Kalaigaon
Encyclopedia
Kalaigaon is a small town, as well as a Legislative Assembly Constituency. It is situated in the Udalguri district
of Assam
state in north-eastern India
. Its geographical location is 26° 34' 60N 91° 58' 0E. The average attitude is 37 meters. The climate is humid and congenial, while the relative humidity is around 82%. The annual rainfall is 2,000 mm(Normal-approx.).
priest, named Kendukalai. According to the legend, he was supposedly able to cause the goddess Kamakhya
Devi appear in her naked form in the temple where he worshiped, because of his devotion. The erstwhile Raja of Darrang district, coming to know of this, wished to see the goddess. Although the priest denied to do so at first, he had to bow to the king's wish from fear of death. He asked the king to hide near the temple and watch through a hole and began his worship. The goddess appeared and started dancing in the temple, but eventually saw the eyes of the King through the hole, coming to know of his treachery and in a fit of anger, decapitated the priest. The head of the deceased priest got thrown away by the force of the mortal blow and landed in a place 13 km north, which was later named as Muradeor. The name of Kendukalai later degraded to Kalaigaon. Even today, Kendukalai village exists 8 km west, towards Tangla
, from present day Kalaigaon, on M.B. Road.
, the settlement came to the fore as a suitable place for administrating the nearby areas.
The oldest government offices are the Police Station (established in 1882) at same place where it exists now, and the Post Office (established in 1886). Earlier the police station was responsible for a much larger area, from Mazbat in the east to Barnoi in the west. The police station limit is still vast with 120 villages.
Till the 1960s Kalaigaon was well occupied by human settlements along with large number of wild animals roaming in the open. In 1961, when Acharya Vinoba Bhabe
visited Assam, Kalaigaon was also a prominent place in his tour, among others.
Veteran Assamese freedom fighter Late Pani Ram Das is a prominent personality & social worker from this town.
An army camp is also present in the town near the police station to help law and order under AFSPA(Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958).
This place also has two weekly market days, one on Sundays and another on Thursdays. A unique feature being that livestock trading takes place on Thursdays almost exclusively, which is very rare in these parts of the world. This markets attracts a large amount of people around the district every Thursday along with the general weekly market of Sunday, often making transportation very cumbersome in the town.
There are also a few tea gardens in and around this town. Before 1950, most of whom were owned by British tea companies.
Bus services are provide good connectivity to nearby towns and cities. Average time taken to travel to the town from nearest airport and capital city of Guwahati take about 2.5 to 3 hours. Shared taxi services, locally known as trekkers are also available.
There is a State Dispensary in the town along with a number of pharmacies.
, Rabha
, Koch
, Kalita, Muslim
, Bengali
etc. A few Marowari and Christian
families can also be found. In the recent years this town has seen a rapid increase in the population of illegal Bangladeshi and East Pakistani refugees
. Although this place is generally peaceful, few cases of ethnic clashes are not unheard of.
The population of this place is very culture and tradition sensitive. The population of the town organizes cultural rallies, meetings, exhibitions and other extravaganzas quite frequently. The yearly Raax festival of lower Assam, Bihu
, Eid
, Durga Puja
etc. are held with gaiety.
West
North
South
Udalguri district
Udalguri district is one of the 27 districts of Assam state in north-eastern India. Udalguri town is the headquarters of the district.-Etymology:...
of Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
state in north-eastern India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Its geographical location is 26° 34' 60N 91° 58' 0E. The average attitude is 37 meters. The climate is humid and congenial, while the relative humidity is around 82%. The annual rainfall is 2,000 mm(Normal-approx.).
Etymology
The origin of name of this ancient place can be found in a local legend about a brahminBrahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
priest, named Kendukalai. According to the legend, he was supposedly able to cause the goddess Kamakhya
Kamakhya
Kamakhya is an important Tantric mother goddess closely identified with Kali and Maha Tripura Sundari, according to the Tantric texts that are the basis for her worship at the Kamakhya temple, a 16th century temple in the Kamrup district of Assam...
Devi appear in her naked form in the temple where he worshiped, because of his devotion. The erstwhile Raja of Darrang district, coming to know of this, wished to see the goddess. Although the priest denied to do so at first, he had to bow to the king's wish from fear of death. He asked the king to hide near the temple and watch through a hole and began his worship. The goddess appeared and started dancing in the temple, but eventually saw the eyes of the King through the hole, coming to know of his treachery and in a fit of anger, decapitated the priest. The head of the deceased priest got thrown away by the force of the mortal blow and landed in a place 13 km north, which was later named as Muradeor. The name of Kendukalai later degraded to Kalaigaon. Even today, Kendukalai village exists 8 km west, towards Tangla
Tangla
Tangla is a town and a town area committee in earlier Darrang district and present Udalguri district in the Indian state of Assam. It was a prominent businessplace Tangla is a town and a town area committee in earlier Darrang district and present Udalguri district (BTAD) in the Indian state of...
, from present day Kalaigaon, on M.B. Road.
History
The earliest settlers were the various troops of the many kings of medieval Assam, mostly of Koch kingdom. After the British annexed Assam to the British RajBritish Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
, the settlement came to the fore as a suitable place for administrating the nearby areas.
The oldest government offices are the Police Station (established in 1882) at same place where it exists now, and the Post Office (established in 1886). Earlier the police station was responsible for a much larger area, from Mazbat in the east to Barnoi in the west. The police station limit is still vast with 120 villages.
Till the 1960s Kalaigaon was well occupied by human settlements along with large number of wild animals roaming in the open. In 1961, when Acharya Vinoba Bhabe
Vinoba Bhave
Vinoba Bhave , born Vinayak Narahari Bhave often called Acharya , was an Indian advocate of nonviolence and human rights. He is best known for the Bhoodan Andolan...
visited Assam, Kalaigaon was also a prominent place in his tour, among others.
Veteran Assamese freedom fighter Late Pani Ram Das is a prominent personality & social worker from this town.
Governance
The current Member of Legislative Assembly from Kalaigaon LAC is Maheswar Bodo. He is responsible for proper functioning of the local administration and development of this area. Kalaigaon revenue circle is under a Sub-District Collector (SDC) who is responsible for collection of revenue from 103 villages within the circle. Out of the 103 villages, 51 fall under Silpota Mouza and 52 under Kalaigaon Mouza.An army camp is also present in the town near the police station to help law and order under AFSPA(Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958).
Demographics
In 2001, males constituted 51.1 percent and females at 48.9 percent of Kalaigaon's residents. Population is estimated to be around 120000 by 2011.Economy
The economy of this place is heavily dependent on agriculture. Cultivation of rice is the primary agricultural activity, vegetables being a close second. However, over the last few years consumerism has contributed to the steep rise in the consumer goods business.Due to heavy rice cultivation many small indigenous Rice Mills like Tulsi Rice Mill, etc came up in around these which supply Rice to other parts of Assam, Guwahati being the largest consumer of its rice.The Kalaigaon Rice brand has now set up its own identity in Assam There are also a number of co-operative societies as well as banking institutes.This place also has two weekly market days, one on Sundays and another on Thursdays. A unique feature being that livestock trading takes place on Thursdays almost exclusively, which is very rare in these parts of the world. This markets attracts a large amount of people around the district every Thursday along with the general weekly market of Sunday, often making transportation very cumbersome in the town.
There are also a few tea gardens in and around this town. Before 1950, most of whom were owned by British tea companies.
Transportation
The town is well connected to the rest of Assam by the Mangaldai-Bhutiachang road which allows people to access the National Highway No. 52 at Mangaldai. Although this road was lying in various states of ruins during the better half of the last decade, it was repaired in 2010.Bus services are provide good connectivity to nearby towns and cities. Average time taken to travel to the town from nearest airport and capital city of Guwahati take about 2.5 to 3 hours. Shared taxi services, locally known as trekkers are also available.
Education and Health
Kalaigaon is a education destination for the youth in the nearby villages. There are many primary and secondary education institutes, as well as a college. Some of them are:- Kalaigaon Government Higher Secondary School (Established in 1952)
- Kalaigaon Government Girls High School
- Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi English High School
- Bright Life English High School
- Kalaigaon Government Lower Primary School
- Kalaigaon Hindi Primary school
- Kalaigaon College
- Kalaigaon Jawaharlal Vidyalaya
There is a State Dispensary in the town along with a number of pharmacies.
People and culture
The population of this town is a mixture of various ethnic communities like the BodoBodo
- Locations :* Bodø, A city in Norway*Bodo, Alberta, a hamlet in Central Alberta, Canada, close to the Saskatchewan border.*Bodo , a town and commune in Côte d'Ivoire*BoDo, a district of Boise, ID; the name of which stems from Boise Downtown....
, Rabha
Rabha
Rabha is a little known Scheduled Tribe community of West Bengal and Assam. The language/dialect spoken by the Rabha people is also of the same name. In West Bengal, Rabha people mainly live in Jalpaiguri district and Cooch Behar district. Moreover, almost, 70 per cent of them live in...
, Koch
Koch
Koch may refer to:* Koch , a type of Arctic boat* Koch people , an ethnic group originally from the ancient Koch kingdom in north east India* Koch , people with this surname* Koch, Łódź Voivodeship, a village in central Poland...
, Kalita, Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
, Bengali
Bengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
etc. A few Marowari and Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
families can also be found. In the recent years this town has seen a rapid increase in the population of illegal Bangladeshi and East Pakistani refugees
East Bengali Refugees
East Bengali Refugees are people that left East Bengal following the partition of Bengal, which was part of the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947.-History:...
. Although this place is generally peaceful, few cases of ethnic clashes are not unheard of.
The population of this place is very culture and tradition sensitive. The population of the town organizes cultural rallies, meetings, exhibitions and other extravaganzas quite frequently. The yearly Raax festival of lower Assam, Bihu
Bihu
Bihu denotes a set of three different cultural festivals of Assam and celebrated by the Assamese diaspora around the world. Though they owe their origins to ancient rites and practices they have taken definite urban features and have become popular festivals in urban and commercialized milieus in...
, Eid
Eid ul-Fitr
Eid ul-Fitr, Eid al-Fitr, Id-ul-Fitr, or Id al-Fitr , often abbreviated to Eid, is a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting . Eid is an Arabic word meaning "festivity," while Fiṭr means "breaking the fast"...
, Durga Puja
Durga Puja
Durga puja ; দুর্গা পূজা,ଦୁର୍ଗା ପୂଜା,‘Worship of Durga’), also referred to as Durgotsava ; , is an annual Hindu festival in South Asia that celebrates worship of the Hindu goddess Durga. It refers to all the six days observed as Mahalaya, Shashthi, Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Navami and...
etc. are held with gaiety.
Nearby Towns
East- KharupatiaKharupatiaKharupetia is a town and a town area committee in Darrang district in the Indian state of Assam.-Geography:Kharupetia is located at . It has an average elevation of 37 metres .-Demographics:...
- 18.1 km, - DalgaonDalgaon-External links:*...
- 23.33 km
West
- KhoirabariKhoirabariKhoirabari is a town and a town area committee in Darrang district in the Indian state of Assam.- Demographics :As of 2001[update] India census,[1] Khoirabari had a population of 8,703. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%...
- 14.5 km, - Rangiya - 16.1 km
North
- Paneri - 17.4 km,
- Kobirali - 08.8 km,
- UdalguriUdalguriOdalguri , , is a town and a town area committee and the headquarters of Udalguri district in the north-eastern Indian state of Assam. Earlier, Udalgiri was a sub-divisional headquarters in Darrang District...
- 26.2 km
South
- Patharughat - 16.2 km,
- Mangaldai - 17.9 km