Medininagar

Medininagar (formerly Daltonganj) is a city municipal corporation in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It is the headquarters of Palamu division and Palamu district, as well as the subdivision and block of the same name. The city is situated on the banks of the North Koel River.[1] It is one of the towns of state with historic significance.

Daltonganj Railway Station

View of Daltonganj from Koyal River

Medininagar
Metropolitan City
Daltonganj
Medininagar Location of Medininagar in Jharkhand
Coordinates: 24.03°N 84.07°E
Country	India
State	Jharkhand
Division	Palamu
District	Palamu
Established	1880
Named for	Maharaja Medini Ray
Government
• Type	Municipal Corporation
• Body	Medininagar Municipal Corporation
Area
• Total	150 km^2 (60 sq mi)
Elevation	215 m (705 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	158,941
• Rank	10th in Jharkhand
• Density	1,100/km^2 (2,700/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Hindi, Urdu
• Regional	Nagpuri
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	822101
telephone	06562
Vehicle registration	JH-03
Literacy	87.29%
Website	www.palamu.nic.in

Origin of name

The city was named Daltonganj during the British Raj after Irishman Colonel Edward Tuite Dalton (1815–1880), an anthropologist and the commissioner of Chota Nagpur in 1861.[2] [3] The name was changed to Medininagar in 2004 by the State Government of Jharkhand.[4] The former name is still retained in the name of the city's railway station. It is administered by the Medininagar Municipal Corporation, which was formed on 30 May 2015. The city is named after Raja Medini Ray of Chero dynasty.

Geography

Medininagar is located at 24.03°N 84.07°E.[5] It has an average elevation of 215 m (705 ft).

The Betla National Park is located about 20 km from the city. This park is known for tigers, and comes under the Palamau Tiger Project. Another picnic spot nearby is Kechki, located about 18 km from Daltonganj, at the confluence of the Koel River and the Auranga River. Netarhat, a plateau covered with thick forests, is also situated near Daltonganj.

Transport

Medininagar is located 1,036 kilometres (644 mi) south east of New Delhi and is accessible by train to Daltonganj Railway station (DTO) from Lucknow, Patna, Ranchi, Kota, Bhopal Junction, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Varanasi and Gaya. The nearest airport is 165 kilometres (103 mi) away in Ranchi. It has an airport in Chianki, used occasionally by visiting dignitaries.

Medininagar is well connected with Patna, Ranchi, Raipur, Ambikapur, Kolkata, Durgapur, Varanasi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Delhi, Lucknow, Allahabad, Kota, Kanpur Gaya, etc. by road.

Chianki Airstrip is located on the south of the Medininagar. It is mostly used by private choppers and small aircraft. There is a plan to strengthen and extend the airstrip for operation of medium size planes.[6]

Demographics

As of 2014 India census,[7] Medininagar had a population of 3,89,307. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. It has an average literacy rate of 87.29%, higher than the national average of 74.04%: male literacy is 91.92% and, female literacy is 82.10%. 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Climate

Medininagar has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cwa).

Climate data for Medininagar (1981–2010, extremes 1901–2012)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	34.2 (93.6)	40.6 (105.1)	43.9 (111.0)	46.5 (115.7)	47.8 (118.0)	46.9 (116.4)	43.8 (110.8)	40.2 (104.4)	39.7 (103.5)	40.0 (104.0)	36.5 (97.7)	33.2 (91.8)	47.8 (118.0)
Average high °C (°F)	25.2 (77.4)	28.4 (83.1)	33.9 (93.0)	39.3 (102.7)	40.8 (105.4)	37.8 (100.0)	32.8 (91.0)	32.0 (89.6)	32.3 (90.1)	31.9 (89.4)	29.5 (85.1)	26.3 (79.3)	32.5 (90.5)
Average low °C (°F)	9.1 (48.4)	11.9 (53.4)	16.5 (61.7)	22.0 (71.6)	26.2 (79.2)	27.4 (81.3)	25.9 (78.6)	25.5 (77.9)	24.5 (76.1)	20.4 (68.7)	14.3 (57.7)	9.7 (49.5)	19.5 (67.1)
Record low °C (°F)	0.0 (32.0)	0.6 (33.1)	5.6 (42.1)	11.2 (52.2)	17.8 (64.0)	18.6 (65.5)	18.2 (64.8)	20.6 (69.1)	17.2 (63.0)	10.0 (50.0)	5.0 (41.0)	1.7 (35.1)	0.0 (32.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	11.9 (0.47)	19.6 (0.77)	15.6 (0.61)	9.4 (0.37)	24.8 (0.98)	151.6 (5.97)	285.2 (11.23)	288.6 (11.36)	179.0 (7.05)	49.5 (1.95)	8.4 (0.33)	6.3 (0.25)	1,049.8 (41.33)
Average rainy days	1.1	1.6	1.8	0.9	1.9	7.0	14.9	13.5	9.4	2.9	0.6	0.7	56.2
Average relative humidity (%) (at 17:30 IST)	50	41	32	24	30	52	77	79	76	62	57	57	53
Source: India Meteorological Department[8][9]

Culture

Major Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Christian festivals are celebrated in Medininagar. The town is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Daltonganj. The town has several societies, clubs, and NGOs including Palamau Club, Rotary Club and Rida Foundation.[10]

Satyajit Ray's Bengali film, Aranyer Din Ratri was shot in Palamu and the upcoming Bollywood movie, Nastik starring Arjun Rampal was also shot in Medininagar.[11]

Education

Nilamber-Pitamber University at Medininagar was established in 2009 and serves the Palamu division of Jharkhand.[12][13]

There are many colleges for undergraduate, post graduate & other higher education in and around Medininagar which includes:

• Medinirai Medical College and Hospital[14]
• DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology[15] established by D.A.V College Managing Committee.
• Bhishma Narain Singh Law College[16]
• Ganesh Lal Agrawal College[17]
• Yodh Singh Namdhari Mahila Mahavidyalaya[18]
• Janta Shivratri College[19]
• Elite Public B.Ed. College[20]
• Jyoti Prakash Mahila B.Ed. College[21]
• B.N College

The major private schools in Medininagar include:

• M.K. DAV Public School, Chianki[22] (CBSE)
• Sacred Heart School, Chianki (ICSE)
• Heritage International School[23] (CBSE)* Palamu Zila School
• VPM Gyan Niketan School (CBSE)
• Elite Public School (CBSE)
• Rotary Public School (CBSE)
• Bright Land School (CBSE)
• Mata Draupadi Namdhari Guru Gobind Singh Public School (CBSE)

Places of Interest

• Betla National Park, park hosts a wide variety of wildlife
• Palamu Tiger Reserve, one of the first tiger conservation projects in India.
• Palamu Fort, twin forts of Chero dynasty built by Raja Medini Ray.
• Hussainabad Fort, built by Mughal jagirdar, Hidayat Ali Khan.
• Shahpur Fort, built by Chero ruler
• Bishrampur Fort, built by Chero rulers
• Kala-Kabra mound, Harappan era artefacts[24]
• Bhim Chulha, a 5,000-year-old stove, on which Bhima used to make food during the Pandavas’ ignorance[25]

See also

• Palamu
• Ladigarh

References

1. "Administrative Unit - Palamu". Missing or empty |url= (help)
2. "Daltonganj". University of Swansea. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
3. "The story of Edward Tuite Dalton. | Farbound.Net". farbound.net. 4 August 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
4. Government of India Ministry of Home Affairs. "LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3572" (PDF).
5. Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Daltonganj
6. Pioneer, The. "AAI team inspects Chiyanki air strip in Daltonganj". The Pioneer. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
7. "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
8. "Station: Daltonganj Climatological Table 1981–2010" (PDF). Climatological Normals 1981–2010. India Meteorological Department. January 2015. pp. 221–222. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
9. "Extremes of Temperature & Rainfall for Indian Stations (Up to 2012)" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. December 2016. p. M81. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
10. "Rotary Club Profile:Daltonganj". Rotary International. Retrieved 28 February 2013.
11. "Puff penalty for Rampal". The Telegraph.
12. "Nilamber Pitamber University acquires ownership rights of 15-acre land | Ranchi News - Times of India".
13. "Nilamber-Pitamber University". Retrieved 27 December 2012.
14. "Medinirai Medical College and Hospital – Medininagar, Palamu". Retrieved 16 January 2020.
15. "DAV IET". www.davietpalamau.org. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
16. "B.N.S Law College, Jharkhand". Bhishma Narain Singh Law College. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
17. "Ganesh Lal Agrawal College". www.glanpu.org.in. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
18. "Yodh Singh Namdhari Mahila Mahavidyalaya". www.ysnmnpu.org.in. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
19. "Janta Shivratri College, Daltonganj, Palamau, Jharkhand". Janta Shivratri College.
20. "Elite Public B.Ed. College". Elite Public B.Ed. College.
21. "Jyoti Prakash Mahila B.Ed College". Jyoti Prakash Mahila B.Ed College. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
22. "M.K. DAV Public School". M.K. D.A.V. PUBLIC SCHOOL, DALTONGANJ.
23. "Heritage International School". Heritage International School.
24. "Artifacts dating back to Harappan era unearthed in Jharkhand". DNA India. 26 June 2010. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
25. www.dailypioneer.com https://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/ranchi/13383-half-buried-bhim-chulha-gathers-dust-of-neglect.html/. Retrieved 4 May 2020. Missing or empty |title= (help)