Ratanpur is a town and a

nagar palika In India, a municipal council, also known as municipality, nagar palika, nagar parishad, nagar parisad or nagar sabha, is a self-governing Urban Local Body that administers a smaller urban areas than municipal corporations, with population of 1 ...

in Bilaspur district in the

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 ...

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 ...

Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh (; ) is a landlocked States and union territories of India, state in Central India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the List ...

. It is located about from Bilaspur on National Highway 130 towards Ambikapur.

History

Ratanpura, originally known as Ratnapura, was the capital of

Kalachuris of Ratnapura The Kalachuris of Ratnapura, also known as the Haihayas of Ratanpur, were a dynasty that ruled in Central India during the 12th and 13th centuries. They ruled parts of present-day Chhattisgarh from their capital at Ratnapura (modern Ratanpur in B ...

, who were a branch of the

Kalachuris of Tripuri The Kalachuris of Tripuri (IAST: ), also known the Kalachuris of Chedi, ruled parts of central India during 7th to 13th centuries. They are also known as the Later Kalachuris to distinguish them from their earlier namesakes, especially the Kala ...

. According to the 1114 CE Ratanpur inscription of the local king Jajjaladeva I, his ancestor Kalingaraja conquered Dakshina Kosala region, and made Tummana (modern Tuman) his capital. Kalingaraja's grandson Ratnaraja established Ratnapura (modern Ratanpur). In 1407, the Kingdom of Ratanpur was divided into two parts, with its junior branch ruling from

Raipur Raipur ( ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raipur is also the administrative headquarters of Raipur district and Raipur division, and the largest city of the state. It was a part of Madhya Pradesh before the state of Chh ...

. It continued as the capital of the Kingdom until the 18th century, when it ruled large areas of

, until the area was brought under the rule of the

Marathas The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...

led by Bhonsle Maharaja of Nagpur. Senasahibsubha Raghuji Bhonsle's son Bimbaji ruled over Chhatisgarh from his capital in Ratanpur. Later the area came under the rule of

British 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 ...

. British India controlled Ratanpur from Bilaspur which was part of The Central Provinces. The Central Provinces covered part of Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states and its capital was

Nagpur Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...

. It became the Central Provinces and Berar in 1903. After independence of India, Ratanpur became part of

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

with

Bhopal Bhopal (; ISO 15919, ISO: Bhōpāl, ) is the capital (political), capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes,'' due to ...

as its capital. On formation of

state the capital city of Chhattisgarh shifted to

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 ...

, Ratanpur had a population of 19,838. Males constituted 51% of the population and females 49%. Ratanpur has an average literacy rate of 59%, lower than the national average of 59.5% while male literacy is 70% and female literacy is 47%. In Ratanpur, 17% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Culture and religion

The town is popular as a religious center and many Hindu devotees come here to offer their prayers and seek the blessings at the

Mahamaya Temple Mahamaya Temple is a Hindu temple, dedicated to Goddess Durga, Mahalaksmi located at Ratanpur of Bilaspur district in Chhattisgarh, India and is one of the 52 Shakti Peethas, shrines of Shakti, the divine feminine, spread across India. Ratan ...

, goddess Mahamaya also known as Kosaleswari, as she was presiding deity of Dakshin Kosal (modern Chhattisgarh). Many other temples such as Bhudha Mahadev and Ramtekri are also situated there.

Transport

At around from Bilaspur, the second largest city in Chhattisgarh state after Raipur, the journey to Bilaspur from the town can be made by plane, train or bus.

Air

Air travel is also accessible from Bilaspur. The

Bilaspur Airport Bilasa Devi Kevat Airport , also known as Bilaspur Airport, is a domestic airport serving the city of Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India. It is located at Chakarbhata, south from the city centre. The airport made by the Royal Indian Air Force in ...

was inaugurated in March 2021 . There are direct flights from Bilaspur to

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 ...

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 ...

and

Prayagraj 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 ...

References

External links

Cities and towns in Bilaspur district, Chhattisgarh Former capital cities in India {{Chhattisgarh-geo-stub