Jhargram –“The Heritage Forest Queen of West Bengal”

I was then student of Vidyasagar University for my M. Phil education. I with my class mates were went to a day trip to Jhargram. Before going to there I had no knowledge about this place. But after get in that place I have a respect in Bengal’s not popularized jungle beauties like Jhargram.

Nominal Introduction of Jhargram:

Jhargram is the Sub-Divisional town of Jhargram Sub-Division located in the western part of Paschim Medinipur in West Bengal. Jhargram presents the most striking exquisiteness of swelling topography concludes in hill ranges of Kankrajhor, Belpahari, in the North to the tranquil beauties of roundabout Subarnarekha River in the South. The main rivers of this division are the Kangsabati, the Tarafeni, the Subarnarekha and the Dulung.

As per the report of census 2001 India, Jhargram had residents of 53,158 and has an average literacy rate of 76%, advanced than the nationwide standard of 59.5.

Foremost economy of this region is farming, selling. This is one of the diffident areas in West Bengal and as well in India. A small number of the percentage of the people are government workers, School Teachers and in employment in additional small private zones. The economic standing of most of the people is in middle class and lower class group.

History of Jhargram:

Jhargram Rajbari

The area was formerly called Junglekhand , that means a land of dense forests, occupied by ethnic group like mal, lodha, bhumij and santhal. Not lots of chronological information is out there in anticipation of the time a young Rajasthani of the Chandrabansia family member named Sarbeshwar Malla debutante set up his ruling here in the sixteenth Century.

Raja Sarveshwar together with the Raj put armed force and Cavalry attacked the deep forest region ‘Junglekhanda’, and beaten the tribal rulers the Mallas and taken on the surname Malla Deb and set up his empire with its capital naming it Jhargram.

Younger brother of Raja Sarveshwar Malla Deb was made the Raja of the Junglekhand Area subedar to the Mughal ruler Akbar and the elder brother was made the Raja of Bhishnupur or commonly known as Mallabhum. Raja Sarveshwar Malla Deb was the creator of the current Jhargram Royal Familyi.e. ‘Raj Poribar’, he belonged to the Kshtriya Chandra Vansha Chauhan family of Rajputs. The name of the State Capital came to be known as Jhargram.

Art & Culture of Jhargram:

Jhargram is the blond assets of tribal dances. The Mundas, Santals, Lodhas, Bhumijs, and Sabars co-exist here. Their shared performances, religious means and customs are uttered through dances among jungles. Some of these tribal dances are at the edge of loss. Some tribal dances are chhou, jhumur, panta-dance, ranpa and some renowned songs are tusu, bhadu etc.

Alongside the tribal society, the usual Bengali celebrations like Durga puja, Saraswati puja, Diwali and Kali pujas are well concentrate. Other regular pujas in the respect of Jagaddhatri, Sitala, Holi, Ratha Yatra, Janmastami, Bheema Puja, etc. also takes place.

Various fairs and celebrations take place in Jhargram. The renowned fairs in Jhargram are Jhargram Mela & Yuva Utsav, Rong Maati Manush, Shrabani Mela, Baishakhi Mela.

How to Reach Jhargram:

·        Train: The distance from Howrah to Jhargram station is 157 KM and the journey takes three hours by train from Howrah. Jhargram is linked not only to bigger cities in the district, but also to minor towns and villages in the district. Jhargram Railway Station is on the Kharagpur-Tatanagar section of Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line which is an express train route. 

·        Bus: Jhargram is also very well connected by roads/highways with other nearby cities like Medinipur , Kharagpur , Durgapur , Asansol ,Bankura , Purulia, Haldia , Contai , Digha , Kolkata/Howrah , Tatanagar , Baripada, etc.

·        By Taxi/Cab: One can also book Taxis or Cab to reach Jhargram from Kolkata. It will take approximately 4 hours.

Howrah - Tatanagar
Train No.	Train Name	Departure		Arrival
		HWH	KGP	JGM	TATA
8615	Howrah-Hatia Express	21:55	23:37	00:14	01:37
0351	Howrah-Tatanagar Memu Passenger	-	-	06:17	-
2871	Howrah-Sambalpur Ispat Express	06:50	08:32	09:05	10:41
8030	SHM-Kurla(T) Express	15:00	17:40	18:27	20:02
2813	Howrah-Tatanagar Steel Express	17:30	19:15	19:54	21:30
8005	Howrah-Koraput Express	20:55	23:10	23:47	00:58
0349	KGP-Tatanagar Passenger	-	-	09:50	-
0345	KGP-Tatanagar Passenger	-	-	15:20	-
0353	KGP-Tatanagar Memu Passenger	-	-	20:27	-
0347	KGP-Tatanagar Memu Passenger	-	-	18:50	-

Tatanagar - Howrah
Train No.	Train Name	Departure	Arrival
		TATA	JGM	KGP	HWH
8616	Hatia-Howrah Express	02:06	03:33	04:12	06:35
0354	Tatanagar-Howrah Memu Passenger	-	06:00	-	-
2872	Sambalpur-Howrah Ispat Express	14:25	15:59	16:38	18:50
8029	Kurla(T)-SHM Express	06:55	08:39	09:20	12:15
2814	Tatanagar-Howrah Steel Express	06:15	07:33	08:17	10:25
8006	Koraput-Howrah Express	02:40	03:57	04:45	07:30
0352	TATA-Kharagpur Passenger	-	20:15	-	-
0346	TATA-Kharagpur Passenger	-	09:37	-	-
0350	TATA-Kharagpur Memu Passenger	-	15:56	-	-
0348	TATA-Kharagpur Memu Passenger	-	05:17	-	-

Tourist Spots

   Chilkigarh Kanak Durga temple : The visit to Kanak Durga was the primary exciting a part of our journey. The century-old temple is found throughout a forest, twelve kilometer from the city. A charming waterway named Dulung flood past it. The early construction, inherent characteristic Pancharatna fashion, is at present empty and unkempt. The new place of worship, shaped within the mid-70s, is lackluster; though the ambiance is just delightful. A 30-minute drive through a thick forest, home too many rare species of monkeys, can take you there. These trees draw attention from different places for research.  Thats why we were there for our educational excursion from our Department of Botany & Forestry of Vidyasagar University.

Chilkigarh Raj Palace: Chilkagarh Rajbari, an empty palace, is on the conflicting feature of the waterway. Even from a detachment, it's just similar to the lay down of a horror picture. The complex, however, is secure. It homes 2 temples. One in each of them comes into view like a three-storied tower and leftovers in use.

Sabiti Mandir: Devi Sabitri and Jhargram as an old reality. It is said that Jhargram generous associates made this place in the middle of 17th century. No idols are kept here but a stone resembling Devi Sabitri. The 350-year-old Savitri temple is maybe the oldest construction in Jhargram. Legend has it that Savitri Devi overwhelmed Hindu fatal Sarveshwar Singh to stay back at Junglekhand. The stone idol of the Devi is being respected for many centuries.

Kendua: It is situated in between Chilkigarh and Jhargram. Thousands of migrating birds gather comes here. They live for couple of months where they emerge their eggs and fly away. Migratory birds visit the realm in immense numbers in August-September.

Deer park: If you've got kids with you, recall at Jhargram Ruminant Park. This minute menagerie, three kilometre from the city, was release by the state forest department. Designed around a jumbo lake, it homes ruminant, snakes, peacocks, bears, crocodiles, black rabbits and varied kinds of monkeys, additionally to many categories of trees. A forest makes a small Zoo in this locale. You can find a lot of diverse types of natural animals and birds here. At the present Jhargram Mini Zoo is called Deer Park.

Alampur: Alampur could be a necessity visit. It got its name from ruler Alam, the son of Aurangzeb. The first Shah Alam was the son of Aurangzeb and was entitled Bahadur Shah. He was crowned as the Nawab of Bengal. While roving through his state’s he tripped Chilkigarh. At the present Chilkigarh lies in Jambani Block of Jhargram. It is supposed that the current Alampur village at Chilkigarh is selected in the name Shah Alam. The then Zaminder of Alampur had builded the double idols of Radha Krishna, he had named it as Madan Mohan. The festivity of Doljatra and Raashmela is a celebration event in the village of Alampur. A double temple holed up by an area zamindar and devoted to Madan Mohan is that the primary draws.

  

Jhargram Palace (Rajbari): The Jhargram Raj Palace is the present dwelling of the Malla Deb Royal ancestors. It is a configuration merges the Gothic and Muslim architectural modes. The travelers can trip this place and it also has accommodation for tourists with previous booking. The Raj Palace is at the back of the main entry. In front is the tower Palace. On the tower is a painter’s fine painting. With the end of Rajtantra it had clear the finish of an epic. The tradition of this palace is Radha Krishna temple of Shiva is there.

ome other attractions of this place are…

Rabindra Park

 Mps Garden Resort

• ·        Dherua (bank of Kansal river )
• ·        Medical Plants Garden (Kalaboni )
• ·        Kakrajhor forest
• ·        Ketki falls
• ·        Tribal Museum
• ·        Mps Garden Resort
• ·        Rabindra Park
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Above all of these the actual attraction of Jhargram is its evergreen forests. Over and done go, you see continual plant life. High trees swapping pin-drop calm and as dawn filter through the leaves making shadows in difficult patterns on the base. Amid falling leaves and therefore the sound of cricket, bare-bodied social group youths walk past, taking you back to an unusual epoch.

Where to Stay:

Lots of Hotels and Lodges are there in Jhargram. MPS resort is most luxurious one. One also tries the ones given below:

•  Aranya Sundari Guest House 

Sibasis Chatterjee
Jail Khana More, Ghoradhara
Jhargram, Paschim Medinipur
Ph: 03221-256872 

Mob: 9547668966

• ·        Banani Atithi Nibas 

Kadam Kanan, Jhargram
Paschim Medinipur
Ph: 03221-257945 

• ·        Doolung Guest House 

Ghoradhara, Jhargram
Paschim Medinipur
Ph: 03221-255909

• ·        Hotel Malladeb Ltd. 

Old Jhargram, Jhargram
Paschim Medinipur
Ph: 03221-255401

(Kolkata BookingW.B.T.D.C.
"Tourism Point",
3/2, B.B.D. (E), Kolkata - 1 Ph: 033-22437260, 22485917)

• ·        Jasoda Bhawan Guest House

Central Bus Stand, Jhargram
Paschim Medinipur
West Bengal, India
Ph: +91-03221-255225
Mob: +91-9163141340
9800055195 (Emergency)

·        Kaushalya Heritage Garh Salboni, Jhargram Pin - 721507 Paschim Medinipur West Bengal, India Ph: +91-3221-262353 (M) 9932867447 J

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