Sainthia (formerly Nandipur) is a
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...
and a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality ...
in
Suri Sadar subdivision of
Birbhum district in the
India
India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
n
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* '' Our ...
of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
. The city is known as
business city of Birbhum district. The city is under the
jurisdiction
Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels.
Ju ...
of Sainthia
police station
A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, al ...
. Sainthia is the fourth most populous city in Birbhum
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
and 95th most populous city in West Bengal. The city covers an
area
Area is the quantity that expresses the extent of a region on the plane or on a curved surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while ''surface area'' refers to the area of an open su ...
of 10
km2 and had a population of 44,601 in 2011. Located on the banks of
Mayurakshi River, Sainthia has been a major human
settlement. The city is famous for
Nandikeshwari Temple
Nandikeshwari Temple, also known as Nandikeshwari Tala, is located in Sainthia city of West Bengal. This temple is part of the
famous Shakti Peethas in Indian Subcontinent.
Name
The name of Goddess is derived from ' Nandi', the mascot and followe ...
, one of the
Shakti Peetha
The Shakti Pitha or the Shakti Peethas ( sa, शक्ति पीठ, , ''seat of Shakti'') are significant shrines and pilgrimage destinations in Shaktism, the goddess-centric denomination in Hinduism. The shrines are dedicated to various f ...
s in
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India ...
.
Etymology
It is believed that the name ''Sainthia'' is derived from 'Saaita', a term used in 'Khero Khata' (Business Book) by the merchants of Sainthia after worshiping Goddess Nandikeshwari in
Poila Boishakh
Pohela Boishakh ( bn, পহেলা বৈশাখ) is the first day of the Bengali calendar which is also the official calendar of Bangladesh. This festival is celebrated on 14 April in Bangladesh and 15 April in the Indian states of W ...
and
Vijaya Dashami.
Nandipur was the ancient name of Sainthia. The name Nandipur was originated from the famous temple of Nandikeshwari. The word Nandi comes from Nandikeshwari Temple and the word
Pur
Pur or PUR may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Pur (band), a German band
* Pur, a song by the Cocteau Twins
People
* Necla Pur (born 1943), Turkish economist and professor
* Quraish Pur (1932–2013), Pakistani scholar, writer, and ...
is a
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...
term used for city. Together these words created Nandipur.
History
Sainthia was a small village.
Urbanization
Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...
of this area gained momentum in the recent past, when construction work of the
Sahibganj loop line and a bridge over the
Mayurakshi River started. Construction of the Khana-Rajmahal section of
Sahibganj Loop was completed in October 1859. Construction of the
Sainthia railway station
Sainthia Junction railway station is one of the oldest stations in India serves Sainthia city of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a "NSG-5" category railway station. The railway station is under the administrative contr ...
was done as part of building the entire line. This large project brought
people
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of proper ...
from different corners of the country to assemble and settle here. Sainthia, an old village
trade
Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market.
An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct exch ...
center, a place of
pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...
has been emerged into a municipal city in the year 1987.
Geography
Location
Sainthia is located at . It has an average elevation of . The city is situated in the south
bank
A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets.
Becau ...
of
Mayurakshi River. The soil is generally alluvial and fertile. There was a rich
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including control ...
of
groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidat ...
but this stands somewhat depleted due to overuse.
Climate
Sainthia's climate is classified as tropical. In winter, there is much less rainfall in Sainthia than in summer. The average annual temperature is 26.3 °C in Sainthia. The temperature goes very high and it is very
humid
Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present.
Humidity dep ...
in summer and quite cold in winter. In a year, the average rainfall is 1328 mm.
Urban Structure

The Sainthia municipality
area
Area is the quantity that expresses the extent of a region on the plane or on a curved surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while ''surface area'' refers to the area of an open su ...
spread over and comprises 16
wards. The north–south dimension of the city is comparatively narrow, stretching from the
Mayurakshi River in the north to roughly Pariharpur Village in the
south—a span of 2–3 km. The east–west dimension of the city is widest with the span of 5–6 km.
Demographics
Historical Population
In 1901, according to L. S. S. O'Molley's Bengal District Gazetters, Sainthia had a population of 2622 and in 1911 Sainthia had a population of 3551.
Latest Population
As of
2011 Census of India, the Sainthia
Municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality ...
has a
population
Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using ...
of 44,601, of which 22,856 are males while 21,745 are females. The population of children under age 6 is 4511, which is 10.11% of the total population of Sainthia. In Sainthia, the female sex ratio is 951, against the state average of 950. The child sex ratio is around 880, compared to the West Bengal state average of 956. The
literacy
Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, hum ...
rate of Sainthia is 79.50%, higher than state average of 76.26%. Male literacy is around 84.70% while female literacy is 74.08%. Out of the total population, 16,485 were engaged in work or business activity. Of this, 13,481 were males while 3,004 were females. In the census survey, a worker is defined as a person who does business, job, service, cultivator, or labour activity. Of the total 16,485 working population, 92.97% were engaged in main work while 7.03% were engaged in marginal work. Sainthia has over 10,229 houses.
Ward number 16 is the most populous ward with population of 3814 and ward number 4 is the least populous ward with population of 1638.
Economy

Sainthia is an economically important city and one of the busiest business hubs in the middle part of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
. Sainthia city is the main trading centre in the district. The economy is based on agricultural products and their allied businesses. Rice mills, mustard oil mills, bran oil mills, puffed rice mills, jaggery/gur and galvanized wire product units and other businesses run here. Sainthia is the leader in
edible oil industry in Birbhum and one of the leading edible oil producers in West Bengal. There are 10 edible oil mills in Sainthia out of which 9 are Mustard oil mills and 1 is Rice Bran oil mill. The economy of Sainthia stands tall due to the sales of agricultural products. The city is known as an export and import centre for cottage industry and agricultural based different goods. The hinterland of business of Sainthia spreads up to the districts of
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in 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 and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . ...
in the west and
Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
in the north east. The city is well connected to different parts of the country. From the city, the agricultural products are exported to different parts of the State and also to different parts of the Eastern India through high roads and railroads. That makes the city the business centre of all sorts of goods distribution and transportation. Its socio-economical status is quite strong and education ratio is steadily increasing.
Sainthia is an important centre for banking and finance. There are 13 bank branches in the city. 9 of them are
public sector banks and remaining 4 are
private sector banks.
Shopping center developments in Sainthia city increases economic activity and local employment. There are 5 shopping centers that made contribution to the economy of the city. These shopping centers are Cosmo Bazaar, Hyper Mart, Baazar Kolkata, Reliance Trends and M Baazar. Brands like Senco Gold & Diamonds, Zedd Studio, Apollo Pharmacy and Khadim have stores in the city.
Transport
Road
The
National Highway 114
The following highways are numbered 114:
Canada
* New Brunswick Route 114
* Prince Edward Island Route 114
Costa Rica
* National Route 114 (Costa Rica), National Route 114
Germany
* Bundesautobahn 114 (A114)
India
* National Highway 114 (Indi ...
and State Highway 11 runs across the city. These highways links important cities and towns in
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
.
Public transport systems in Sainthia include the Government and private
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
es,
electric rickshaw
Electric rickshaws (also known as electric tuk-tuks or e-rickshaws or toto or e-tricycles) are small 3-wheeled vehicles powered by an electric motor and battery ranging from 650 to 1400 Watts. They save on fuel costs compared to auto rickshaw ...
s,
taxi
A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choic ...
s and
auto rickshaw
An auto rickshaw is a motorized version of the pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw. Most have three wheels and do not tilt. They are known by many terms in various countries including auto, auto rickshaw, baby taxi, mototaxi, pigeon, jonnybee, bajaj ...
s.
Air
The nearest domestic airport is
Kazi Nazrul Islam International Airport. The airport is roughly 74 kilometers from central Sainthia.
Railway

The
Sainthia railway station
Sainthia Junction railway station is one of the oldest stations in India serves Sainthia city of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a "NSG-5" category railway station. The railway station is under the administrative contr ...
serves the entire city and is the most important and key railway station of Birbum district. It also serves as the originating station of 4 important trains. The
Sainthia railway station
Sainthia Junction railway station is one of the oldest stations in India serves Sainthia city of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a "NSG-5" category railway station. The railway station is under the administrative contr ...
connects to both of
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
's two busy rail terminals,
Howrah railway station
Howrah railway station, also known as Howrah Junction, is a railway station located in the city of Howrah, West Bengal, India. It is also the oldest and largest existing railway complex in India. It is one of the busiest train stations in the w ...
and
Sealdah railway station.
Accidents
On 19 July 2010, at 02:13, the
Sainthia train collision
The Sainthia train collision occurred on 19 July 2010, at the Sainthia Junction railway station in Sainthia, India, when the Uttar Banga Express collided with the Vananchal Express as it was leaving the platform. 66 people died as a result ...
occurred, when Bananchal express was crashed by Uttarbanga express at platform no. 4.
Healthcare
The city has 1
government funded State General Hospital, 8 private hospitals and 1 veterinary hospital.
Tourism
Sainthia is known for its temples, including the famous
Nandikeshwari Temple
Nandikeshwari Temple, also known as Nandikeshwari Tala, is located in Sainthia city of West Bengal. This temple is part of the
famous Shakti Peethas in Indian Subcontinent.
Name
The name of Goddess is derived from ' Nandi', the mascot and followe ...
.
Education
Colleges
There are two colleges in Sainthia:
*
Abhedananda Mahavidyalaya
Abhedananda Mahavidyalaya, established in 1965, is a government affiliated college located at Sainthia in the Birbhum district of West Bengal. It is affiliated to University of Burdwan and offers courses in arts, science and commerce.
His ...
-a general stream college under the
University of Burdwan. Established in 1964.
*
Birbhum Vivekananda Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital -Established in 1972.
High schools
*Sainthia High School
*Sainthia Town High School is a boys' only high school.
*Shashibhushan Dutta Girls' High School
*Jogeshwari Dutta Girls' High School
*Sainthia Paharhi Baba Vidyapth
*Gitanjali Public School
*Rastravhasa High School
Library
There is one government-sponsored public library in Sainthia.
Sports
Stadiums

The Kamodakinkar Stadium (Jalibagan)
is a
football and a
cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...
stadium at Vivekananda Pally, Sainthia, operated by Sainthia Sports Association.
Notable people
Ananda Mohan Chakrabarty (born 1938),
microbiologist
A microbiologist (from Greek ) is a scientist who studies microscopic life forms and processes. This includes study of the growth, interactions and characteristics of microscopic organisms such as bacteria, algae, fungi, and some types of par ...
and
scientist
A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences.
In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosophica ...
Culture and festivals
Sainthia is influenced much by the culture of West Bengal. Festivals in Sainthia are inherited by the entire state of West Bengal. The language that is generally spoken here are Bengali and Hindi. However, people from other parts of India who have settled in Sainthia, obviously speak other languages. The festivals that are most commonly celebrated are the
Durga Puja
Durga Puja ( bn, দুর্গা পূজা), also known as Durgotsava or Sharodotsava, is an annual Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays homage to the Hindu goddess Durga and is also celebrat ...
,
Saraswati Puja,
Holi
Holi (), also known as the Festival of Colours, the Festival of Spring, and the Festival of Love,The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...". is an ancient Hindu religious festival ...
,
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
. Also,
Ganesh Puja
Ganesh Chaturthi (ISO: ), also known as Vinayak Chaturthi (), or Ganeshotsav () is a Hindu festival commemorating the birth of the Hindu god Ganesha. The festival is marked with the installation of Ganesha's clay idols privately in homes and p ...
is done during
Sankashti Chaturthi.
The festivals like Durga Puja is sincerely celebrated throughout the city of Sainthia by the local people. Though this festival is celebrated throughout India, the people of Sainthia give more importance to this festival.
References
External links
{{Birbhum topics
Cities and towns in Birbhum district
Company towns in India
Hindu holy cities
Hindu pilgrimage sites in India
Populated places established in 1987
Cities in West Bengal