Raigarh

Raigarh रायगढ़
City
Raigarh Show map of Chhattisgarh Raigarh Show map of India Location in Chhattisgarh, India
Coordinates: 21°54′N 83°24′E / 21.9°N 83.4°E / 21.9; 83.4Coordinates: 21°54′N 83°24′E / 21.9°N 83.4°E / 21.9; 83.4
Country	India
State	Chhattisgarh
District	Raigarh
Government
• Mayor	Madhu Kinnar
Elevation	219 m (719 ft)
Population (2011)
• Total	150,019
Languages
• Official	Hindi, Chhattisgarhi
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	496 001
Area code(s)	7762
Vehicle registration	CG 13
Sex ratio	1000/985 ♂/♀
Website	www.raigarh.gov.in

Raigarh is a city and municipal corporation in the Raigarh district of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. The administrative headquarters of Raigarh district, it is known for its coal reserves and power generation for the state as well as the country.

It is a rapidly growing industrial city and home to the Mohan Jute Mill, one of the oldest jute mills in India and the only one in Madhya Pradesh prior to the splitting off of Chhattisgarh in 2000. Raigarh is also a major producer of steel and iron ore as well as the cultural and industrial capital of Chhattisgarh. Jindal Steel and Power Limited is a major steel plant based in Raigarh.

Raigarh is a major rice producing district with a net production of 350,000 tonnes per annum. A major rice processing industry in the district is Raigarh Foods & Hotel Business Pvt Ltd.

Raigarh consists of various shopping complexes, broad four-lane roads, 3 star hotels, upcoming malls and much more. Ela Mall is an upcoming mall at raigarh.

History

Prior to Indian Independence, Raigarh was capital of Princely State of Raigarh.^[1] After the independence of the country, the princely state was the first ones to join the Union of India. The Royal family still resides here, but due to Privy Purse and internal conflicts, the royalty seems to have faded away. Moreover, the palace - Moti Mahal - is in very bad shape. It has recently been declared a heritage site by the state government.

Geography and climate

Raigarh is located at 21°54′N 83°24′E / 21.9°N 83.4°E / 21.9; 83.4.^[2] It has an average elevation of 215 metres (705 feet). The Kelo river flows through the city, which is one of its main water sources.

The minimum - maximum temperature range is 29.5 - 49 °C in summer, and 8 - 25 °C in winter.

Language and demographics

Languages spoken are Hindi, and Odia. The demographics of the city consist mainly of people from Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Orissa and Bihar. A sizeable community of Bengali, Telugu and Marathi speaking people also live here.

As of 2001 India census,^[3] Raigarh district had a population of 12,69,925,^[4] and the city of Raigarh a population of 364,287. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Raigarh has an average literacy rate of 71%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 79%, and female literacy is 62%. About 80% of the population are Hindus, 15% Christians and remaining 5% are other religions. In Raigarh, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

New Raigarh

'New Raigarh' (New Raigarh) involves the transformation of old Raigarh into a better planned and a laid out town. Located around National Highway 216, it lies 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) to the south-east of the old town of Raigarh and 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from the proposed NTPC Lara-Pussore site. Kodatarai Airport (the future domestic airport of Chhattisgarh) separates the old Raigarh, new Raigarh and the NTPC site. Naya Raigarh will serve as the industrial capital of the state and also cater to the infrastructure needs of industry and trade in the region. Naya Raigarh is spread over an area of about 600 acres (240 ha) and includes a number of villages of which Kodatarai village forms the core of the Naya Raigarh. About half of the total acquired land is being used for afforestation, roads, parks, public conveniences, water facilities-canals, green belts etc. 23 percent of the land will be reserved for educational institutions, government offices and public auditoriums etc. 30 percent of the land will be designated for residential and economic use.

Culture

Raigarh is a cultural city known for its Kathak dance and classical music. Raja Chakradhar Singh of Raigarh made prominent contributions to the development of Kathak Dance. Every year on Ganesh Chaturthi a festival called 'Chakradhar Samaroh' is organized in which music and dance exponents from all over India visit and display their arts. This event is organized in memory of Raja Chakradhar Singh.

Economy

Kosa Silk culture at Kosabadi

Raigarh is well known for its 'kosa' or tasar, a kind of fine silk created by the silk worm feeding on mulberry fruit.

Black Dust Pollution and its impact on Medicinal Flora in Raigarh

Most of the public buildings in Raigarh were built by Seth Kirodimal and afterwards made part of a charitable trust. These include the district government hospital, Mahatma Gandhi Eye Hospital, Kirodimal Polytechnic College, Kirodimal Degree College and many others. Raigarh is home to the world's second largest and India's largest sponge iron plants and 62 other industries. It has become a growing industrial hub for the steel market. Jindal Steel and Power Limited operate the world's largest sponge iron and steel plant 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Raigarh city while 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the city is Monnet Ispat & Energy Ltd. The director of the Jindal Group, Mr. Naveen Jindal provides cheap electricity to few industries at Punjipathra to encourage entrepreneurship.

Raigarh is an old city and the marketplace is congested with narrow and curving roads. More than 50 sponge iron plants have already been started in the vicinity of Raigarh. The new Raigarh consists of various shopping complexes, broad four-lane roads, 3 star hotels, upcoming malls (Ela Mall,Galaxy Mall and Grand Mall) and much more.

A rapid change in the demographics has resulted in a number of colonies and apartments. Green View located near Jindal Hospital is the largest and most luxurious apartment in the city.

Dhokra or bell metal casting is world acclaimed art form of Raigarh. Based in the village of Ektaal, the bell metal structures are noted for their aesthetic value.

Tendu patta^[5] collection is one of major sources of income for villagers while Raigarh District is a major producer of rice.

Kelo River Raigarh

Tourism

Raigarh is one of the favorite destinations in the state of Chhattisgarh which is known for Kosa silk, rice fields and indigenous tribes. Nearby place to visit in Raigarh are Pahad Mandir at Gajmar Pahadi, Ram Jharna, Teepa Khol, Maa Chandrasini Devi Temple and Banjari Mandir.

Famous Tourist Places near Raigarh Chhattisgarh also includes a small zoo called Indira Vihar,Gomarda Wildlife Sanctuary near Sarangarh,Shri Shyam Mandir,Raigarh Fort and recently build Sai baba temple in urdana.

Transportation

Railways

Raigarh is a station on the Tatanagar–Bilaspur section of Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line the broad gauge line. It comes under Bilaspur railway division. All express and some superfast trains stop here, while Gondwana express and Janshatabdi express originate at Raigarh. It is well connected with many major cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Kota, Patna, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Bhubaneswar, Nagpur, Vishakhapatnam etc., while for other destinations it has to depend upon Bilaspur railway station, which is a regional rail hub connected to every part of country and 132  km from Raigarh district headquarter. The main railway station Raigarh is near the heart of the city. Kirodimal Nagar railway station is another suburb small station of Raigarh city. Raigarh railway station serving to the people of nearby area lie Ambikapur, Sarguja, Dharamjaigarh, Lailunga, Sarangarh. The Raigarh railway station has good Vehicle parking facility even overnight parking can be done on need.

Airport

Raigarh Airport near Kondatarai is 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) from the city center. The State Government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) in July 2013 to develop Raigarh Airport as the state's second airport for domestic flights by 2017 May^[6] A Four Lane road is proposed on NH 216 which will connect the airport to the city more efficiently. A private airport owned by the Jindal Steel and Power Limited is located 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north-west of the city. The Chhattisgarh state government and the Airport Authority of India (AAI) may sign an agreement for setting up a full-fledged airport at Raigarh at a cost of Rs 260 crore. AAI is expected to develop the proposed airport in two phases, with Rs 158 crore being spent on the first phase. The authority expects to complete the project in three to four years. Once the airport becomes operational, flights of ATR-72 aircraft, which can seat 70 to 80 people, would be started initially. AAI would introduce flights of bigger aircraft, with seating capacity for 200 people as and when the traffic increases and the airport is fully operational. The state government may allocate 600 acre of land to the AAI for developing the airport. As of now, Raigarh has an air strip, which is primarily used for small aircraft and choppers but once the airport is developed, it would give a fillip to the industrial activity in and around the district. The airport would promote air connectivity and help in boosting the state's economy.

Media

News channels

Rainbow Over TV Tower

Many local news channels are Broadcast from Raipur in Hindi :

Web portals

Internet penetration is gaining pace in Raigarh.

Newspapers

Many national and local newspapers are published from Raigarh in Hindi:

| Raigarh Darpan || Hindi |}

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Raigarh.

• Dr.Sanjay Alung-Chhattisgarh ki Riyaste/Princely states aur Jamindariyaa (Vaibhav Prakashan, Raipur1, ISBN 81-89244-96-5)
• Dr.Sanjay Alung-Chhattisgarh ki Janjaatiyaa/Tribes aur Jatiyaa/Castes (Mansi publication, Delhi6, ISBN 978-81-89559-32-8)