Rajpur Sonarpur (Bengali: [ɾɑːd͡ʒpuɾ soːnɑːɾpuɾ]) is a city and a municipality of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA).[3]

Rajpur Sonarpur
Sonarpur Junction Railway Station
Sonarpur Junction Railway Station
Map
Interactive map outlining Rajpur Sonarpur
Rajpur Sonarpur is located in West Bengal
Rajpur Sonarpur
Rajpur Sonarpur
Location in West Bengal
Rajpur Sonarpur is located in India
Rajpur Sonarpur
Rajpur Sonarpur
Location in India
Rajpur Sonarpur is located in Asia
Rajpur Sonarpur
Rajpur Sonarpur
Location in Asia
Rajpur Sonarpur is located in Earth
Rajpur Sonarpur
Rajpur Sonarpur
Location in Earth
Coordinates: 22°26′27″N 88°25′29″E / 22.4408748°N 88.4246368°E / 22.4408748; 88.4246368
Country India
State West Bengal
DivisionPresidency
DistrictSouth 24 Parganas
Government
 • TypeMunicipality
 • BodyRajpur Sonarpur Municipality
Area
 • Total
49.26 km2 (19.02 sq mi)
Elevation
9 m (30 ft)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total
424,368
 • Density8,600/km2 (22,000/sq mi)
Demographics
 • Literacy90.14 per cent
 • Sex ratio970 /
Languages
 • OfficialBengali[1][2]
 • Additional officialEnglish[1]
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
700070, 700084, 700094, 700096, 700103, 700145, 700146, 700147, 700148, 700149, 700150, 700151, 700152, 700153, 700154
Telephone code+91 33
Vehicle registrationWB-19, WB-20, WB-95, WB-96, WB-97, WB-98
Lok Sabha constituencyJadavpur
Vidhan Sabha constituencySonarpur Uttar, Sonarpur Dakshin
Websiterajpursonarpurmunicipality.in

History

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Many janapadas grew up along the old Bhagirathi channel from the ancient times till around the 16th century: Kalighat, Boral, Rajpur, Harinavi, Mahinagar, Baruipur, Baharu, Jaynagar, Majilpur, Chhatrabhog etc. Bipradas Pipilai's Manasavijaya, composed in 1495, mentions many places in this region. "Chand Sadagar, a merchant character of the Manasavijaya, reached Baruipur, from Kalighat, through the old Bhagirathi channel. From there he proceeded towards Chhatrabhog, and then traveling through Hatiagarh pargana reached the open sea". Chaitanyadeva (1486–1534) also went through this route. Travelling by boat to Puri he halted at the village of Atisara, near Baruipur. "His last stoppage in 24 Parganas was at Chhatrabhog, now a village within the jurisdiction of the Mathurapur police station. Chhatrabhog seems to have been an important river-port on the old Bhagirathi channel". Rama Chandra Khan, the zamindar of Chhatrabhog, helped Chaitanyadeva to continue with his journey.[4]

The area was home to the feudatory landlords (zamindars). The name Rajpur has been thus derived from the Bengali words Rajar Puri to Rajpuri and in this form to the now Rajpur. Being on the banks of the Adi Ganga, Rajpur was one of the major locations of Bengal at that time. The proximity to Kolkata's southern district and being on the banks of Adi Ganga, which is just across the river made the place to be well connected. The old zamindar's house in Rajpur Harinavi is like the Roy Choudhury's. The family stayed in Rajpur. The ancestral houses of Sarat Chandra Bose and Subhash Chandra Bose were at Kodalia, a neighbourhood in Rajpur. Both of them were members of the first 24 Parganas District Committee of the Congress Party, which was formed in 1921.[5]

Geography

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8km
5miles
Harinavi
N
Jirongachhi
R
Nalmuri
R
Uttar Kasipur
R
Bantala
R
Gobindapur
CT
Bhangar Raghunathpur
CT
Maricha
CT
Subhashgram
N
Narendrapur
N
Rajpur Sonarpur
M
Sahebpur
CT
Chak Baria
CT
Kalikapur
CT
Bidyadharpur
CT
Ramchandrapur
CT
Danga
CT
Radhanagar
CT
Cities and towns in the northern part of Baruipur subdivision (including Sonarpur, Bhangar I & II CD blocks) in South 24 Parganas district
M: municipal city/ town, CT: census town, R: rural/ urban centre, N: neighbourhood
Owing to space constraints in the small map, the actual locations in a larger map may vary slightly

Area overview

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Baruipur subdivision is a rural subdivision with moderate levels of urbanization. 31.05% of the population lives in the urban areas and 68.95% lives in the rural areas. In the northern portion of the subdivision (shown in the map alongside) there are 10 census towns. The entire district is situated in the Ganges Delta and the northern part of the subdivision is a flat plain bordering the metropolis of Kolkata.[6][7][8]

Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.

Location

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Rajpur Sonarpur is located at 22°26′27″N 88°25′29″E / 22.4408748°N 88.4246368°E / 22.4408748; 88.4246368. It has an average elevation of 9 metres (30 ft).[9][10]

Danga and Ramchandrapur are adjacent to Rajpur Sonarpur on its south-eastern side, as per the map of the Sonarpur CD block in the District Census Handbook 2011 for the South 24 Parganas district.[11]

Petua, Panchghara, Mallikpur and Hariharpur form a cluster of census towns in the Baruipur CD block, as per the map of the Baruipur CD block in the District Census Handbook 2011 for the South 24 Parganas district.[12] This cluster has Rajpur Sonarpur on the east and Bidyadharpur on the north, both in the Sonarpur CD block, as per the map of the Sonarpur CD block in the District Census Handbook 2011 for South 24 Parganas district.[13]

Climate

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Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as tropical wet and dry (Aw).

Climate data for Rajpur Sonarpur
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 25.4
(77.7)
27.7
(81.9)
31.4
(88.5)
33.1
(91.6)
33.4
(92.1)
32.3
(90.1)
30.7
(87.3)
30.8
(87.4)
31.2
(88.2)
30.8
(87.4)
28.1
(82.6)
25.1
(77.2)
30.0
(86.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) 19.9
(67.8)
22.7
(72.9)
27
(81)
29.3
(84.7)
30
(86)
29.5
(85.1)
28.5
(83.3)
28.6
(83.5)
28.5
(83.3)
27.5
(81.5)
23.5
(74.3)
20
(68)
26.3
(79.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 14.5
(58.1)
17.7
(63.9)
22.6
(72.7)
25.6
(78.1)
26.7
(80.1)
26.8
(80.2)
26.4
(79.5)
26.4
(79.5)
25.9
(78.6)
24.2
(75.6)
19
(66)
14.6
(58.3)
22.5
(72.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 14
(0.6)
17
(0.7)
20
(0.8)
34
(1.3)
96
(3.8)
244
(9.6)
323
(12.7)
322
(12.7)
321
(12.6)
172
(6.8)
30
(1.2)
1
(0.0)
1,594
(62.8)
Source: Climate-Data.org (altitude: 9 m)[14]

Demographics

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Population

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Historical population
YearPop.±%
1901 10,713—    
1911 11,607+8.3%
1921 11,412−1.7%
1931 11,433+0.2%
1941 13,614+19.1%
1951 16,310+19.8%
1961 24,812+52.1%
1971 34,393+38.6%
1981 43,985+27.9%
1991 60,175+36.8%
2001 336,707+459.5%
2011 424,368+26.0%
Source: Census of India[15]

According to the 2011 Census of India, Rajpur Sonarpur had a total population of 424,368, of which 215,405 (51%) were males and 208,963 (49%) were females. It had a population density of 8,615 inhabitants per square kilometre (22,310/sq mi) with a sex ratio of 970 females for every 1000 males. There were 35,274 persons in the age range of 0 to 6 years. The Scheduled Castes numbered 78,655 (18.53%) and the Scheduled Tribes numbered 2,340 (0.55%). The total number of literate persons was 350,721 (90.14% of the population over 6 years) out of which males numbered 183,918 (93.23% of the male population over 6 years) and females numbered 166,803 (86.96% of the female population over 6 years). Rajpur Sonarpur had a total of 106,604 households as of 2011.[16]

Language

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Languages of Rajpur Sonarpur (2011)[17]

  Bengali (96.68%)
  Hindi (2.96%)
  Urdu (0.35%)
  Others (0.01%)

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 96.68% of the population spoke Bengali, 2.96% Hindi and 0.35% Urdu as their first language.[17]

Religion

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Religion in Rajpur Sonarpur (2011)[18]
Religion Percent
Hinduism
89.34%
Islam
9.25%
Christianity
0.40%
Sikhism
0.10%
Buddhism
0.04%
Jainism
0.02%
Others or not stated
0.85%

According to the 2011 Census of India, 89.34% of the population is Hindu, 9.25% Muslim, 0.40% Christian, 0.10% Sikh, 0.04% Buddhist and 0.02% Jain. 0.85% did not state a religion in the census.[18]

Civic administration

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Municipality

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Rajpur Sonarpur Municipality covers an area of 49.26 km2 (19.02 sq mi). It has jurisdiction over the entire city of Rajpur Sonarpur. The municipality was established in 1876; 149 years ago (1876). It is divided into 35 administrative wards. According to the 2022 municipal election, it is being controlled by the All India Trinamool Congress.[19][20]

Police station

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Sonarpur police station covers an area of 169.816 km2 (65.566 sq mi). It has jurisdiction over parts of the Rajpur Sonarpur Municipality, and the Sonarpur CD block.[21][22]

CD block HQ

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The headquarters of the Sonarpur CD block are located at Rajpur Sonarpur.[23]

Transport

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Rajpur Sonarpur is on the State Highway 1.[24]

Sonarpur Junction railway station is on the Sealdah–Namkhana line of the Kolkata Suburban Railway.[24][25]

Commuters

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With the electrification of the railways, suburban traffic has grown tremendously since the 1960s. As of 2005-06, more than 1.7 million (17 lakhs) commuters use the Kolkata Suburban Railway system daily. After the partition of India, refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan and Bangladesh had a strong impact on the development of urban areas in the periphery of Kolkata. The new immigrants depended on Kolkata for their livelihood, thus increasing the number of commuters. Eastern Railway runs 1,272 EMU trains daily.[26]

Education

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  • Sonarpur Mahavidyalaya, established in 1985, is affiliated with the University of Calcutta. It offers honours courses in Bengali, English, Sanskrit, history, political science, philosophy, economics, geography, education, mathematics and accounting & finance, and general degree courses in arts, science, and commerce.[27]
  • Narendrapur Ramakrishna Mission Residential College, established in 1960, is affiliated with the University of Calcutta. It offers honours courses in Bengali, English, Sanskrit, history, political science, philosophy, economics, geography, education, mathematics and accounting & finance, and general degree courses in arts, science, and commerce.[28]
  • Future Institute of Engineering and Management, established in 2001, offers diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in Engineering and Technology and other allied fields.[29]
  • Netaji Subhash Engineering College, established in 1998, offers diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in Engineering and Technology and other allied fields.[30]
  • Meghnad Saha Institute of Technology, established in 2001, offers diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in Engineering and Technology and other allied fields.[31]
  • Harinavi DVAS High School is a Bengali-medium coeducational school. It was established in 1866 and has facilities for teaching from class V to class XII.
  • B.D.M International is an English-medium coeducational school. It was established in 1966 and has facilities for teaching from class I to class XII.[32]

Healthcare

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Sonarpur Rural Hospital, with 25 beds, is the major government medical facility in the Rajpur Sonarpur.[33]

Notable people

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Fact and Figures". Wb.gov.in. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  2. ^ "52nd Report of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in India" (PDF). Nclm.nic.in. Ministry of Minority Affairs. p. 85. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  3. ^ "Base Map of Kolkata Metropolitan Area". Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2007.
  4. ^ "District Human Development Report: South 24 Parganas". Pages 3-4, Chapter I: South 24 Parganas: An overview. Department of Planning and Statistics, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  5. ^ "District Human Development Report: South 24 Parganas". Page 7, Chapter I: South 24 Parganas: An overview. Department of Planning and Statistics, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  6. ^ "District Statistical Handbook 2014 South Twety-four Parganas". Table 2.1, 2.2, 2.4b. Department of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of West Bengal. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  7. ^ "Census of India 2011, West Bengal, District Census Handbook, South Twentyfour Parganas, Series – 20, Part XII-A, Village and Town Directory" (PDF). Page 13, Physiography. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  8. ^ "District Human Development Report: South 24 Parganas". Chapter 9: Sundarbans and the Remote Islanders, p 290-311. Development & Planning Department, Government of West Bengal, 2009. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  9. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Rajpur
  10. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Sonarpur
  11. ^ "Census of India 2011, West Bengal, District Census Handbook, South Twentyfour Parganas, Series – 20, Part XII-A, Village and Town Directory" (PDF). Page 257 - Map of Sonarpur CD block. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  12. ^ "Census of India 2011, West Bengal, District Census Handbook, South Twentyfour Parganas, Series – 20, Part XII-A, Village and Town Directory" (PDF). Page 383 - Map of Baruipur CD block. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  13. ^ "Census of India 2011, West Bengal, District Census Handbook, South Twentyfour Parganas, Series – 20, Part XII-A, Village and Town Directory" (PDF). Page 259 - Map of Sonarpur CD block. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  14. ^ "Climate: Rajpur Sonarpur". Climate Data. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  15. ^ "Census of India 2011, West Bengal, District Census Handbook, South Twentyfour Parganas, Series – 20, Part XII-A, Village and Town Directory" (PDF). Section II Town Directory, Pages 999-1031 Statement I: Growth History, Pages 999-1006. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  16. ^ "Census of India 2011, West Bengal, District Census Handbook, South Twentyfour Parganas, Series – 20, Part XII-B, Village and Town Wise Primary Census Abstract" (PDF). Urban PCA-Town wise Primary Census Abstract, Pages 536-583. Directorate of Census Operations, West Bengal. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  17. ^ a b "Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: West Bengal". www.censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.
  18. ^ a b "Table C-01 Population by Religion: West Bengal". censusindia.gov.in. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. 2011.
  19. ^ "Rajpur Sonarpur Municipality". West Bengal Valuation Board. Government of West Bengal. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  20. ^ "Rajpur Sonarpur Municipality". Department of Municipal Affairs. Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 21 April 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  21. ^ "Sonarpur police station". Baruipur police district. West Bengal police. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  22. ^ "District Statistical Handbook 2014 South 24 Parganas". Table No. 2.1. Department of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of West Bengal. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  23. ^ "BDO Offices under South 24 Parganas District". West Bengal Public Library Network, Government of West Bengal. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  24. ^ a b Google maps
  25. ^ "34792 Sealdah-Namkhana Local". Time Table. India Rail Info. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  26. ^ Mondal, Bhaswati. "Commuting and Metropolitan Development of Kolkata". Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  27. ^ "Sonarpur Mahavidyalaya". SM. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  28. ^ "Ramakrishna Mission Residential College". RKMRC. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  29. ^ "Future Institute of Engineering and Management". FIEM. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  30. ^ "Netaji Subhash Engineering College". NSEC. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  31. ^ "Meghnad Saha Institute of Technology". MSIT. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  32. ^ "B D M International". BDMI. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  33. ^ "Health & Family Welfare Department" (PDF). Health Statistics – Rural Hospitals. Government of West Bengal. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
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