Vaishali district | |
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 | |
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| Country |  India |
| State |  Bihar |
| Division | Tirhut |
| Established | 10 December 1972 |
| Headquarters | Hajipur[1] |
| Government | |
| • Educationist | Shri Rajdeo Ray |
| • Lok Sabha constituencies | Hajipur,Vaishali |
| • Vidhan Sabha constituencies | Hajipur,Lalganj,Vaishali,Mahua,Raja Pakar,Raghopur,Mahnar,Patepur |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,036 km2 (786 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 51 m (167 ft) |
| Population (2011) | |
• Total | 3,495,021 |
| • Density | 1,717/km2 (4,446/sq mi) |
| Demographics | |
| • Literacy | 66.60% |
| • Sex ratio | 1.895♂/♀ |
| Language | |
| • Official | Hindi |
| • Additional official | English |
| • Regional Languages | Maithili |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (IST) |
| PIN | 8441xx (Vaishali)[2] |
| Major highways | NH 22,NH 31,NH 322 |
| HDI(2016) |  0.407[3] |
| Website | Official website |
Vaishali district is adistrict in theIndian state ofBihar. It is a part ofTirhut division.[4] Vaishali is known for being the birthplace ofMahavira of the Jain religion.Hajipur, its largest city and district headquarters, is known for itsbanana forest. The district is connected via theNH-77 and NH-322 highways,Gandhi Setu andJay Prakash Setu (JP Setu) Bridges over(Holy)Ganga River which connect the state capitalPatna, the division headquartersMuzaffarpur, and the eastward districtSamastipur.
According to legend, Vaishali derives its name fromKing Vishala, a son ofIkshvaku who founded the city. Vaishali was the capital of the vibrantLicchavi republic and was closely associated with the early histories of bothBuddhism andJainism.[5] In that period, Vaishali was an ancientmetropolis and thecapital city of the republic of theVajji confederation, which covered most ofthe Himalayan Gangetic region of present-day Bihar. Magadha rulers of theShishunaga dynasty shifted their capital fromPataliputra to Vaishali.
Vaishali became a district when it was split fromMuzaffarpur in 1972.[6]
The Vaishali district occupies an area of 2,036 square kilometres (786 sq mi),[7]
In 2006 theMinistry of Panchayati Raj named Vaishali one of the country's 250most backward districts (out of a total of640).[8] It is one of the 38 districts in Bihar currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[8]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 737,793 | — |
| 1911 | 761,720 | +0.32% |
| 1921 | 737,475 | −0.32% |
| 1931 | 787,287 | +0.66% |
| 1941 | 868,565 | +0.99% |
| 1951 | 942,472 | +0.82% |
| 1961 | 1,133,086 | +1.86% |
| 1971 | 1,348,990 | +1.76% |
| 1981 | 1,662,527 | +2.11% |
| 1991 | 2,146,065 | +2.59% |
| 2001 | 2,718,421 | +2.39% |
| 2011 | 3,495,021 | +2.54% |
| source:[9] | ||
| Religion | Percent | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hinduism | 90.20% | |||
| Islam | 9.56% | |||
| Other or not Stated | 0.24% | |||
According to the2011 census Vaishali district has apopulation of 3,495,021,[11] roughly equal to the nation ofPanama[12] or the US state ofConnecticut.[13] This gives it a ranking of 86th in India (out of a total of640).[11] The district has a population density of 1,717 inhabitants per square kilometre (4,450/sq mi) .[11] Itspopulation growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 28.58%.[11] Vaishali has asex ratio of 892females for every 1000 males,[11] and aliteracy rate of 66.60%. 6.67% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 21.12% and 0.07% of the population respectively.[11]
At the time of the2011 Census of India, 95.09% of the population in the district spokeHindi and 4.80%Urdu as their first language. 69.88% of the population recorded their language as 'Other' under Hindi, while Hindi itself was only reported by 25.10%. The dialect of the region isBajjika, variously regarded as a dialect of Maithili language.[14]
In 1997, the district became home to the Barela Salim Ali Zubba SaheniWildlife Sanctuary, which has an area of 2 km2 (0.8 sq mi).[15]
The Vaishali district (headquartered at Hajipur) is headed by an IAS officer of the rank ofDistrict Magistrate (DM).
The district has got 1422 inhabited villages under 290Gram Panchayats and 30 territorial police stations.[16]
Vaishali district comprises three tehsils or Sub-divisions, each headed by aSub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM):
These Tehsils are further divided into 16Blocks, each headed by a Block Development Officer (BDO)
Panama 3,460,462 July 2011 est.
Connecticut 3,574,097
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Places adjacent to Vaishali district | ||||||||||||||||
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