserve, one of the first tiger conservation projects in India whose brand ambassador is

MS Dhoni Mahendra Singh Dhoni (; born 7 July 1981) is an Indian professional cricketer who plays as a right-handed batter and a wicket-keeper. Widely regarded as one of the most prolific wicket-keeper batsmen and captains and one of the greatest O ...

* Palamu fort, built in 15th century a twin forts structure by Medini Ray * B. R. Ambedkar Park, park jogging track along its beautiful lakes * Bheem Chulha, a 5,000-year-old stove, on which Bhima used to make food during the Pandavas’ ignorance * Bishrampur Fort, built by Chero rulers * Namudag Fort, built by the Surwar rajputs ( gaur dynasty) rulers . * Gandhi Udyan Park, famous among the youngsters * Hussainabad Fort, built by Mughal jagirdar, Hidayat Ali Khan. * Kala-Kabra Mound, Harappan era artefacts * Shahpur Fort, built by Chero ruler, Raja Medini Rai.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Cities and towns in Palamu district 1880 establishments in India