West Bengal (পশ্চিম বঙ্গ, Pôščim Bôngô) is a state in the northeast of India. Neighbouring regions are Nepal and Sikkim to the northwest, Bhutan to the north, Assam to the northeast, Bangladesh to the east, the Bay of Bengal to the south, Orissa to the southwest and Jharkhand and Bihar.
History of Bengal
Bengal came under Islamic rule starting in the 13th century and developed into a wealthy centre of trade and industry under the Mogul Empire during the 16th century. European traders had arrived in the late 15th century and eventually the British East India Company controlled the region by the late 18th century, from which the British extended their rule over all of India.
When Indian independence was achieved in 1947, Bengal was divided into predominantly Muslim East Bengal (later changed to East Pakistan and then Bangladesh) and predominantly Hindu West Bengal.
For more on Bengal's history prior to 1947, see Bengal.
West Bengal State
List of political parties in the state
The capital city of West Bengal is Kolkata. The primary language of West Bengal is Bengali. Since 1977, the state has been ruled by Left Front, who repeatedly won democratic elections.
Subdivisions
West Bengal is composed of 18 districts
Climate
The climate of West Bengal is tropical. The land is mostly plains, except for the northern region, which is a part of Himalayan Mountain Range. Darjeeling, in the north is well known for its high quality teas. At the south of West Bengal the Sundarbans delta on Ganga is a part of the world's largest river delta (other portions lie in Bangladesh). This region is famous for the Royal Bengal Tiger.
Culture
Bengal is one of the most important cultural hubs of India. There was a saying, "What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow". It is the birthplace of India's only Noble laureate in literature, Rabindranath Tagore. The world famous film director Satyajit Ray was also born here. Apart from this, Bengal gave birth to innumerable well known poets and writers who enriched the world literature ceaselessly. Some prominent members include Kazi Nazrul Islam, Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay and Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. Also from West Bengal is India's most beloved male singer in films, Kishore Kumar, as well as the world-famous sitarist Ravi Shankar.
Famous People
During independence movement, Bengal took a leading and especially militant role. Subhash Chandra Bose, who was belovedly called "Netaji", is still considered an exemplar of courage for Indian youth. Satyendra Nath Bose, from whom the boson particle and Bose-Einstein theory get their names, was also a Bengali. Amartya Sen, who won Nobel Prize in Economics in 1998 is a Bengali. Mother Teresa, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, worked in Calcutta for most of her life.
In the religious realm, Bengal gave birth to great Hindu sages and saints like Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (15th century major Vaishnava figure), Ramprasad Sen (a famous Kali Bhakta and poet) and Ramakrishna Paramhansa; others include Swami Vivekananda (the most renowned of Shri Ramakrishna's disciples), Śrī Aurobindo Ghosh, and Prabhupada A.C. Bhaktivedanta the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).
See also
External links
- Official website of Government of West Bengal http://www.westbengal.gov.in/
- Map of India showing location of West Bengal http://mapsofindia.com/maps/westbengal/westbengallocation.htm
- District map of West Bengal http://mapsofindia.com/maps/westbengal/h3s3202.htm
- Railway map http://mapsofindia.com/maps/westbengal/h3s3205.htm
- West Bengal News http://www.123bharath.com/westbengal-india-news
Last updated: 02-08-2005 15:21:14
Last updated: 05-03-2005 17:50:55
