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Nadia district (Bengali pronunciation:[nɔd̪iːaː]) is adistrict in theIndian state ofWest Bengal. It lies in thePresidency division. It bordersBangladesh to the east,North 24 Parganas andHooghly districts to the south,Purba Bardhaman to the west, andMurshidabad to the north.
Nadia district is highly influential in the cultural history of Bengal. The standard form of modernBengali, developed in the 19th century, is based on the dialect spoken aroundShantipur region of Nadia. Known as the "Oxford of Bengal", Nabadwip made many contributions to Indian philosophy, such as the Navya-Nyaya system of logic, and is the birthplace of the Vaishnava saintChaitanya Mahaprabhu.[3][4] The district is still largely agricultural.[4]
"Nadia" is a shortened name for a historic city in the district. Nabadwip, literally "new island", was formerly an island created by alluvial deposits of the Ganga.
Nadia district is located in southern West Bengal, in the west-central Bengal region. The district is largely an alluvial plain, formed by the constant shifting of the various rivers of the Ganges Delta. To the west of the district is theBhagirathi (or Hooghly) river, which was once the main distributary of the Ganga towards the Bay of Bengal, and is still considered to be the continuation of the Ganga for Hindus. As the main flow of the Ganga ran east into the Padma, the Bhagirathi largely dried up. Most of the rivers flowing through Nadia now have little water in them. Nearly all the district has been converted into farmland.
Nadia district is home to many rivers. The Padma, now the main distributary of the Ganga, touches the district on its northeastern end.
TheJalangi, which flows from Murshidabad district, forms much of the northwestern border of the district with Murshidabad, before flowing south into Nadia district. Around Krishnanagar, it turns west and flows into the Bhagirathi near Nabadwip.
TheMathabhanga originates in the far northeast of the district and forms part of the border with Bangladesh. It then flows into Bangladesh until it, again forming part of the border, re-enters the district at Gede. At Maijdia, it splits into theChurni andIchamati. The Churni flows southwest and merges with theBhagirathi at Shibpur near Ranaghat. The Ichamati flows into Bangladesh near Mubarakpur and reenters India near Duttaphulia. It then flows south into North 24 Parganas district.
Nabadwip, an ancient town within Nadia district, is often referred to as the “Oxford of Bengal".[3][4] One of the Indian schools of logic (Tarka sastra) calledNavya Nyaya system was developed inNabadwip, which produced great logicians in the 15th century.Nabadwip was an important seat of political power and the capital of Bengal underBallal Sen and laterLakshman Sen, kings of theSena Empire, who ruled from 1159 to 1206.[4] In 1202,Nabadwip was captured byBakhtiyar Khilji. This victory paved the way for Muslim rule in Bengal.[5] The British defeatedSiraj ud-Daulah, Nawab of Bengal, atPalashi in this district. The1859 revolt against European Indigo planters started from the village of Chaugacha, byDigambar Biswas and Bishnu Charan Biswas inKrishnanagar, Nadia.[6] Nadia is thought to have had trade relations withTibet,Nepal andBhutan.[7]
On 15 August 1947, theIndian Independence Act 1947 came into force, and for the next two daysNadia, along withMurshidabad,Malda, andWest Dinajpur (present-dayNorth Dinajpur andSouth Dinajpur) due toMuslim majority, were part of theDominion of Pakistan (specificallyEast Bengal orEast Pakistan, which seceded asBangladesh in 1971). On 17 August 1947, the final boundary adjustment of theRadcliffe Commission transferred these districts to theDominion of India (specificallyWest Bengal) ,[8] to ensure theHooghly River was entirely within India and to maintain connectivity betweenKolkata andGuwahati throughDarjeeling district. But, later Nadia andWest Dinajpur becameHindu-majority districts due to the arrival of large number ofBengali Hindu refugees fromEast Bengal ofPakistan during 1947 andBangladesh (East Bengal) liberation war in 1971.[9]
Pre-independence Nadia had five subdivisions: Krishnagar sadar, Ranaghat,Kushtia,Meherpur andChuadanga. Due to some cartographic error in 1947, large part of Nadia except Nabadwip initially were included into East Pakistan (nowBangladesh) due to it being a Muslim majority district in the 1941 census ofBritish India. Due to protests rectification was made and on the night of August 17, 1947, Ranaghat, Krishnanagar, Shikarpur in Karimpur and Plassey were placed in India. Since then some parts of this district have been celebrating Independence day on August 17 and August 18.[10][11][12]
Nadia district is also historically significant as the birthplace ofChaitanya Mahaprabhu, a revered figure inHinduism. He was born inNabadwip, a town in the Nadia district, on the full moon night of 18 February 1486. Known as Gauranga for his molten gold-like complexion, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is considered an avatar ofLord Krishna by his followers. He founded Gaudiya Vaishnavism and popularized the chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. His birthplace, known as Yogpeeth in Mayapur, is a major pilgrimage site for devotees.
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The District of Nadia has its headquarter at Krishnanagar town. The British district of Nadia was formed in 1787. The present district of Nadia after partition was formed by Notification No.545-GA dated 23 February 1948. The District Administration is headed by the District Magistrate & District Collector, Nadia.
The district comprises four subdivisions:Krishnanagar Sadar,Kalyani,Ranaghat andTehatta.[13]Krishnanagar is the district headquarters. There are 19 police stations, 2 women's and 1 cyber crime police stations, 18 community development blocks, 11 municipalities, 187gram panchayats (3114 sets) and 2639 villages in this district.[13][14]
Other than municipality area, each subdivision contains community development blocks which in turn are divided into rural areas and census towns. In total there are 26 urban units: 9 municipalities and 15census towns and twonotified areas.[15]Ranaghat,Aistala,Satigachha,Nasra andCooper's Camp together forms Ranaghaturban agglomeration.Nabadwip,Char Maijdia andChar Brahmanagar forms Nabadwip UA.Chakdaha,Gopalpur andParbbatipur forms Chakdaha UA.Krishnanagar andBadkulla together forms Krishnanagar UA.Birnagar,Phulia andTaherpur together forms Birnagar UA.
The district is divided into 17 assembly constituencies, which are part of four Lok Sabha constituencies.[16]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 771,672 | — |
| 1911 | 774,459 | +0.04% |
| 1921 | 710,455 | −0.86% |
| 1931 | 720,944 | +0.15% |
| 1941 | 840,303 | +1.54% |
| 1951 | 1,142,686 | +3.12% |
| 1961 | 1,711,830 | +4.12% |
| 1971 | 2,223,911 | +2.65% |
| 1981 | 2,964,253 | +2.92% |
| 1991 | 3,852,097 | +2.65% |
| 2001 | 4,604,827 | +1.80% |
| 2011 | 5,167,600 | +1.16% |
| source:[18] | ||
According to the2011 census Nadia district has apopulation of 5,167,600,[19] roughly equal to the US state ofColorado.[20] This gives it a ranking of 18th in India (out of a total of640).[19] The district has a population density of 1,316 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,410/sq mi) .[19] Itspopulation growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 12.24%.[19] Nadia has asex ratio of 947females for every 1000 males,[19] and aliteracy rate of 75.58%. 27.84% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 29.93% and 2.72% of the population respectively.[19]Bengali is the predominant language, spoken by 98.02% of the population.[21]
| Hinduism | 72.15% | |||
| Islam | 26.76% | |||
| Christianity | 0.65% | |||
| Other or not stated | 0.44% | |||
| Religion | 1941[23]: 75 | 1951[24] | 1961[25] | 2001[26] | 2011[22] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
Islam | 430,704 | 51.26% | 256,017 | 22.36% | 417,706 | 24.38% | 1,170,282 | 25.41% | 1,382,682 | 26.76% |
Hinduism | 392,225 | 46.68% | 881,955 | 77.03% | 1,284,173 | 74.95% | 3,396,095 | 73.75% | 3,728,482 | 72.15% |
| Tribal religion | 10,332 | 1.23% | 11 | ~0% | N/a | N/a | N/a | N/a | N/a | N/a |
Christianity | 6,632 | 0.79% | 5,885 | 0.51% | 10,840 | 0.63% | 29,563 | 0.64% | 33,835 | 0.65% |
| Others[a] | 410 | 0.04% | 1,056 | 0.10% | 605 | 0.04% | 8,887 | 0.20% | 22,601 | 0.44% |
| Total Population | 840,303 | 100% | 1,144,924 | 100% | 1,713,324 | 100% | 4,604,827 | 100% | 5,167,600 | 100% |
As per the 2011 Census, Hinduism is the majority religion of the district, followed by 73.15% of the population. Hinduism became majority in the district after Independence, when Nadia became the destination for millions of refugees from East Pakistan, and from Bangladesh after 1971.[22]
Over 90% of Muslims live in rural areas. Muslims are majority in Karimpur II (60.38%), Kaliganj (58.51%), Nakashipara (54.06%), and Chapra (59.72%) CD blocks. Muslims are a significant minority in Tehatta II (47.89%), Krishnanagar II (42.84%), and Nabadwip (35.20%).
| CD Block | Hindu % | Muslim % | Other % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karimpur I | 67.77 | 31.95 | 0.28 |
| Karimpur II | 39.52 | 60.38 | 0.10 |
| Tehatta I | 68.95 | 29.21 | 1.84 |
| Tehatta II | 52.00 | 47.89 | 0.11 |
| Kaliganj | 41.36 | 58.51 | 0.13 |
| Nakashipara | 46.53 | 53.06 | 0.41 |
| Chapra | 37.15 | 59.72 | 3.13 |
| Krishnanagar I | 82.78 | 15.25 | 0.14 |
| Krishnanagar II | 57.02 | 42.84 | 0.41 |
| Nabadwip | 64.39 | 35.20 | 1.97 |
| Krishnaganj | 93.98 | 5.86 | 0.16 |
| Hanskhali | 87.98 | 11.39 | 0.63 |
| Santipur | 86.45 | 11.85 | 1.7 |
| Ranaghat I | 93.82 | 5.67 | 0.51 |
| Ranaghat II | 85.65 | 12.59 | 1.76 |
| Chakdaha | 83.66 | 14.65 | 1.69 |
| Haringhata | 73.09 | 26.19 | 0.72 |
| Area not under any sub-district | 93.32 | 5.50 | 1.18 |
In 1980, Nadia district became home to theBethuadahari Wildlife Sanctuary, which has an area of 0.7 km2 (0.3 mi2).[27]
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