Barasat is a city on the outskirts of the State Capital of West Bengal, Kolkata and is the district headquarters of the district North 24 Parganas. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. The city is an important railway and roadway junction. Barasat is also the name of a sub-division centering the city. As an urban setup in the vicinity of the Kolkata, the town is within the area of Greater Kolkata. National Highway 34 (Krishnanagar Road), National Highway 35 (Jessore Road), State Highway 02 (Taki Road) and Barasat-Barrackpore Road are the main connectivity links to the city.
CITY PROFILE
The city covers an area of 31.6 sq.km spread over 32 wards. As per Census 2011, the total population was 2,83,443 with a population density of 8,216 persons per sq.km. Initially, the Municipality started with 4 wards, which was increased to 18 nos. by including the adjacent rural area. In 1995, the no. of wards were increased to the present figure of 32. Barasat is located on the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta region. The average altitude is 11 metres. No notable river flows by the city. The nearest one is Ganges itself- about 15 km to the west. Barasat is 22 km from Sealdah Station on the Sealdah - Bangaon branch line. It is at one end of the Barasat-Basirhat-Hasnabad branch line of Eastern Railway. Habra Municipality and Madhyamgram Municipality are adjacent to Barasat City. Surrounding Gram-Panchayats are Bamangachhi, Ichhapur-Nilganj, Khilkapur, Kamarpara and Kadambagachhi.
CITY OVERVIEW
Barasat is a city on the outskirts of the State Capital of West Bengal, Kolkata and is the district headquarters of the district North 24 Parganas. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. The city is an important railway and roadway junction. Barasat is also the name of a sub-division centering the city. As an urban setup in the vicinity of the Kolkata, the town is within the area of Greater Kolkata. National Highway 34 (Krishnanagar Road), National Highway 35 (Jessore Road), State Highway 02 (Taki Road) and Barasat-Barrackpore Road are the main connectivity links to the city.
HISTORY AND EVOLUTION
During the reign of the mighty Mughal Empire, Ram Sundar Mitra had got the Laminar at Barasat town. Sankar Chakrabrorty, a commander of Pratapaditya, the king of Jessore (At present in Bangladesh), came to Barasat in 1600s and established himself in Barasat town. In 1700 AD, Hazrat Ekdil Shah, the Muslim saint, started residing at Kazipara, Barasat. He was known as a social reformer. His tomb, located in Kazipara, is a pilgrimage site for the Muslim community. During the British Raj, Company officials from Calcutta made Barasat a weekend retreat location. They created many garden houses at various places within Barasat town. Warren Hastings had made his Villa in the heart of Barasat town. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, the renowned Author, was the first Indian Deputy Magistrate of this town. Indigo cultivation was a major business in and around the town. The indigo merchants were known for their inhuman treatment towards the farmers. Titumir, a farmer of indigo cultivation, had declared revolution against british Indigo merchants for torturing the farmers and ultimately, he can able to stop the torture against scarification of his life. Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar, Pyari Charan Sarkar, Kalikrishna Mitra were known for undertaking several social reformative actions in Barasat, including development of education, along with women education and widow marriages. In the early Nineteenth century, there was a college in Barasat called Barasat Cadet College, for the training of new recruits and cadets who arrived from Europe for the first time to India. The college was shut down in 1811. From 1834 to 1861, Barasat was the seat of a joint-magistrate, known as "Barasat District". In 1861, the joint magistracy was abolished, and the Barasat District became a sub-division of the Twenty-four Parganas district. At present it is the district headquarters of North 24 Parganas district. Barasat Municipality was established on 1 April, 1869, but up till 1882, it did not have any independent existence. Like other offices it was controlled by the Magistrate Office. After 1882, Barasat Municipality became an autonomous body. Barasat Association, a citizen's organization, had helped Barasat Municipality by donating land for the construction of the Municipal building. Previously, there were 4 no of wards under Barasat Municipality, which were increased to 18 nos. In 1995, after amalgamating with the surrounding Panchayat areas within Barasat Municipality, a total of 30 municipal wards were created. After that before 2010 municipal election that was increased to 32 no of wards and before Last election, the wards increased to 35 no of wards.
PHYSICAL LINKAGES
Barasat town is well connected with roads to Kolkata and other cities and towns of West Bengal, and to Bangladesh. Two nos. of National Highways (NH 34 & NH 35) and one State Highway (SH 02). run through the city. Barasat is also well connected by railway with Sealdah, Bongaon and Basirhat. ROADS Barasat is a major roadway junction. The NH 34 (Initially known as Krishnanagar Road) goes towards North Bengal and is a major link between Kolkata and the North-East. The Jessore Road (NH 35) leads to Bongaon and ultimately to the Bangladesh border at Petrapole. The Taki Road leads to Basirhat, Hasnabad and Taki via Berachampa. The Barrackpore Road links National Highway 35 at Barasat with Kalyani Expressway and Barrackpore. RAILWAY Barasat Junction is a major railway station on the Bongaon line of Sealdah Station (North Section). This junction is where Bongaon line and Hasnabad-Basirhat line. of Kolkata Suburban Railway get separated. The Barasat-Basirhat Railway line was originally run by Martin's Light Railways. Now, it is a section under the Sealdah division of Eastern Railways. Hridaypur (Sealdah-Bongaon line) & Kazipara (Barasat-Hasnabad line) are the other railway stations under the area of Barasat Municipality. Currently a Metro railway line is under construction which is an extension of the Kolkata Metro. AIR : There are separate Domestic and International terminals for flights flying to and from around the globe.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SOIL STRUCTURE Barasat is situated on the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta. The mighty river Ganges flows along the entire western border of the North 24 Parganas district. There are many other rivers such as Ichhamati, Jamuna, and Bidyadhari, flowing nearby the city. The soil structure of Barasat varies between fertile alluvial and clay loam. Terrain of the city is mostly flat. Elevation of the ground varies from 5.5 m at the western side and 4.5 m at the southern side to 5.5m towards the east. Height from Mean Sea Level of BARASAT is 4.0m. CLIMATE The climate is tropical, like the rest of the Gangetic West Bengal. The hallmark is the Monsoon, from early June to mid-September. The weather remains dry during the winters (mid-November to mid-February) and hot and humid during the summers. Temperature varies between 40 C in May (Max) and 10 C during January (Min). Relative Humidity ranges between 55% in March and 98% in July during the monsoons. Barasat receives an average annual rainfall of 1,579 mm.
SOCIAL AND DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
Barasat Municipality area has a total population of 2,83,443 as per Census 2011, with a density of 8,216 person per sq.km. Males constitute 50.7% of the population (1,43,732) while females are 1,39,711 in nos. In education section, total literates in Barasat city are 2,36,881 of which 1,23,692 are males while 113,189 are females. Average literacy rate of Barasat city is 90.42 percent of which male and female literacy was 93.14 and 87.62 percent. The sex ratio of Barasat city is 972 per 1000 males. Child sex ratio of girls is 964 per 1000 boys.