Barasat is a city and a municipality of North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of Barasat Sadar subdivision. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA).
History
During the Mughal Empire period, Sankar Chakraborty (a commander of the zamindar Pratapaditya and king of Jessore in present-day Bangladesh) came to Barasat, Kolkata in 1600 and established himself. In 1700, Hazarat Ekdil Shah moved to the town and was known as a social reformer. His tomb, in Kazipara, is a pilgrimage site for the Muslim community. Pratapaditya made his way to Kolkata from Jessore; Sirajudullah went to Kolkata from Murshidabad via Barasat on a road which became two national highways.
Under the British Raj, East India Company officials from Calcutta (Kolkata) made Barasat a weekend retreat and built houses with gardens. Warren Hastings built his villa in the heart of Barasat and Bankim Chandra Chatterjee was the town's first Indian deputy magistrate.
Indigo cultivation was a major industry and indigo merchants were known for their inhumane treatment of farmers. Titumir, a farmer, fomented a revolution against indigo merchants in Barasat. Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar, Pyari Charan Sarkar and Kalikrishna Mitra were known for social reformation in the town, including women's education and widow remarriage. During the early nineteenth century, Barasat Cadet College trained new recruits and cadets from Europe; the college closed in 1811.
From 1834 to 1861, Barasat was the seat of Barasat District. The district became a subdivision of the Twenty-four Parganas district in 1861,
Geography
Location
Barasat is located in eastern India's Ganges Delta. The Bangladesh border, at Petrapole, is from the city.
Its average elevation is . The nearest river is the Ganges, about to the west, and it is on the Gangetic plain.
Area overview
The area covered in the map alongside is largely a part of the north Bidyadhari Plain, located in the lower Ganges Delta. The area is flat. It is a little raised above flood level and the highest ground borders the river channels. 54.67% of the people of the densely populated area lives in the urban areas and 45.33% lives in the rural areas.
<small>Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.</small>
Climate
Barasat has a tropical climate similar to the rest West Bengal. The region experiences a monsoon from early June to mid-September. The climate is dry in winter (mid-November to mid-February) and humid in summer. January is the coldest month and May is the hottest month in Barasat. Months of July and August produces most rainfall in Barasat.
Barasat has a tropical climate similar to the rest West Bengal. The region experiences a monsoon from early June to mid-September. The climate is dry in winter (mid-November to mid-February) and humid in summer. January is the coldest month and May is the hottest month in Barasat. Months of July and August produces most rainfall in Barasat.
|1901 | 8634
|1911 | 8790
|1921 | 8211
|1931 | 8672
|1941 | 11230
|1951 | 16027
|1961 | 43138
|1971 | 64097
|1981 | 101395
|1991 | 160044
|2001 | 231521
|2011 | 278435
|align = left
According to the 2011 Indian census, Barasat had a total population of 278,435; 140,822 (51%) were males and 137,613 (49%) females, and 22,605 were under age six. The literacy rate was 89.62 percent of the population over age six (229,279 people). The town's population increased from 231,521 in 2001. The literacy rate that year was 76 percent, higher than the national average of 54.5 percent. Of the literate population, 52 percent were male and 48 percent female.