Malangwa

Malangwa (Nepali: मलंगवा) is a town, a municipality, and the headquarters of Sarlahi District in Province No. 2 of Nepal. The district's oldest municipality, it is in parliamentary constituency 2. On the Mahendra Highway 24 kilometres (15 mi) south of Nawalpur, a small highway side town. It is situated at an altitude of 79 meters (262 feet), Malangwa is near the Indian border at Sonbarsa.[2] There is a customs checkpoint at the border crossing.

Malangwa मलंगवा
Municipality
Malangwa Location in Nepal
Coordinates:
Country	Nepal
Province	Province No. 2
District	Sarlahi District
Named for	Malang Baba
Government
• Type	Mayor–council government
• Mayor	Nirshal Shah
• Deputy mayor	Sabnam Mikrani
Area
• Total	30.44 km^2 (11.75 sq mi)
Elevation	79 m (262 ft)
Population  (2011[1])
• Total	46,516
• Density	1,500/km^2 (4,000/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Malangwese Nepalese
Time zone	UTC+05:45 (NST)
Postal code	45800
Area code(s)	046
Vehicle registration	JA-1-P
Languages	Nepali, Bajjika, Maithili, Bhojpuri
Website	malangwamun.gov.np

Topographical map of Nepal. The green and yellow zones contain the Inner Terai Valleys.

Etymology

Its name is derived from Malang Baba, an Islamic saint who is worshiped by both Hindu and Muslim. An annual fair is held in his honor during the month of Chaitra at which people offer chadar and pray for their well-being.

Demographics

According to the municipality, Malangwa had a 2012 population of 46,516 people in about 7,500 households.[3] Most had Madhesi (Hindu, Muslim and Janjati), Newari and Marwadi backgrounds.

Climate

Climate zone[4]	Elevation	% of area
Lower tropical	below 300 metres (980 ft)	94.4%
Upper tropical	300 to 1,000 metres (3,300 ft)	5.6%

Malangwa has a humid tropical climate, with a mean annual rainfall of 2,214 mm (87.2 in) between 1995 and 2006. More than 80 percent of the total annual rainfall occurs during the monsoon season, from June to September. Average temperatures range from 8.08 °C (46.54 °F) in January to 34 °C (93 °F) in June.[5]

In the past, the inner and outer Terai were a formidable barrier between Nepal and potential invaders from India. The Terai's marshes and forests were infested with anopheline mosquitos which carried virulent strains of malaria, especially during the hot spring and rainy summer monsoon.

Malangwa, 26°52'N, 85°34'E
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     9     23 9     13     26 11     19     32 14     53     34 20     170     33 23     341     33 25     559     32 26     359     33 26     311     32 24     89     31 22     12     28 14     6     25 10 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: Levoyageur
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     0.4     73 48     0.5     79 52     0.7     90 57     2.1     93 68     6.7     91 73     13     91 77     22     90 79     14     91 79     12     90 75     3.5     88 72     0.5     82 57     0.2     77 50 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

There are several climatic differences in climate among the eastern edge of the Terai (Biratnagar), the western edge (Nepaljung) and Malangwa, although all are on the same plain. The climate is more continental inland (away from Bay of Bengal monsoon sources), with a greater difference between summer and winter. In the far western Terai (five degrees of latitude further north), the coldest months average 4 °C (39 °F) cooler. Total rainfall diminishes from east to west. The monsoon arrives later, is less intense and ends sooner. However, winters are wetter in the west.

Location

Border-crossing sign

Malangwa is bordered on the north by Salempur; on the south and southeast by Sonbarsha, Sitamarhi district, Bihar, India; on the east by Tribhuwannagar and Belhi, and on the west by Motipur.[6]

Malangwa shares a border crossing with India. No documents are required to cross the border, but many edible and electronics products are restricted.[7] A customs office tracks vehicles entering Malangwa with an Indian vehicle registration number, and taxes are imposed on heavy items entering Nepal.

Media and telecommunications

Malangwa water supply

To promote local culture, Malangwa has four FM community radio stations: Radio Madhesh (89.3 MHz), Radio Malangwa (93.6), Swarnim FM (96.3) and My FM (107.4). Major daily newspapers are the Madhesh Post, Loktantrik, the Sarlahi Times and the Sapthaik Times.

Nepal Telecom have 4G network coverage with better speed and Ncell have 3G network coverage; UTL Nepal and Smart Cell are other available cellular networks. ADSL, Nepal Telecom, NCELL and a private internet service are Internet service providers in the town.

Cinemas

Malangwa has two movie theaters, which attract cross-border audiences. These are Raj Shee Cinema and Pushpa Talkies. The theaters show Nepali, Bollywood, South indian hindi dubbed and Bhojpuri-language films.

Attacks

Two attacks have occurred in Malangwa, the first at the end of the Nepalese Civil War. The town was attacked by Maoists on April 5, 2006, at 8:00 pm. The insurgents fired at soldiers guarding government offices and security posts and attacked a jail, freeing more than 100 inmates (including some of their comrades) before fleeing. The Russian-built, night-vision-equipped MI-17 helicopter with the call sign RAN-37 took off from Kathmandu at 10 pm to counter the attack. Eyewitnesses reported that the helicopter hovered for an hour, returned after refueling in Simra and exploded in mid-air at about 1:30 am; eight of the 10 soldiers aboard were killed.[8][9][10][11][12] Five police personnel, four Maoists and two civilians were reported killed in clashes. Security personnel, including Chief District Officer Bhojraj Adhikari, were abducted[13] and later released. A high alert was sounded along the 800-kilometre (500 mi) Indo-Nepal border immediately after the incident. Across the border in India, a joint Sashastra Seema Bal and CRPF team maintained surveillance on the border to thwart any further attacks.[14]

On September 13, 2013, 10 people were injured (three critically) when a bomb exploded in a district office at about 11:45 am. Office records were destroyed in the ensuing fire.[15]

Earthquakes

Although Malangwa experienced severe tremors from the April 2015 Nepal earthquake, it had no significant damage. However, the town was destroyed by the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake.

Sports

The most popular sports in Malangwa are cricket and football. For sports, Two playgrounds are used mostly for sports: Covered Hall & DDC Field.

Transport

Malangwa, 204.1 kilometres (126.8 mi) by road from Kathmandu, is connected to other parts of the country by bus. Bus service runs to Kathmandu, Birgunj, Janakpurdham, Pokhara, Biratnagar, Dharan, Gaur, and Bharatpur, and the town has one of Nepal's largest bus stations. The Malangwa-Nawalpur Highway (MG Highway) joins the East-West Highway at Lalbandi, connecting Malangwa to all major Nepalese cities.

The nearest domestic airport, Janakpur Airport, is in Dhanusha District; Nijgadh International Airport is under construction in Nijgadh.[16] International passengers use Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport for international flight.

All major cities of India may be reached on Indian Railways, and the government of India has built a four-lane highway from Sonbarsha to Patna. The Sitamarhi Junction railway station is about 36 kilometres (22 mi) from Malangwa, and tanga and rickshaw service is available to go across the border.

Cycles, rickshaws and taxis serve the city center, and auto rickshaws are available for longer distances. Electric rickshaws are popular.

Tourism

Durga Devi temple

A number of tourists access the border connection with India and visit temples in Malangwa like Malangbaba, Durga Devi Temple, Rajdevi Temple, etc.

Notable residents

• Bishwonath Upadhyaya
• Rajendra Mahato
• Abdur Rahim Mikrani

References

1. General Bureau of Statistics, Kathmandu, Nepal, Nov. 2012
2. "Malangwa, Nepal". Falling Rain Genomics. Archived from the original on 25 August 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
3. Central Bureau of Statistics, Kathmandu, Nepal, November 2012.
4. The Map of Potential Vegetation of Nepal – a forestry/agroecological/biodiversity classification system (PDF), Forest & Landscape Development and Environment Series 2-2005 and CFC-TIS Document Series No.110, 2005, ISBN 87-7903-210-9, retrieved Nov 22, 2013
5. Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (2006). Climatological Records of Nepal (Several Volumes), Babarmahal, Kathmandu.
6. "Malangwa Municipality – मलङ्गवा नगरपालिका | नेपाल सरकार". malangwamun.gov.np. Retrieved 2015-09-04.
7. "MOFA".
8. "Malangwa under attack". Dawn. Karachi. Reuters. April 7, 2006. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
9. "Nepal shuts down on protest of Maoist attack".
10. "Sarlahi under terror".
11. "Terror attack in Nepal".
12. "Air war".
13. "Maoist attack".
14. "Joint operation of SSB and CRPF".
15. "Blast in Survey office". Archived from the original on 2015-01-12.
16. "Nijgadh International Airport".