Capital : Ranchi

Districts :22

Languages: Hindi, Santhali and other tribal languages and English

Introduction to Jharkhand

Indian parliament passed the Bihar Reorganization Bill on August,

2, 2000 to create the state of Jharkhand. The state comprises of
twenty-two districts of the erstwhile Bihar (eighteen at the time
of bifurcation). With an area of 74,677 Sq km, the new state is
bordered by Bihar, Chattisgarh, Orissa, and West Bengal to its
north, west, south and east respectively. Around 35% of the
population of former Bihar is in the Jharkhand region.

Geography of Jharkhand

Jharkhand is located in the eastern part of India bordering the

states of Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa, and Chattisgarh. Tropic of
Cancer passes through Kanke, few kilometers away from Ranchi,
the capital of Jharkhand, making it the only state in India touched
by Tropic of Cancer. Most of the Jharkhand region is part of
Chotanagpur plateau, which also extends to some parts of West
Bengal, Chattisgarh, and Orissa. This region is made up of
ancient stone Arkiyan Granite Tatanis.

Brief History of Jharkhand

Jharkhand share its history with Bihar and was part of the great
empires of Nandas, Mauryas, Sungas and Guptas. In the 13th
century, Raja Jai Singh Deo of Orissa had declared himself the
ruler of Jharkhand. However, during the medieval period,
Jharkhand rarely enjoyed the status of an independent state;
rather it swayed with the fortunes of Delhi, Jaunpur and Bengal.
For a long time, Jharkhand was remained as a part of Bihar, but
after Indian independence, the demand for a separate state of
tribals started gaining momentum. Jharkhand became a state
under the Republic of India on November 15, 2000 and now it is
poised for a great leap forward.

Districts of Jharkhand

The state was formed with 18 districts, which were formerly part
of Bihar. Some of these districts were reorganized to form 4 new
districts, namely, Latehar, Saraikela Kharsawan, Jamtara and
Sahebgunj. Presently, the state has 22 districts Districts: Ranchi,
Lohardaga, Gumla district, Simdega, Palamu, Latehar, Garhwa,
West Singhbhum, Seraikela Kharsawan, East Singhbhum, Dumka,
Jamtara, Sahebganj, Pakur, Godda, Hazaribagh, Chatra,
Koderma, Giridih, Dhanbad, Bokaro & Deoghar,

Economy of Jharkhand

Born out of partition from old Bihar state in 2000, Jharkhand

produces about 40% of the output of the old Bihar state. Being
rich in minerals, the state is one the most industrialized regions
of the country today. The region accounts for 35.5% of the
country's known coal reserves, 90% of its cooking coal deposits,
40% of its copper, 22% of its iron ore, 90% of its mica and huge
deposits of bauxite, quartz and ceramics. It is home to the largest
steel plant in Bokaro, apart from Jamshedpur being practically the
city of TISCO and TELCO. There are other important companies
such as HEC in Ranchi and MECON in Ranchi, which are
contributing to the growth of the state. Agriculture was never the
mainstay of economy in the region of Jharkhand but almost 80%
of the population in this mineral-rich state is dependent on
agriculture. Rice is the major crop in the state with pulses and
wheat being the other ones. The state is focusing on increasing
the land under cultivation, development of the irrigation facilities,
and development of agriculture-related business.

Travel Information of Jharkhand

Ranchi, the capital city of state has its old world colonial charm
even now. On the outskirts of Ranchi lies the famous Tagore Hill,
named after Rabindranath Tagore who is believed to have written
a part of his famous Gitanjali here, besides other poems. At the
other end of Ranchi is the Kanke Dam, which is ever crowded
with tourists. A few kilometers from the dam is the 17th century
Jagannath Temple where the annual Ratha Yatra is held in the
month of June/July. On Ranchi - Hazaribagh road is the War
Cemetery, which is the smallest ‘concentration’ cemetery in India
with a total of 708 burials, which includes a soldier of the army of
undivided India, besides various other countrymen who fought for
the British cause. The graves are well classified and all of them
deserve attention for their appealing epitaphs. Mc Cluskieganj is a
small village near Ranch. It evokes nostalgia and one gradually
discovers that the place was once popular with the Anglo-Indian
community. Filmmakers have taken note not only of the
spectacular natural beauty, clean air and extravagant greenery,
but also of the village itself, a heady mix of the untamed and the
sophisticated. Some of the houses here have retained their
English names together with the epitaph of ‘haunted house’.
During the 1950s, there were no less than 100 Anglo Indian
families with their typical cottages, clubs and shops. There are
many other destinations worth a visit such as Betla National Park
(Palamau), Hazaribagh Wildlife Sanctuary, Netarhat, Rajrappa,
Parasnath, Deoghar.

Rivers of Jharkhand

The principal rivers are the Damodar, the Suvarnarekha, the

Barakar and the Koel.

Education in Jharkhand

The literacy rate of Jharkhand is 54.13% according to census in

2001. Jharkhand has a network of government and privately run
schools, although standards of teaching vary considerably from
place to place, as also from school to school. It has some of the
best schools in country, namely DAV Shyamali, Ranchi, DPS
Ranchi, Denobli Sindri, Denobili School, Mugma, Dhanbad, Loyola
School, Jamshedpur and Little Flower School, Jamshedpur.
Jharkhand has 7 Universities: Ranchi University, Ranchi; Sidhhu
Kanhu University, Dumka; Binova Bhave University, Hazaribagh;
Birsa Agricultural University, Kanke, Ranchi; Birla Institute of
Technology, Ranchi, National Institute of Technology, Jamshedpur
and the Indian School Of Mines, Dhanbad. There are three
medical colleges in Jharkhand namely Rajendra Institute Of
Medical Sciences (RIMS) at Ranchi, M.G.M. Medical College
Jamshedpur and Patliputra Medical College And Hospital (PMCH)
at Dhanbad. The famous business school Xavier Labour Relations
Institute (XLRI) is at Jamshedpur.

Food of Jharkhand

Rice is the most important part of any meal in the Jharkhand

while pulses and vegetables add immense value to it. Bread is
generally taken at the time of dinner with pulses and vegetables
again. Tribal population makes their own local brew Hanria, made
of rice that has a hard smell. Initially tribes of this region were
more into hunting and wild animals, but nowadays most of them
are into agriculture and hunting is limited to a very small
segment of the population.

Arts & Culture of Jharkhand

Jharkhand is home to several tribes. They not only differ

considerably from the non-tribal population but from one another
as well. The most ancient among them are the Mundas, while the
Santhals were the last of the tribes to settle in Jharkhand. Unlike
the dark brown or almost black complexion of most of the
aboriginals, Cheros are light brown and bear Dravidian
physiognomy, as they appear to have migrated from the sub-
Himalayan tract. Other tribes are Hos, Oraon, Karias, Birhors,
Sauria, Paharias, Mal Paharias, Birjias, Asurs, Bhumijs, etc.

The tribal society of Jharkhand has rich tradition of arts and crafts
that is quite visible in the rock paintings of this region that dates
back to more than 5000 years. The best place to experience the
arts and craft traditions of this state is Tribal Research Institute
and Museum at Ranchi. The tribes of Jharkhand are expert in
making plates made up of Sal leaves joined together by tiny
sticks. You can also have a taste of local brews like Mahua and
Hanaria that flow like water in this region.

Dance & Music of Jharkhand

Dance and music are integral part of tribal life in Jharkhand.

Every festival for the tribes in this state is an opportunity to enjoy
with music and dance going on continuously and without any
hindrances. Most of the community dance and music takes place
on the occasion of Sarhul, the most important tribal festivals. For
community dance and music celebrations, a large expanse of land
is left in most of the villages.

Festivals of Jharkhand

Sarhul is the most important festival of all the tribes in

Jharkhand, though the way to celebrate the festival is slightly
different from one to another. Sarhul, which also means Sal tree
blossom, makes the tribal communities worship the tree of Sal to
seek the blessings of their spirits. The festival is marked by
extensive dance and music programs and unhindered drinking of
Hanria (a local brew made of rice). Mukka Sendra is another
festival that is celebrated just ones in every twelve years by
Oraon women. During this festival, women of the tribe wear all
the male cloths and gears and explore the entire region to hunt
for animals. The hunting process continues for entire day and
they can kill any animal whether it is a pet or wild one.