Asansol Sadar subdivision is part of the Ajay Damodar Barakar tract. This area is sort of an extension of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. It is a rocky undulating area with laterite soil, with the Ajay on the north, the Damodar on the south and the Barakar on the west. For ages the area was heavily forested and infested with plunderers and marauders. The discovery of coal in the 18th century led to industrialisation of the area and most of the forests have been cleared.[2][3]Maithon Dam of Damodar Valley Corporation, located in Jharkhand, is on the border of this subdivision.[4]
Subdivisions
Paschim Bardhaman district is divided into the following two administrative subdivisions:[5][6]
Note: Before bifurcation of the erstwhile Bardhaman district Galsi I was in Durgapur subdivision, but after bifurcation it is in Bardhman Sadar North subdivision.
5km 3miles
Ajay River
Maithon Dam Reservoir
River
Barakar
River
Damodar
Chittaranjan Locomotive Works
IISCO Steel Plant
Sitarampur
N
Barakar
N
Rupnarayanpur
P
Kalla
N
Dishergarh
N
Kulti
N
Neamatpur
N
Burnpur
N
Asansol
MC
ECL Sodepur Area Office
ECL Salanpur Area Office
Kalyaneshwari Temple
T
Barabani
P
Salanpur
P
Charanpur
OG
Panuria
CT
Majiara
CT
Bhanowara
CT
Domohani
CT
Pangachhiya
CT
Hindustan Cables Township
CT
Chittaranjan
CT
Cities, towns and ECL Areas in the western portion of Asansol Sadar subdivision in Paschim Bardhaman district MC: Municipal Corporation, P: Rural police station, CT: census town, N: neighbourhood, OG: out growth Owing to space constraints in the small map, the actual locations in a larger map may vary slightly
5km 3miles
Ajay River
Damodar River
Jamuria
N
Raniganj
N
Asansol
MC
ECL Kenda Area Office
ECL Kunustoria Area Office
ECL Satgram Area Office
ECL Sripur Area Office
Bahadurpur
R
Churulia
R
Ballavpur
CT
Raghunathchak
CT
Sahebganj
CT
Egara
CT
Baktarnagar
CT
Amkula
CT
Murgathaul
CT
Chelad
CT
Belebathan
CT
Banshra
CT
Jemari (Jaykaynagar)
CT
Chapui
CT
Ratibati
CT
Parasia
CT
Kenda
CT
Chinchuria
CT
Nimsa
CT
Topsi
CT
Kunustara
CT
Cities and towns in the eastern portion of Asansol Sadar subdivision in Paschim Bardhaman district MC: Municipal Corporation, CT: census town, N: neighbourhood, R: rural centre Owing to space constraints in the small map, the actual locations in a larger map may vary slightly
As per the 2011 Census of India data Asansol Sadar subdivision, after bifurcation of Bardhaman district in 2017, had a total population of 1,672,659. There were 868,696 (51%) males and 803,963 (49%) females. Population below 6 years was 192,151.[10]
As per the 2011 census data the total number of literates in Asansol subdivision, after bifurcation of Bardhaman district in 2017, was 1,147,851 (77.53% of the population over 6 years) out of which males numbered 649,034 (84.41% of the male population over 6 years) and females numbered 468,857 (65.85% of the female population over 6 years).[10]
In the 2011 census Hindus numbered 1,352,185 and formed 80.84% of the population in Asansol subdivision. Muslims numbered 283,225 and formed 16.93% of the population. Christians numbered 9,478 and formed 0.57% of the population. Others numbered 2,771 and formed 1.66% of the population.[11]
Police stations
Police stations in Asansol Sadar subdivision have the following features and jurisdiction:[12][13]
In 1973, the Government of India took over the management of all non-coking coal mines in the country and in 1975 Coal India was formed to manage the coking and non-coking coal mines.[18]
In 2015–16, Eastern Coalfields, a subsidiary of Coal India, produced 40.209 million tonnes of raw coal.[19] As of January 2017, it employed 64,433 persons.[20]
Railways
Narayankuri ghat, on the Damodar, was used by Carr Tagore & Company for transporting coal to Kolkata by boat in the middle of the nineteenth century.[21] Varying levels of water in the Damodar posed problems for transportation. In order to capture the lucrative coal transport business, East Indian Railway laid lines up to Raniganj in 1855.[21] It captured the entire coal transport business. The line was extended to Asansol in 1863.[21]
IISCO Steel Plant of Steel Authority of India at Burnpur has a crude steel production capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per year.[22] The modernisation and expansion programme of IISCO Steel Plant, implemented with an investment of over Rs 16,000 crore, was dedicated to the nation by Narendra Modi, Prime Minister, on 10 May 2015.[23] As of 2015, the investment for modernization was the single largest investment in West Bengal till then.[24] Established in 1918, the Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO) was amalgamated with SAIL in 2006 and renamed IISCO Steel Plant.[22]
Chittaranjan Locomotive Works is one of the largest electric locomotive manufacturers in the world. Established in 1950, it produced steam locomotives up to 1972.[25]
Ballavpur Paper Mnfg. Ltd. (earlier Bengal Paper Mill), after revamp of the plant at Ballavpur, started production in 2009. They produce kraft paper used for packaging.[26]
Education
Given in the table below (data in numbers) is a comprehensive picture of the education scenario in Paschim Bardhaman district, after bifurcation of Bardhaman district in 2017, with data for the year 2013-14:[27]
Note: Primary schools include junior basic schools; middle schools, high schools and higher secondary schools include madrasahs; technical schools include junior technical schools, junior government polytechnics, industrial technical institutes, industrial training centres, nursing training institutes etc.; technical and professional colleges include engineering colleges, medical colleges, para-medical institutes, management colleges, teachers training and nursing training colleges, law colleges, art colleges, music colleges etc. Special and non-formal education centres include sishu siksha kendras, madhyamik siksha kendras, centres of Rabindra mukta vidyalaya, recognised Sanskrit tols, institutions for the blind and other handicapped persons, Anganwadi centres, reformatory schools etc.[27]
The following institutions are located in Asansol subdivision:
The table below (all data in numbers) presents an overview of the medical facilities available and patients treated in the hospitals, health centres and sub-centres in 2014 in Paschim Bardhaman district, after bifurcation of Bardhaman district in 2017, with data for the year 2013–14.[39]
Asansol subdivision has a subdivisional hospital at Asansol. There is a rural hospital at Ballavpur. The subdivision has block primary health centres at Pithaikuri, Kelejhora, Bahadurpur, Akalpur and Raniganj, and primary health centres at Dabar, Parbatpur, Domohani, Panuria, Nuni, Lalganj, Churulia, Chinchuria, Birkulti, Baktarnagar and Tirat.[40] Other hospitals in Asansol subdivision include ECL Central Hospital at Kalla, Sanctoria Hospital at Dishergarh, ECL's Banshra Hospital at Banshra, ECL's Salanpur Hospital at Dendua,[41] Divisional Railway Hospital at Asansol, ESI Hospital at Kanyapur, HLG Memorial Hospital at Kanyapur,[42][43] Marwari Relief Society Hospital at Raniganj, Anandlok Hospital at Raniganj,[44] Burnpur Hospital of SAIL at Burnpur.[45] and Kasturba Gandhi Hospital of Chittaranjan Locomotive Works at Chittaranjan.[46]
Further medical facilities in Asansol Sadar subdivision are as follows:
Salanpur CD block: Dabor (PO Achra) (10), Parbotpur (PO Samdi) (2)
Asansol MC (earlier CD block areas): Barakar (15), Kumardiha (PO Sitarampur) (2), Sodepur (PO Sundar Chowk) (2), Marichkota (PO Ethora) (2), Dakshin Dhadka (10), Damra (PO Kalipahari) (2), Bidyanandapur (PO Surjanagara) (6), Dhenua (PO Hirapur) (2), Dihika (PO Surjanagar) (10).
Electoral constituencies
Lok Sabha (parliamentary) and Vidhan Sabha (state assembly) constituencies in Asansol subdivision were as follows:[51]
Lok Sabha constituency
Vidhan Sabha constituency
Reservation
CD Block and/or Gram panchayats and/or municipal areas
^Chattopadhyay, Akkori, Bardhaman Jelar Itihas O Lok Sanskriti (History and Folk lore of Bardhaman District.), (in Bengali), Vol I, pp 14-15, Radical Impression. ISBN81-85459-36-3
^"The Kolkata Gazette"(PDF). Notification No. 335/MA/O/C-4/1M-36/2014 dated 3 June 2015. Department of Municipal Affairs, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original(PDF) on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
^ ab"District Statistical Handbook 2014 Burdwan". Basic data: Table 4.4, 4.5, Clarifications: other related tables. Department of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
^"District Statistical Handbook 2014 Bardhaman". Table 3.1, 3.3. Department of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
^"Bardhaman district". Medical Institutions. Bardhaman district administration. Retrieved 6 March 2017.