Darrang district | |
|---|---|
 Swahid Stambha,Patharighat | |
.svg) Location in Assam | |
 Darrang district | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Assam |
| Division | North Assam |
| Headquarters | Mangaldoi |
| Government | |
| • Lok Sabha constituencies | Mangaldoi |
| • Vidhan Sabha constituencies | Sipajhar,Mangaldoi,Dalgaon,Kalaigaon |
| Area | |
• Total | 1,585 km2 (612 sq mi) |
| Population (2011) | |
• Total | 928,500 |
| • Density | 585.8/km2 (1,517/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (IST) |
| ISO 3166 code | IN-AS |
| Website | https://darrang.gov.in/ |
Darrang district (Assamese pronunciation:[dɔrɔŋ]) is an administrativedistrict in the state ofAssam inIndia. The district headquarters are located atMangaldoi. The district occupies anarea of 1585 km2.
The etymology of Darrang reflects its historical significance as a gateway. According to scholar Late Dineshwar Sarma, the name comes from the Assamese word "Doar," meaning "door," which refers to the alluvial floodplains in eastern and northeastern India that have long served as passageways for traders and travelers from the Himalaya and also as critical entry point for merchants from regions such as China, Tibet, Bhutan, and Central Asia.
No definitive records about Darrang are available for the pre-medieval period. According toMaheswar Neog, the Darrang became mentioned only after the uprising of the kingNara Narayan. Darrang at different times might have been under the rule of theChutia Kingdom,Bodo people andBaro-Bhuyans.[1]
During the reign of Dharmanarayan 3000Chutia families were established in Darrang.
In the 16th century, Darrang was subject to theKamata kingNara Narayan, and on the division of his dominion among his heirs, Darrang became a part ofKoch Hajo. Early in the 17th century the Raja Bali Narayan invoked the aid of theAhoms ofUpper Assam against theMughal invaders; after his defeat and death in 1637 the Ahoms dominated the whole district. About 1785 the Darrang rajas took advantage of the decline of the Ahom kingdom to try and re-establish their independence, but they were defeated by a British expedition in 1792, and in 1826 Darrang, with the rest of Assam, passed under British control.[2]
By early 17th century, theKingdom of Bhutan took control of the DarrangDuars as far asGohain Kamal Ali road.[3][4] The Bhutan control over these regions were through local authorities, who were appointed by Bhutanese provincial governors calledPonlops.[5] By 1865, with theDuar Wars theBritish East India company took control of the Duars and removed Bhutanese influence from the area.
In 1785 it was Darrang was surveyed by one Ahom officer named Dhani Ram Gohain.
On 28 January 1894, there was a peasant's uprising against the increased land revenue by theBritish Raj inPatharighat, a village in Darrang district. In the British response that followed, 140 peasants belonging to both Hindu and Muslim communities died from bullet wounds and another 150 were injured.[6][7]
In 1984Sonitpur district was formed from part of Darrang.[8] This was repeated on 14 June 2004 with the creation ofUdalguri district.[8]
Darrang district occupies an area of 1,585 square kilometres (612 sq mi).[9]
Darrang is home toOrang National Park, which it shares withSonitpur district. Orang was established in 1999 and has an area of 79 km2 (30.5 sq mi).[10]
There are fourAssam Legislative Assembly constituencies in this district: Kalaigaon, Sipajhar, Mangaldoi, and Dalgaon.[11] Mangaldoi is designated forscheduled castes.[11] All four are in theMangaldoi Lok Sabha constituency.[12]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 99,002 | — |
| 1911 | 98,758 | −0.02% |
| 1921 | 110,391 | +1.12% |
| 1931 | 139,089 | +2.34% |
| 1941 | 188,189 | +3.07% |
| 1951 | 233,607 | +2.19% |
| 1961 | 310,321 | +2.88% |
| 1971 | 404,961 | +2.70% |
| 1991 | 618,653 | +2.14% |
| 2001 | 759,858 | +2.08% |
| 2011 | 928,500 | +2.02% |
| source:[13] | ||
According to the2011 census Darrang district has apopulation of 928,500,[14] roughly equal to the nation ofFiji.[15] This gives it a ranking of 463rd in India (out of a total of640).[14] The district has a population density of 586 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,520/sq mi).[14] Itspopulation growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 22.19%.[14] Darrang has asex ratio of 954females for every 1000 males,[14] and aliteracy rate of 63.08%.[14] 93.9% of the population live in rural areas while 6.1% live in urban areas.[16] Poverty rate of the district stands at 45.5%.[17] 5.98% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 4.34% and 0.91% of the population respectively.[14]
| Circle | Muslims | Hindus | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
| Khoirabari (Pt) | 4.74% | 95.19% | 0.07% |
| Patharighat (Pt) | 35.18% | 64.69% | 0.13% |
| Sipajhar | 46.23% | 53.56% | 0.21% |
| Mangaldoi (Pt) | 42.36% | 57.22% | 0.42% |
| Kalaigaon (Pt) | 10.25% | 89.60% | 0.15% |
| Dalgaon (Pt) | 88.27% | 11.20% | 0.53% |
In Darrang district, as per the 2011 census record, Islam is the most followed religion with 597,392 adherents i.e. (64.34%), while Hinduism is followed by 327,322 i.e. 35.25% of the district population. Dalgaon in particular contained nearly half the population of the entire district.[18] Way back in 1971, Hindus were slight majority in undivided Darrang district (which includes presentSonitpur andUdalguri districts) forming70.3% of the population, while Muslims were 23.9% at that time.[19]
At the time of the 2011 census, the Assamese-speaking population was 457,696 and the Bengali-speaking population was 449,205.[20]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Darrang".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 7 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 837.Fiji 883,125 July 2011 est.
Places adjacent to Darrang district | |
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