Siliguri

Siliguri
Metropolitan city
Top to bottom : Old view of Siliguri, Lions Clock Tower, City Centre Cosmos Mall
Siliguri Location of Siliguri in West Bengal Siliguri Siliguri (India)
Coordinates: 26.71°N 88.43°E / 26.71; 88.43
Country	India
State	West Bengal
District	Darjeeling (62%), Jalpaiguri (38%)
Government
• Type	Municipal Corporation
• Body	Siliguri Municipal Corporation
• Mayor	Ashok Bhattacharya(CPI(M))
• ADM / SDO	P Harishanker (IAS)
Area
• Metropolitan city	41.90 km2 (16.18 sq mi)
• Metro	260 km2 (100 sq mi)
• Rank	2nd in West Bengal
Highest elevation	140 m (460 ft)
Lowest elevation	114 m (374 ft)
Population  (2011 census)
• Metropolitan city	513,264
• Rank	3rd in West Bengal
• Density	12,000/km2 (32,000/sq mi)
• Metro	1,057,438
Languages
• Official	Bengali, Hindi, Nepalese, English
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	734 001-734 015 (city limits), 734 401-734 436, 735 133-735 135(suburbs)
Telephone code	0353, 0354, 03561
Vehicle registration	WB 73/74
Lok Sabha constituency	Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri
Vidhan Sabha constituency	Siliguri, Dabgram-Phulbari, Matigara-Naxalbari
Website	www.siligurismc.com www.darjeeling.gov.in www.siliguri.gov.inwww.jalpaiguri.gov.in
1The coordinates given here are in metric system and based upon the Microsoft Encarta Reference Library Map Center 2005 2 The Vehicle Code given here based upon the Siliguri Sub Divisional Court, Darjeeling District Court and Jalpaiguri District Court documentations.

Siliguri () is a city which spans across the Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts in the Indian state of West Bengal. The city is located on the banks of the Mahananda River and the foothills of the Himalayas.

Demographics

Religion in Siliguri
Religion			Percent
Hinduism			91.98%
Islam			5.37%
Christianity			0.94%
Buddhist			0.65%
Others			1.05%

Based on Census data of 2011, the city had a population of 705,579, while the population of Siliguri UA/Metropolitan is 1,057,438. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. In Siliguri, 10% of the population is under six years of age.

Due to the city's booming economy, it has drawn people from Bihar, Jharkhand, North Bengal, North-East, Sikkim and other parts of India in search of livelihood. Siliguri also has a large population of Tibetans and a notable number of Bhutanese permanently settled in the city

It is the 3rd largest city in West Bengal after Kolkata and Howrah and also the 2nd largest city in North East India after Guwahati.

History

Siliguri, the gateway of North East India, got municipal status in 1949 and grew into Municipal Corporation in 1994. It is one of the most rapidly developing and growing metropolis of the state and also of the country. It is situated in both Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri district.

Some of the oldest sites (British period, since 1880's) in Siliguri are, Hill Cart road, Siliguri Town railway station, Mahabirsthan market.

Siliguri also known for its '4T': Tea, Timber, Tourism and Transport.

Presently Siliguri is growing by leaps and bounds in area and population. Due to the growth of its area both in the Northern and Southern directions. It was felt to distinguish the city in terms of the direction. Hence, the concept of North Siliguri and South Siliguri came forward very recently. The Northern region of the added areas to the city in addition to the old Siliguri is known as North Siliguri. Whereas, Southern region of the added areas (mostly from the Jalpaiguri district) in addition to the previous old Siliguri is now known as South Siliguri.

Transport

Rail

A+ category railway station, New Jalpaiguri Junction railway station under Katihar railway division of Northeast Frontier Railway zone serves the city. Two other stations, Siliguri Junction railway station and Siliguri Town railway station, also serve the city.

The New Jalpaiguri Junction railway station, also known as NJP, was opened in 1964 as a greenfield project. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Toy Train is the main attraction of this station.

Air

Bagdogra Airport is the airport of Siliguri city.

Media in Siliguri

Print Media

Siliguri is known as the media capital of North Bengal. The major thrust of media activities began in Siliguri from 19th May 1990 when Uttar Banga Sambad (a vernacular daily) started its operations. Later it became the highest circulated newspaper of North Bengal irrespective of all the English, Bengali, Hindi, and Nepali Newspapers. From 1999 till date most of the National and regional newspapers are having their separate Siliguri Edition. Apart from Uttar Banga Sambad, there are other newspapers like Janpath Samachar, Prabhat Khabar, The Telegraph (Calcutta), Anandabazar Patrika, Dainik Jagran etc.

Audio Visual Media

Doordarshan started its operation from the year 2000 at Phulbari area of Siliguri. There was a long gap after that and in the year 2011 CTVN’s Uttar Bangla TV Channel started its operation from Siliguri. Calcutta News is the only satellite TV News channel, which has its own up-linking facility from Siliguri. Other news channels like ABP Ananda, 24 Ghanta etc are based on transfer telecast system. Small cable news channels are also functional but those don’t contribute much of Siliguri’s needs in news demands.

Digital Media

Siliguri is also not new to Digital media. Presently there are at least three registered newsportals operating from Siliguri. Apart from this, there are other non-registered newsportals.

Education

Siliguri's schools are run by the state government or private organisations. Bengali and English are the primary languages of instruction; Hindi and Nepali are also used. Schools in Siliguri follow the "10+2+3" plan. After completing their secondary education, students typically enroll in schools that have a higher secondary facility and are affiliated with the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education, the ICSE, or the CBSE. They usually choose a focus on liberal arts, business, or science. Vocational programs are also available. Some Siliguri schools, for example Siliguri Boys' High School, Siliguri Girls' High School, Tarai Tarapada Adarsha Vidyalay, and Don Bosco Siliguri have been ranked amongst the best schools in the state.

Government sponsored institutions in Siliguri: premier institutions are, University of North Bengal (1962), a state university and North Bengal Medical College and Hospital (1968), a state medical college and other institutions are, Siliguri College, Siliguri College of Commerce, Surya Sen Mahavidyalaya, Acharya Prafulla Chandra Roy Government College, Kalipada Ghosh Tarai Mahavidyalaya, Siliguri Government Polytechnic, Jagadish Chandra Vidyapith etc.

Some private institutions in Siliguri are: Salesian College, Siliguri Institute of Technology, Gyan Jyoti College etc.

Climate

Climate data for Silguri
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	20 (68)	22 (72)	25 (77)	30 (86)	36 (97)	38 (100)	37 (99)	36 (97)	30 (86)	28 (82)	27 (81)	21 (70)	38 (100)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	8 (46)	10 (50)	14 (57)	22 (72)	24 (75)	25 (77)	26 (79)	25 (77)	23 (73)	23 (73)	16 (61)	14 (57)	10 (50)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	8 (0.3)	18 (0.7)	33 (1.3)	94 (3.7)	300 (11.8)	658 (25.9)	818 (32.2)	643 (25.3)	538 (21.2)	142 (5.6)	13 (0.5)	5 (0.2)	3,266 (128.6)

External links

• Siliguri Municipal Corporation
• Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority
• Information on Siliguri at West Bengal Government website