Mukutmanipur
Encyclopedia
Mukutmanipur is a town in Bankura
Bankura
Bankura is a city and a municipality in Bankura District in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bankura District.-Etymology:...

 district of West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...

, 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...

. It is located at the confluence of the Kangsabati
Kangsabati River
Kangsabati River rises from the Chota Nagpur plateau in the state of Jharkhand, India and passes through the districts of Purulia, Bankura and Paschim Medinipur in West Bengal before draining in the Hooghly River.-Course:After rising near Jhalda in the Chota Nagpur plateau in Purulia district,...

 and Kumari rivers close to the Jharkhand
Jharkhand
Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east...

 border.

Kangsabati project

In 1956, a giant water dam reservoir was planned at Mukutmonipur, [about 12 km from Khatra town in the district of Bankura, WB], under a big vision mooted by the then CM of Bengal Dr Bidhan Ch. Roy. The Mukutmonipur dam was planned to provide major irrigation facilities to 8,000 square kilometres of agricultural land, stretched across Bankura
Bankura District
Bankura district is one of the seven districts of Burdwan Division in the Indian state of West Bengal. The district has been described as the “connecting link between the plains of Bengal on the east and Chota Nagpur plateau on the west.” The areas to the east and north-east are low lying alluvial...

, Purulia
Purulia District
Purulia district is one of the nineteen districts of West Bengal state in eastern India. The town of Purulia is the administrative headquarters of the district.-History:...

, Paschim Medinipur
Paschim Medinipur
Paschim Medinipur district or West Midnapore district is the districts of the state of West Bengal, India. It was formed on January 1, 2002 after the Partition of Midnapore into Paschim Medinipur and Purba Medinipur. The district has 4 sub-divisions: Kharagpur, Medinipur Sadar, Ghatal and Jhargram...

 and parts of upper Hooghly
Hooghly District
Hooghly district is one of the districts of the state of West Bengal in India. It can alternatively be spelt Hoogli or Hugli. The district is named after the Hooghly River.The headquarters of the district are at Chinsura...

. Approximately two kilometres from the lake is the Bangopalpur Reserve Forest, a home of many species of flora and fauna.

Tourist centre

Mukutmonipur and Jhilimili
Jhilimili
Jhilimili is a tourist centre in Khatra subdivision of Bankura district in the Indian state of West Bengal.-Geography:Jhilimili is located at . It has an average elevation of .Jhilimili is located on the banks of Kangsabati River, is about from Mukutmanipur, from Bankura, from Khatra and from...

 nearby are major tourist attractions visited by more than a lakh
Lakh
A lakh is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand . It is widely used both in official and other contexts in Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and is often used in Indian English.-Usage:...

 (100 000) visitors. The second biggest earth dam of India is located in Mukutmonipur 55 km away from Bankura
Bankura
Bankura is a city and a municipality in Bankura District in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bankura District.-Etymology:...

. According to one description, “green forests surround the vast bluish tract of water, and the hillocks are picturesque. The place is very famous for its superb natural beauty. The undulating terrain along the southern edge of the Kangsabati water reservoir spreads as a three-dimensional necklace in green and terracotta.” The SDO, Khatra, Mr Sanjay Vansal said: “We have got a Rs 80 lakh composite UNDP project for Mukutmonipur. The project has been conceived to promote tourism and improve the condition of the tribal artisans devoted to the craft work with bamboo sticks and saboi grass.” Approximately two kilometers from the lake is the Bangopalpur Reserve Forest, a home of many species of flora and fauna.
Four kilometres from the dam is the ancient town of Ambikanagar, once an important place of pilgrimage for Jains
Jainism
Jainism is an Indian religion that prescribes a path of non-violence towards all living beings. Its philosophy and practice emphasize the necessity of self-effort to move the soul towards divine consciousness and liberation. Any soul that has conquered its own inner enemies and achieved the state...

. However, a flood destroyed most of what remained in 1898.

Mukutmanipur, a quaint serene place, which is home to the world’s reportedly longest (10.8 km) man-made mud-banked fresh water barrage that canalises Kangshabati & Kumari rivers into the three drought affected districts ie. Bankura, Purulia & Midnapore for irrigation in the summer months.

Transport

The Union Railway Minister laid the foundation stone of the new 47 km Bankura
Bankura
Bankura is a city and a municipality in Bankura District in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bankura District.-Etymology:...

-Chhatna-Mukutmanipur line in 2005.

How to Get There

Train service available from Howrah station till Bankura station. From Bankura one can take a bus till Mukutmanipur itself. Train journey time from Howrah to Bankura: 4.5 hrs; bus journey time from Bankura to Mukutmanipur: 2 hrs. Buses are also available directly from Calcutta to Mukutmanipur, with journey time 8-9 hrs.
Non-A/C pushback buses cost Rs 110-130/- for the Calcutta-Mukutmanipur direct journey; while the Bankura-Mukutmanipur stretch will cost Rs 30/-. A few State Transport buses are also available.

External links

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