Bihar State
Bihar is around 1200 km. away from our capital. It is a state with 8.6% population of India. As we know, it is one of the oldest habitats in the world and nowadays people are getting more interested to know this state properly.
| Topic | Data/Facts |
| 1 History | 1.1 Bihar state was founded on 22nd March, 1912. Then Bihar got the statehood later on 26th January, 1950. 1.2 On 15 November 2000, south portion of Bihar was ceded to form the newly-made state, Jharkhand. |
| 2 Geography | 2.1 Climate: 2.1.1 Bihar is in the Subtropical region of Temperate Zone and the climate is humid subtropical. 2.1.2 Its temperature is subtropical with hot summers and cold winters. 2.1.3 Mostly, rain occurs from May to September. 2.1.4 Due to the less rain, the best time to travel to this state is from October to April. 2.2 Agriculture: 2.2.1 Among the states of India, Bihar is the 4th largest producer of vegetables and the 8th largest producer of different fruits. 2.2.2 About 80% of the state’s population is employed in agriculture, which is already above the national average. 2.2.3 The main agricultural products are litchi, guava, mango, pineapple, brinjal, lady’s finger, cauliflower, cabbage, rice, wheat, sugarcane, and sunflower. 2.2.4 Sugar cane and jute are two other major cash crops of Bihar. 2.2.5 The Dairy co-operative was founded in 1983 to coordinate the work of various local milk unions. The government opened Nalanda dairy in 2013 which is the Largest Automation based Dairy Plant in Eastern India. The establishment of Sudha was a result of White Revolution. 2.3 Natural Resources: 2.3.1 Bihar is a producer of Steatite (945 tonnes), Pyrites (9,539 tonnes/year), Quartzite (14,865 tonnes/year), Crude Mica (53 tonnes/year), Limestone (4, 78,000 tonnes/year). 2.3.2 Bihar has also some good resource of Bauxite, Cement Mortar, Dolomite, Glass Sand, Mica, Salt, Uranium and Beryllium, Coal and Gold. 2.4 Major rivers: Rivers: Ajay, Bagmati, Budhi Gandak, Bhutahi Balan, Gandak, Ganges, Ghaghra, Phalgu, Gandaki River, Kamala, Karmanasha, Koshi, Mahananda, Mohana, Punpun, Sapt Koshi and Son. Waterfalls: Dhua Kund, Kakolat, Karkat, Madhuvdhandam, Manjhar Kund, North Tank and Telhar. Lakes: Anupam Lake, Kharagpur Lake, Kanwar Lake, Ghora Katora, Gogabil Lake and Matsyagandha Lake. 2.5 Animals: Tiger, Dolphin, Leopard, Bear, Hyena, Bison, Chital and Barking Deer. Ghariyal (including muggers) and Gangetic Turtles. 2.6 Neighboring States: Uttar Pradesh – West West Bengal – East Jharkhand – South Nepal – North 2.7 Capital city: Patna (The largest city) 2.8 Total Land Area: (i) Total area is 94,163 sq. km. (ii) 12th largest state in India. |
| 3 Forestry | 3.1 Forest: (i) Forest Cover: 7305.99 sq. km. (ii) Very Dense Forest: 333.13 sq. km. (iii) Moderately Dense Forest: 3280.32 sq. km. (iv) Open Forest: 3692.54 sq. km. (Data as per ISFR 2019 assessment) 3.2 National Parks: Valmiki National Park, West Champaran 3.3 Wild Life Sanctuary: (i) Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary, Munger (ii) Gautam Budha Wildlife Sanctuary, Gaya (iii) Pant Wildlife Sanctuary, Nalanda (iv) Udaypur Wildlife Sanctuary, Champaran (v) Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary, Kaimur (vi) Nagi Dam Wildlife Sanctuary, Jhajha (vii) Nakti Dam Wildlife Sanctuary, Jhajha (viii) Rajauli Wildlife Sanctuary, Gaya 3.4 Birds Sanctuary: (i) Kanwar Lake Bird Sanctuary, Begusarai (ii) Barela Jheel Salim Ali-Jubba sahni Bird Sanctuary, Bairaila (iii) Kusheshwar Asthan Bird Sanctuary, Darbhanga 3.5 Dolphin Sanctuary: Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary, Bhagalpur |
| 4 Economy | 4.1 Major Economic Data: (i) GDP: ₹7.57026 lakh crore (US$110 billion) at Market Price (2020–21) (ii) GDP Per Capita Rank: 33rd (iii) Per Capita Income: ₹51735 (2019–20) 4.2 Industries: 4.2.1 Bihar has high agricultural production making it one of the strongest sectors of the state. 4.2.2 Food and beverages, rubber and plastics, transport equipment, chemicals, tobacco, textile, leather and dairy are the key industries. 4.2.3 The state has taken initiatives for the development of other sectors such as education and tourism and provides incentives for information technology and renewable energy. |
| 5 Transportation | 5.1 Air, Rail, Road and Inland waterways are major transportation means in Bihar. 5.2 Other Important facts: 5.2.1 Bihar has national highways with total length of 5,358 km. 5.2.2 Aurangabad-Darbhanga Expressway and Raxaul-Haldia Expressway are the major expressways in Bihar. 5.3 Major Railway Stations (i) Patna Junction (ii) Patliputra Junction (iii) Bhagalpur (iv) Katihar Junction (v) Gaya Junction (vi) Muzaffarpur Junction (vii) Darbhanga Junction (viii) Barauni Junction (ix) Samastipur Junction (x) Kishanganj (xi) Ara Junction (xii) Sasaram Junction 5.4 Major Air Ports: Customs Airports: (i) Gaya Airport (ii) Jay Prakash Narayan Airport, Patna Domestic Airports: (i) Bhagalpur Airport (ii) Darbhanga Airport (iii) Jogbani Airport (iv) Munger Airport (v) Muzaffarpur Airport (vi) Raxaul Airport Indian Air Force Stations: (i) Bihta Air Force Station (ii) Purnea Airport |
| 6 Infrastructures | 6.1 Power installed Capacity: (i) Total Power: : 5801.20 MW (ii) Thermal: 5338.39 MW (iii) Nuclear: 0 (iv) Hydro: 110.00 MW (v) Renewable Energy Source: 352.81 MW |
| 7 Census and Demography | 7.1 Demographic Data: (i) Population: 129,205,000 (12.92 Crores) (ii) Male: 67,101,000 (Sex ratio-2024) (iii) Female: 62,104,000 (Sex Ratio-2024) (iv) Sex Ratio: 1000 females per 1090 males. (Sex ratio- 2024) (v) Population Growth: 25.42% ( Decadal growth 2001-2011) (vi) Percentage of total population of the country: 9.2% (vii) Density: 1388/sq. km. (viii) Rural Population: 92,341,436 (88.71%) (ix) Urban Population: 11,758,016 (11.29%) (x) 2nd most populous state in India (Based on 2011 census) 7.2 Major Religion followers: (i) Hinduism: 86,078,686 (82.69%) (ii) Christianity: 129,247 (0.12%) (iii) Islam: 17,557,809 (16.87%) (iv) Jainism: 18,914 (0.02%) (v) Buddhism: 25,453 (0.02%) (vi) Sikhism: 23,779 (0.02%) (Based on 2011 census) |
| 8 Culture | 8.1 Literature: Literary work is majorly found under categories: (i) Bhojpuri Maithili language (ii) Magahi language (iii) Angika (iv) Bajjika 8.2 Major Poets & Authors: (i) Bhikhari Thakur, Heera Dom, Viveki Rai,Satishwar Sahay Verma, Pandey Kapil etc are writers of Bhojpuri. (ii) Vidyapati in Maithili. (iii) Raj Kamal Jha, Amitava Kumar, Tabish Khair, Abhay K, Siddhartha Chowdhury are English language writers. (iv) Hindi writers are Raja Radhika Raman Prasad Sinha, Kumar vansi, Acharya Ramlochan Saran, Acharya Shivpujan Sahay, Divakar Prasad Vidyarthy, Ramdhari Singh ‘Dinkar’, Ram Briksh Benipuri, Phanishwar Nath ‘Renu’, Gopal Singh “Nepali”, Ramesh Chandra Jha and Baba Nagarjun. (v) Magahi writers are Surendra Prasad ‘Tarun’, Mathura Prasad ‘Navin’, Shesh Anand Madhukar and R. Ishari ‘Arshad’. 8.3 Major Festivals: (i) Chhath Mahaparv (ii) Durga Puja (iii) Saraswati Puja (iv) Sama Chakeva (v) Jivitputrika (vi) Teej (vii) Bihula-Bishari Puja (viii) Buddha Purnima (ix) Diwali (x) Holi 8.4 Folk Dance: (i) Bidesiya (ii) Domkach (iii) Phagua (iv) Jaat-Jaatin (v) Jhijhiya (vi) Jhumri (vii) Kajri (viii) Painki (ix) Sohar 8.5 Major Religious Places: (i) Vishnupada Temple, Gaya (ii) Mahavir Mandir, Patna (iii) Sun Temple, Deo (iv) Mundeshwari Temple, Kaimur (v) Mangla Gauri Temple, Gaya (vi) Aami Mandir, Saran (vii) Shitala Mata Temple, (viii) Takht Shri Harmandir Saheb, Patna (ix) Gurdwara Pahila Bara, Patna (x) Gurdwara Gobind Ghat, Patna (xi) Gurdwara Guru ka Bagh, Patna (xii) Mahabodhi Temple, Bodh Gaya (xiii) Patliputra Karuna Stupa, Patna (xiv) Vishwa Shanti Stupa, Nalanda (xv) Kesariya Buddha Stupa, Patna (xvi) Jal Mandir, Pawapuri (xvii) Bihar Sharif, Nalanda (xviii) Padri ki Haveli, Patna 8.6 Other important facts about culture: (i) Bihar is quite famous for different fairs. Some fairs are Pitri Paksha Mela, Sonepur Mela and Shravani Mela. (ii) Dishes for which Bihar is famous include Litti (cuisine), Chokha , Kadhi bari, Ghugni, Khichdi, Bihari kebabs, Champaran meat, Machhak jhor (fish curry), Makhana. Famous native sweets include halwa of posta-dana and Makhana, Khaja, Tilkut and Anarasa. (iii) Madhubani Painting is quite famous throughout the world. |
| 9 Education | 9.1 State Literacy Data: (i) Total: 52,504,553 (61.80%) (ii) Male: 31,608,023 (71.20%) (iii) Female: 20,896,530 (51.50%) 9.2 Major Universities: (i) Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Darbhanga (ii) Jai Prakash Vishwavidyalaya, Chapra (iii) Nalanda University, Rajgir (iv) Magadh University, Bodh Gaya (v) Patna University, Patna (vi) Central University of South Bihar, Patna (vii) Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Samastipur (viii) Maulana Mazharul Haque Arabic and Persian University, Patna (ix) Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur (x) Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur (xi) Mahatma Gandhi Central University, Motihari (xii) Chanakya National Law University, Patna (xiii) Aryabhatta Knowledge University, Patna (xiv) Veer Kunwar Singh University, Arrah (xv) Bihar Agricultural University, Bhagalpur (xvi) Bhupendra Narayan Mandal University, Madhepura (xvii) Kameshwar Singh Darbhanga Sanskrit University, Darbhanga (xviii) K.K. University Biharsharif, Biharsharif 9.3 Major Institutions: (i) IIT Patna (ii) NIT Patna (iii) All India Institute of Medical Sciences Patna (iv) Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna (v) Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, Bargaon (vi) National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Hajipur |
| 10 Tourism | 10.1 Bihar is the oldest inhabited places in the whole world with rich history of 3000 years. Around total 6 million tourists visit Bihar every year. 10.2 Major Tourist Spots: (i) Mahabodhi Temple, Bodh Gaya (ii) Ashoka Pillars, Vaishali (iii) Ashoka Pillars, West Champaran (iv) Mandar Parvat, Bhagalpur (v) Vadathika Inscription, Gaya (vi) Nalanda (vii) Rajgir (viii) Vikramshila (ix) Kesaria (x) Patna Museum (xi) Bihar Sharif, Nalanda (xii) Padri ki Haveli, Patna (xiii) Golghar, Patna (xiv) Kargil Chowk, Patna (xv) Barabar Hills, Jehanabad |
| 11 Sports | 11.1 Major sports in Bihar are boxing, cricket, hockey, volleyball and football. 11.2 Major Stadium: (i) Moin-ul-Haq Stadium, Patna (ii) Patliputra Sports Complex, Patna (iii) Rajendra Stadium, Siwan 11.3 International Players from the state: Cricket: (i) Syed Saba Karim (ii) Kirti Azad (iii) Subroto Banerjee (iv) Rajesh Chauhan (v) Kavita Roy Athletics: Shivnath Singh Hockey: Zafar Iqbal |
| 12 Governance & Administrative Divisions | 12.1 Administrative divisions: (i) Number of Districts: 38 (ii) Number of Tehsils: 101 (iii) Number of Urban Towns: 213 (iv) Number of Villages: 45,113 12.2 Official Languages: (i) Hindi (ii) Urdu (Additional Official Language) (Based on census-2011) 12.3 Constituent Facts: (i) Number of Assembly seats: 243 (ii) Number of Parliament seats: 40 (iii) Rajyasabha seats : 16 (iv) Legislature – Bicameral (v) Council seats : 75 12.4 Chief Minister: Nitish Kumar (22nd Chief Minister of Bihar) 12.4.1 1st Chief Minister : Krishna Sinha ( 26/01/1950 to 31/01/1961) 12.5 Governor: Rajendra Vishvanath Arlekar (29th Governor of Bihar) (From 14/02/2023) 12.5.1 1st Governor : Jairamdas Daulatram ( 15/081947 to 11/01/1948) 12.6 Judiciary: Patna High Court was established on 9th February, 1916. (i) Number of Judges: 53 (ii) Judge Retirement Age: 62 12.7 Official Website: state.bihar.gov.in |
| 13 Other Important facts | 13.1 UNESCO World Heritage Sites: (i) Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya (ii) Archaeological Site of Nalanda Mahavihara at Nalanda 13.2 GI Tags: (i) Applique (Khatwa) Work of Bihar (ii) Sikki Grass Products of Bihar (iii) Silk of Bhagalpur (iv) Shahi Litchi of Bihar (v) Katarni rice (vi) Magahi Paan 13.3 Other Important Facts: State Animal: Gaur (Mithun) State Bird: House Sparrow State Flower: Kachnar State Fruit: Mango State Tree: Peepal State Song : Mere Bharat ka Kanth haar |
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