Saharsa
Saharsa is a city and a municipality in the Saharsa district in the eastern part of the state of Bihar, India. It is situated near the eastern banks of the Kosi River. It serves as the administrative headquarters for Saharsa District and is also the (Divisional Headquarter) of the Kosi Division of the state of Bihar, which includes Saharsa, Madhepura and Supaul districts.
Saharsa Saharsa city | |
|---|---|
City | |
| Saharsa | |
 Saharsa Mandir | |
  Saharsa Location in Bihar, India | |
| Coordinates: 25.88°N 86.6°E | |
| Country |  |
| State | Bihar |
| Region | Mithila |
| District | Saharsa |
| Government | |
| • Type | Saharsa Municipality |
| Area | |
| • Total | 21 km2 (8 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 41 m (135 ft) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 156,540 |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Maithili, Hindi, Urdu, English, Sanskrit |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| PIN | 852201-852154-852221-852127 |
| Telephone code | 916478 |
| ISO 3166 code | IN-BR |
| Vehicle registration | BR-19 |
| Sex ratio | 933 females per 1000 males ♂/♀ |
| Lok Sabha constituency | Madhepura |
| Vidhan Sabha constituency | Saharsa |
| Website | saharsa |
The name Saharsa originates from the Sanskrit word Saharsha meaning 'laden with joy'. The city has a significant number of Maithili speakers. Alongside Maithili, Hindi is widely understood and spoken.
History
Saharsa is part of the Mithila region,[1] which first gained prominence after settlement by Indo-Aryan tribes that established the Mithila Kingdom (also known as the Kingdom of the Videhas).[2] During the late Vedic period (c. 1100–500 BCE), Videhas developed as one of the major political and cultural centres of South Asia, along with Kuru and Pañcāla. The kings of the Videhas Kingdom were referred to as Janakas.[3]
The Videha Kingdom was later incorporated into the Vajji confederacy, which had its capital in the city Vaishali, which is also located in Mithila.[4]
In the 20th century, Saharsa district was part of the Munger and Bhagalpur districts. On 1 April 1954 it was made a district of its own. It was also made the headquarters of Kosi division composed of Saharsa, Purnia and Katihar district, with its headquarters at Saharsa, on 2 October 1972. A new Civil Sub-Division Birpur consisting of 24 development blocks, including Raghopur, Chhatapur, Basantpur and Nirmali, which were previously under Supaul subdivision of the district, was created on 1 December 1972. Two new districts, Madhepura and Supaul, were formed from Saharsa district on 30 April 1981 and 1991. Saharsa district now consists of two subdivisions; Saharsa Sadar and Simri Bakhtiarpur. The district consists of 10 development blocks and anchals each.
Economy
Agriculture
It is the major producer of best quality of Corn and Makhana in India.From Saharsa corn and Makhana are exported abroad countries like America, Australia, France, Japan, England. Every year 2 lakhs tonnes of corn are exported to different countries and similarly Makhana also. The following crops are grown in the region; Makhana ,[5] rice, mangoes, litchi, bamboo, mustard, corn, wheat and sugarcane. Sagwan or Teak |Tectona Grandis| trees are now grown on a large scale.
Air Transport
Rajbiraj Airport is the nearest operational airport roughly 102 km away and can be easily accessed via Kunauli border cross. Shree Airlines operates daily flights between Rajbiraj and Kathmandu[6]
Geography
Saharsa is located at 25.88°N 86.6°E.[7] It has an average elevation of 41 metres (134 feet). Saharsa and its surrounding areas occupy a flat alluvial plain forming part of the Kosi river basin. The town lies in the Kosi alluvial megafan, one of the largest alluvial fans in the world. The land is very fertile but frequent changes in the course of the Kosi, one of the largest tributaries of the Ganges,[8][9] have led to the problems associated with soil erosion. Flooding is a major reason for the poor connectivity of the area; bridges are often washed away. Major flooding occurs almost annually, causing a significant loss of life and property.[10]
Rivers
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The Koshi River and its tributaries flood annually, affecting about 21,000 km2 (8,100 sq mi) of fertile agricultural lands and affecting the rural economy. This is the most devastating river of Bihar, earning it the epithet "Sorrow of Bihar".[11]
The Bagmati River regularly breaches its embankments and frequently changes its meandering courses. The annual rate of deposition of alluvium is very high.. The Gandak River also flows through the southern part of Saharsa.
Notable villages
Demographics
In 2011, Saharsa had population of 1,897,102, of which male and female were 995,502 and 901,600 respectively. There was change of 25.79 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Saharsa District recorded increase of 33.03 percent to its population compared to 1991.
The initial provisional data suggest a density of 1,125 in 2011 compared to 895 of 2001. Total area under Saharsa district is of about 1,686 square kilometres (651 sq mi).
Average literacy rate of Saharsa in 2011 were 54.57 compared to 39.08 of 2001. Male and female literacy were 65.22 and 42.73 respectively. For 2001 census, the same figures stood at 51.66 and 25.27 in Saharsa District. Total literate in Saharsa District were 829,206 of which male and female were 521,560 and 307,646 respectively. In 2001, Saharsa District had 465,577 in its total region.
The sex ratio in Saharsa stood at 906 female per 1000 male compared to 2001 census figure of 910. The average national sex ratio in India is 940 as per latest reports of Census 2011 Directorate.[12]
Communication links
Saharsa Junction is a railway station on the East Central Railway. It Covers up to Purnia Junction, Forbesganj Station and Khagaria Junction. In early 2005, a much-awaited broad gauge line connected it to Khagaria on the New Delhi-Guwahati main line. Earlier there was only a metre gauge line on the Khagaria – Mansi – Forbesganj section of the East Central Railway. Saharsa is directly connected to New Delhi, Sealdah,kolkata, Amritsar, Bandra and Ranchi via Train.
Saharsa is connected by railway and roadways to other major towns in Bihar But NH's are full of potholes, not in driving conditions. 
Saharsa does not have air transport service, though there is an airstrip reserved for government use. Dr. Rajendra Prasad National Airport is nearby. Purnia Airport is the nearest airport but it is not in commercial use. It is use by Indian Air Force. But in future flight service will resume.Darbhanga airport is going to be nearest operational airport. The city is also served by India Post. Its Postal Code is: 852201.
_in_Mahishi%2C_Near_Saharsa_Town.jpg)
Educational Institutes
- Snehi Sangeetalaya
- ANSS High school saharsa (jail colony)
- Lord Buddha Koshi Medical College and Hospital
- Benevolent Global Public School[14]
- Buddha Public School
- Creative Mind Residential School
- CTE Saharsa
- Darjeeling Public School
- DAV Central School, Saharsa
- Delhi Public School[15]
- Doon Public School *
- East N West Teachers Training College
- Eklavya Central School[16]
- Evening college
- Global English Medium School
- Green Field School
- Indian High School saharsa[17]
- ITI Saharsa
- Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya - JNV Saharsa
- Jay Pratap Singh Public School[18]
- Kendriya Vidiyalaya Saharsa[19]
- Kid Care School, Saharsa Bihar
- Manohar High School
- Master Mind Public School[20]* Govt. Girls High School
- Middle School Sulindabad
- मिलेनियम किड्स अकादमी स्कूल - शिवपुरी, सहरसा.
- MLT College Saharsa
- Mukami Mission Academy
- R.M.M. Law College
- Rachana Public School
- Rajendra Mishra College
- S M Carmel School
- Sarvodaya Public School
- Shanti Mission Academy[21]
- Shanti Niketan Shikshan Sansthan
- S.R.M School[22]
- SNSRKS College
- St Paul's School
- St. Micheal Academy
- St.Xavier[23]
- Tagore Residential School
- Tuition Bureau
- Vairagya International Public School
- Vimal Bharti School
- Zila Girls High School
- Green Crescent Children's Academy
- +2 Islamia High School
- Zila Boys School Saharsa
- Excellence Residential Academy
Notable people
- Mandana Mishra Maithil philosopher, defeated Adi Shankaracharya
- Bindheshwari Prasad Mandal, Chief Minister of Bihar
- Dinesh Chandra Yadav Minister, Government of Bihar
- Baldev Mishra Writer
- Mehi, Saint
- Jamshedpur Gopeshwar, Politician
- Anwar Ahmad Khan Vice Chancellor of Ranchi University
- Ulka Gupta, Actress
- Choudhary Mehboob Ali kaiser, Politician
See also
- List of cities in Bihar
- Majhaul
- Nauhatta
- Shankarpur
- Chainpur
References
- Jha, Makhan (1997). Anthropology of Ancient Hindu Kingdoms: A Study in Civilizational Perspective. ISBN 9788175330344.
- Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 13, 17 116–124, 141–143
- Witzel, M. (1989). "Tracing the Vedic dialects". In Caillat, C. (ed.). Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes. Paris: Fondation Hugot. pp. 141–143.
- Hemchandra, R. (1972). Political History of Ancient India. Calcutta: University of Calcutta.
- http://ces.iisc.ernet.in/energy/Lake2002abs/ses124.html
- Falling Rain Genomics, Inc – Saharsa
- http://ponce.sdsu.edu/kosi_river_india.html
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 June 2007. Retrieved 30 October 2006.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- Bihar Flood
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 September 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2006.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- An official Census detail of Saharsa, a district of Bihar has been released by Directorate of Census Operations in Bihar. Enumeration of key persons was also done by census officials in Saharsa District of Bihar.
- Per kilometre Cost for Bihar Archived 19 June 2007 at Archive.today
- [ Benevolent Global Public School]
- Delhi Public School
- Eklavya Central School
- Indian High School saharsa
- Jay Pratap Singh Public School
- Kendriya Vidiyalaya Saharsa
- Master Mind Public School
- Shanti Mission Academy
- S.R.M School
- St.Xavier