| Voice of Dhanbad District
: H P Thakkur
There is frequent load shedding in our district. For major part
of the day, we are without electricity.
Roads are not well maintained. But now government has started taking
a note of it.
There are some areas which face acute water shortage.
People from the lowest strata are completely illiterate. Women literacy
is also very poor. Government should not ignore this issue.
Dhanbad District
Area, Population & Sex Ratio
Geographical Area : 2052.0 Km2
Population in Dhanbad (Census 2011)
Total Population
Total : 2682662
Male : 1405847
Female : 1276815
Disabled population
Total disabled population : 43013
In seeing : 20446
In speech : 3723
In hearing : 2220
In movement : 11539
Mental : 5085
Rank ( VoiceOfBharat.org Analysis
)
Backwardness : Does not figure in list of 447 backward
districts
Disability : 202 (Census 2001)
Minority : Does not figure in MCD
Literacy Ratio : 248 (Census 2001)
Sex Ratio Rank : 94
(Rank one is least sex ratio - Cenus 2001)
HIV Category District : C
(HIV Sentinel Surveillance 2004 - 2006)
Brief About Dhanbad District
Dhanbad district was constituted in 1956 by carving
out the old Dhanbad subdivision Chas and Chandankiyari police stations
of the Sadar subdivision of the erstwhile Manbhum district. Dhanbad
is Police district since 1928. The re-organisation of the districts
in the State of Bihar which took place after 1971 did not affect
the district of Dhanbad. Dhanbad Municipality is the chief town
and the headquarters of the district. In the year 1991,Bokaro District
was constituted by carving out Chas Sub-division of Dhanbad district
and Bermo Sub-division of Giridih District.
The district is bounded on the west by Giridih
and Bokaro on the north by Giridih and Dumka and on the east and
south by Purulia district of West Bengal. The early
history of the greater part of the Chotanagpur plateau is shrouded
in mystery and that of Dhanbad district is particularly so. Details
of even later periods are difficult to trace as the present district
formed but a small and insignificant part of Manbhum. In the Settlement
Report for Manbhum (1928) it has been stated that no rock inscriptions,
copper plates or old coins were discovered and not a single document
of copper plate or palm leaf was found in course of the Survey and
Settlement operations. The oldest authentic documents produced were
all on paper and barely even a hundred years old.
In view of these circumstances the District Gazetteer
for Dhanbad (1964) merely reproduces the chapter on history in the
Settlement Report of 1928 which pertains to the entire district
of Manbhum. It was a small village of the erstwhile
district of Manbhum which had its headquarter in Purulia (now in
West Bengal). Manbhum in turn, derived its name from Raja Man Singh
who was gifted this territory by Emperor Akbar , following his victory
in a certain battle. The district being extremely vast and far-flung
soon got divided into Birbhum, Manbhum and Singhbhum, for administrative
purposes. However, on 24.10.56
Dhanbad was declared a District on the Recommendation of the
State Reconstitution Commission vide notification 1911
. Its geographical length , extending from North to South
, was 43 miles and breadth , 47 miles , stretching across East to
West . In 1991 a part of Dhanbad was sliced away from Bokaro
district , diminishing thereby its total area to 2995 Sq.Kms.
Earlier , the district was
split into two sub - divisions - Dhanbad Sadar and Baghmara.
The former incorporated 6 blocks , while the latter had four and
together they enclosed 30 Nagar Palikas, 228 Panchayats and
1654 villages . The then vastness of the district called for two
police headquarters , based at Bokaro and Dhanbad respectively.
Meanwhile , the district as its stands today , has only one sub-division
called the Dhanbad Sadar. There are presently , 8 blocks here viz.
Jharia , Baghmara, Dhanbad, Nirsa, Govindpur, Baliapur, Tundi, and
Topchanchi. The blocks in turn have 181 panchayats and 1348
villages. As per the 1991 Census, the total population of the districts
stands at 19,49,526 of which the number of males have been recorded
as 10,71,913 along with 8,77,613 females.
There are 100850 acres of hillocks and 56454 acres of forests. It
is about 500-1000 feet above Sea level. Its soil is , by and large
lateritic in nature.
LOCATION
The Dhanbad district is situated in the state of
Jharkhand and lies between 23o37'3" N and 24o4'
N latitude and between 86o6'30" E and 86o50'
E longitude.
Natural Divisions
The district can be divided into three broad
natural divisions, viz., (I) the north and north western portions
consisting of the hilly region, (ii) the uplands containing coal
mines and most of the industries and (iii) the remaining uplands
and plains lying to the south of the Damodar river consisting of
cultivable flat lands . The north and north western division is
separated for the entire length by the Grand trunk road.
In the western middle part of the district are
the Dhangi hills, situated in the strip falling between the Grand
trunk road in the north and the Grand chord line of the Eastern
Rly. In the south, these hills extend from Pradhankhanta to Govindpur,
reaching a maximum altitude of 1,256 feet at Dhangi.Further north,
a branch of the Parasnath hill runs through Topchanchi and Tundi,
the highest point of 1,500 feet being reached at Lalki. The southern
part of the district is largely comprised of undulating land. The
general slope is from west to east, the direction followed by the
two major rivers, Damodar and Barakar .
Rivers
The Damodar is the most important river of the
Chotanagpur plateau. It rises in Palamu and flows eastward between
the plateaus of Ranchi and Hazaribag. It is joined by
the Bokaro, the Konar and the Barakar rivers. The Damodar enters
Dhanbad district at its confluence with the Jamuria, a stream which
marks the western boundary of Dhanbad with Hazaribagh District.
Further east, the Damodar is joined by the Katri River which rises
in the foot hills below Parasnath and traverses through the Coal-field
Area. The Damodar flows for about 77 Km. through the district being
joined by the Barakar at its eastern border near Chirkunda. The
Panchet dam extending to roughly 6 Kms. is built on river Damodar.
The hydel station there generates 40,000 K.W. per hour.
The Barakar, which forms the northern boundary
of the district, traverses about 77 Kms. In the district. It flows
in south westerly direction up to Durgapur and then south till it
joins the Damodar near Chirkuda. The Maithon dam is located on this
river about 13 Kms. off its confluence with the Damodar. Attached
to it is the Maithan Power Station with a generating capacity of
60,000 K.W.H.
Among other small rivers in the district
are Gobai, the Irji, the Khudia besides the river Katri.
Climatic conditions
The
climate of the district is characterised by general dryness. It
is very pleasant during the cold weather from November to February.
Thereafter the climate becomes warm. It remains hot until the monsoon
breaks towards the middle of June. With the setting in of rains
the temperature falls and humidity rises, July to October are the
rainy months. July and August are the wettest months. The average
rainfall during July is 287 mm and that in August 445 mm. The average
annual rain fall in the district is approximately 1300mm.
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