Facts and Interesting Points About West Bengal

Interesting Points About West Bengal

• West Bengal shares its state border with Jharkhand and Bihar to the West, Odisha to the South-West, Sikkim to the North, and Assam to the North-East. The state also shares international border with Bangladesh to the east, Nepal to the North-West, and Bhutan to the North-East direction.
• The international border between West Bengal and Bangladesh is the second-longest international border among all other Indian states. The border span is 2216.7 Km.
• The capital of West Bengal is Kolkata. The city was previously known as Calcutta until 2001.
• Calcutta used to be the first capital city of British India. Later the capital was shifted to New Delhi.
• During the partition of India, the Bengal was divided into East Bengal and West Bengal. The East Bengal portion goes to Pakistan while the West Bengal portion came to India.
• Eden Garden is the oldest cricket stadium in India. In terms of capacity, it is the largest stadium in Asia and the second-largest stadium in the world. It is following the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the list.
• Kolkata is the only city in India where fleets of hand-pulled rickshaws still ply the streets. The man who pulls these rickshaws is called Rickshaw Wallahs.
• The Great Banyan Tree of Botanical Garden at Howrah is spread over a circumference above 330 meters. The more than 250 years old huge tree is one of the largest in the world.
• The National Library of India situated in Alipore, Kolkata is the largest public library in India.
• Nepali language is the additional official language in the three subdivisions of the Darjeeling district.
• Howrah Bridge or Rabindra Setu is a cantilever suspension type bridge built in the year 1943. It is the sixth-longest cantilever type bridge in the world.
• Durga Puja and Kali puja are the most important festivals of West Bengal.
• Victoria Memorial hall is a popular museum in Kolkata which is made up of white marble stones of Makrana in Rajasthan. The memorial was built by Lord Curzon in the memory of Queen Victoria who died in the year 1901.
• Digha Sea Beach is a popular tourist attraction in the Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal.
• West Bengal is the highest jute producer in the country. More than 80 percent of the total agricultural land of the state is used for Jute cultivation.
• Mohun Bagan Football Club is the oldest football club in Asia.
• Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port which was previously known as Port of Kolkata is the oldest operating port in India.

More Informations About West Bengal

General Details About West Bengal
Formation	26 January 1950
Capital	Kolkata
Governor	Jagdeep Dhankhar
Chief Minister	Mamata Banerjee
Chief Justice	Prakash Shrivastava
Districts	23
Area (km2)	88,752
Lok Sabha Seats	42
Rajya Sabha Seats	16
State Legislative Assembly Seats	294
Languages	Bengali, English, Nepali

State Symbols of West Bengal
State Animal	Fishing Cat
State Bird	White-throated kingfisher
State Tree	Chatim tree
State Flower	Night-flowering jasmine

Demography of West Bengal
Population (2011 Census)	91,347,736
Population Density (per km2)	1,029
Sex ratio (Females per 1000 males)	947
Literacy Rate (%)	77.08
Per Capita Income (₹)	121,267

Forest & Wildlife Reserves in West Bengal

1. Sundarbans National Park
2. Buxa National Park and Tiger Reserve
3. Gorumara National Park
4. Neora Valley National Park
5. Jaldapara National Park
6. Singalila National Park
7. Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary
8. Chapramari Wildlife Sanctuary
9. Mahanada Wildlife Sanctuary
10. Purbasthali Bird Sanctuary
11. Mahananda Weir Wildlife Sanctuary

Major Rivers in West Bengal

1. Ganga
2. Hooghly River
3. Damodar River
4. Subarnarekha River
5. Punarbhaba River
6. Haldi River
7. Ajay River
8. Padma River
9. Churni River
10. Teesta River
11. Mahananda River
12. Kangsabati River

Important Mountains in West Bengal

1. Sencha(2614m)
2. Chumsering
3. Sandakphu
4. Chamtu
5. Richi La
6. Panchet Hill
7. Khampung
8. Tanglu
9. Susunia
10. Phalut

Agriculture in West Bengal
Major Crops	Rice, Barley, Maize, Pulses, Rape Seeds, Wheat, Potatoes
Cash Crops	Tobacco, Sugarcane, Jute
Vegetables	Onion, Brinjal, Cauliflower, Peas, Okra, Cabbage, Tomato, Potato
Fruits	Ber, Water Jamun, Jackfruit, Bael, Pomegranate, Sapota, Apple,  Rose Apple

Mineral Deposits in West Bengal

1. Coal
2. Copper
3. Dolomite
4. Limestone
5. Iron
6. Tungsten
7. Manganese
8. China Clay
9. Fireclay

Airports in West Bengal

1. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport (Kolkata)
2. Bagdogra International Airport (Siliguri)
3. Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport (Asansol)
4. Balurghat Airport (Balurghat)
5. Cooch Behar Airport (Cooch Behar)

Sea Ports in West Bengal

1. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust (Kolkata)
2. Haldia Dock Complex (Haldia)

Traditional Dances in West Bengal

1. Stick Dance
2. Chaibari Nritya
3. Rajbanshi Dance
4. Purulia Chhau
5. Dhol Badan
6. Gambhira
7. Natua Dance
8. Ranapa Dance
9. Mech Dance
10. Durga Puja Dhak
11. Kirtan Dance
12. Kukri Nritya
13. Santhali Dance
14. Mundari Dance
15. Gajan
16. Baul

Art and Crafts of West Bengal

1. Bamboo Craft
2. Manasa chali
3. Terracotta dolls
4. Durga pot
5. Bankura Horse
6. Chalchitra
7. Patachitra

Regional Festivals West Bengal

1. Lakshmi Puja
2. Poila Boishakh
3. Durga Puja
4. National Theatre Festival
5. Jamai Shoshti
6. International History & Heritage Exhibition
7. Basanti Durga Puja
8. Calcutta Book Fair
9. Kali Puja
10. Bhai Phota
11. Poush Sankranti
12. Saraswati Puja