Muzaffarpur

India / Bihar / Muzaffarpur /

Muzaffarpur is a town in Muzaffarpur district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is headquarters of the district.
The town of Muzaffarpur, famous for Litchi , is the largest city of North Bihar. It is situated on the banks of a Himalayan foothills Someshwer Range originated, perennial river Burhi/Budhi Gandak. It has won international encomiums for its delicious Shahi Leechi and China Leechi. In British period, world famous American writer and Novelist Mark Twain, while visiting this town has written in his book -"Following the Equator ",Ch LVII a great region which was an endless garden miles of the beautiful flower from whose juice comes the opium,and at Muzaffarpore we were in the midst of the Indigo culture. Father of the Indian nation, Mahatma Gandhi came to Muzaffarpur in 1918 on his way to Motihari to redress grievances of the Champaran indigo farmers. In his autobiography Chapter -"The Gentle Bihari", he has written how he passed some delightful days in Muzaffarpur. In 1902, Noble Prize Winner Indian Bengali poet Rabindra Nath Tagore was accorded civic reception by the citizens of Muzaffarpur Town. In 1908, the first bomb outrage, a sign of militant Nationalism, occurred at Muzaffarpur and Khudiram Bose, a Bengali boy, offered his life for the freedom of India.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first President of Indian Republic was, for some time, a Professor in Local College, named Langat Singh College. This college has also seen the names like late Mahadevi Verma and Acharya Kriplani as professors. Muzaffarpur Town is one of the many Gateways to Nepal. Clothes and food-grains are traded between Nepal and Muzaffarpur.Geography

Muzaffarpur is located at 26°07′N 85°24′E / 26.12°N 85.4°E / 26.12; 85.4.[1] The town lies in a highly active seismic zone of India. In the disastrous earthquake on 15 Jan, 1934, much of the town suffered sever damages and loss of lives [5]. It has an average elevation of 47 meters (154 feet). This sauacer shaped, low-centered town lies on the great Indo-Gangetic plain of Bihar, over the Himalayan silt and sand, brought by the glacier and rain fed meandering rivers of the Great Himalayas. The soil of the town is highly fertile, well drained, sandy type, white colored and very soft to touch and till. The land scape is soothing green round the year. The town is surrounded by the flood plains in green settings dotted with sweetwater ponds and crescent old river channels, with sparkling whitish sandy river banks and unpolluted air and water. Numerous private fruit orchards and idyllic rivers are ideal for picnics/adventures/camping/outings, though local tourism is conspicuous by its absence. The city has a water table just 20 ft. below ground level and landscape is green throughout the year. The city has a non-operational civil Aerodrome, Patahi, belonging to the Airport Authority of India with an air strip of 4000 ft. length .

Muzaffarpur now is a rapidly growing city. The growth in the last decade has been phenomenal, although a lot is yet to be done. Thousands of villagers migrated to this town from nearby villages in the rapid urbanization in post-independence India. But this has created serious law and order problems in the past. The drainage system and garbage disposal system is now disorderly and practically non-existent. The downtown areas of Muzaffarpur are known as Tilak Maidan Road Kalyani and Saraiyagunj. Both areas are densely populated with small shops selling a plethora of goods and services, in colourful settings and buzzing with large crowds. Motijheel is the main shopping area. Chakkar Maidan (Oval) is a place where there is small settlement of the Territorial Army non-departmental unit 151 Inf Bn (TA) JAT. Muzaffarpur Town has ancient temples like Baba Garib Nath (Shiva Temple) , Chaturbhuj-sthan, Raj Rajeswar Devi Kali (Durga), Temple of Raj Darbhanga and Kalibari, the Kali temple. There are also several large and small places of worship of other religious communities like the Sikhs (Gurudwara at Ramna), Rama Krishna Ashram (in Bela - Mithan Pura), Muslims (Badi masjid at Company Bagh, Data Kambal Shah Mazaar near Purani Bazaar, Bada Imambara near Banaras Bank Chowk & Badi Karbala at Sariyagunj), Buddhists, Jains, Christians, etc.It is, of course impossible to trace back the history of this region to its earliest origins, but we can trace back its stream of strong heritage a very long way through the ancient Indian epic Ramayan, which still bears a significant role in Indian civilization. To initiate with the Legend, Rajarshi Janak was ruling Videha, the mythological name of this entire region including eastern Nepal and northern Bihar. Sitamarhi, a place in this region, bears a value of sacred Hindu belief where, Seeta (other name Vaidehi: The Princes of Videha) sprang to life out of an earthen pot while Rajarshi Janak was tilling the land.

Muzaffarpur , 'The Land Of Leechi' was created in 1860s [9] for the sake of administrative convenience by splitting up the earlier district of Tirhut. The present town of Muzaffarpur came into existence in the 18th century and named after Muzaffar Khan, an Amil (Revenue Officer) under British Dynasty.

The recorded history of the district dates back to the rise of the Vrijjan Republic. The center of political power also shifted from Mithila to Vaishali. The Vrijjan Republic was a confederation of eight clans of which the Licchavis were the most powerful and influential. Even the powerful kingdom of Magadh had to conclude matrimonial alliances in 519 B.C. with the neighboring estates of the Licchavis. Ajatshatru invaded Vaishali and extended his sway over Tirhut. It was at this time that Patliputra (the modern Patna) was founded at the village Patali on the banks of the sacred river Ganga and Ajatshatru built an invincible fortress to keep vigil over the Licchavis on the other side of the river. Ambarati, 40 km from Muzaffarpur is believed to be the village home of Amrapali, the famous Royal court dancer of Vaishali.

From the visit of the Hieuen Tsang's till the rise of the Pala dynasty, area was under the control of Harsha Vardhan, a powerful sovereign of North India. After 647 A.D. The district passed on to the local chiefs. In the 8th century A.D. the Pala kings continued to have their hold over Tirhut until 1019 A.D. Chedi kings of Central India also exercised their influence over Tirhut till they were replaced by the rulers of the Sena dynasty towards the close of the 11the century.

Between 1211 & 1226, Ghais-u-ddin Iwaz, the ruler of Bengal, was the first Muslim invader of Tirhut. He, however, could not succeed in conquering the kingdom but extorted tributes. It was in 1323 that Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq established his control over the district.

Towards the close of the 14th century the whole of North Bihar including Tirhut passed on to the kings of Jaunpur and remained under their control for nearly a century until Sikandar Lodi of Delhi defeated the king of Jaunpur. Meanwhile, Hussain Shah, the Nawab of Bengal had become so powerful that he exercised his control over large tracts including Tirhut. The emperor of Delhi advanced against Hussain Shah in 1499 and got control over Tirhut after defeating its Raja. The power of the Nawabs of Bengal began to wane and with the decline and fall of Mahood Shah, north Bihar including Tirhut formed a part of the mighty Mughal Empire. Though Muzaffarpur with the entire north Bihar had been annexed yet the petty powerful chieftains continued to exercise effective control over this area till the days of Daud Khan, the Nawab of Bengal. Daud Khan had his stronghold at Patna and Hajipur and after his fall a separate Subah of Bihar was constituted under the Mughal dynasty and Tirhut formed a part of it.

The victory of East India Company in 1764 at the battle of Buxar gave them control over whole of Bihar and they succeeded in subduing the entire district. The success of the insurgent at Delhi in 1857 caused grave concern to the English inhabitants in this district and revolutionary fervor began to permeate the entire district. Muzaffarpur played its role and was the site of the famous bomb case of 1908. The young East Bengali Hindu revolutionary, Khudi Ram Bose, a boy of barely 18 years was hanged for throwing the bomb at the carriage of Pringle Kennedy who was actually mistaken for Kingsford, the District Judge of Muzaffarpur. After independence, a memorial to this young revolutionary patriot was constructed at Muzaffarpur, which still stands. The visit of Mahatma Gandhi along with eminent nationalists like Anugrah Narayan Sinha,Sri Krishna Singh to Muzaffarpur in December 1918 and again in January 1927 had tremendous political effect in arousing the latent feelings of the people and the district continued to play a prominent role in the country's struggle for freedom. Muzaffarpur also played a critical role in the Khadi revolution. Many local freedom fighters of Muzaffarpur were pivotal in Indian independence struggle in India.

Muzaffarpur was mainly populated by Bengali Collectors, Commissioners, Businessmen, Industrialista, Land-owners, Professors , Engineers, lawyers and many others since the period of The British Rule and even after independence up to early seventies.Bengalis have very remarkable contribution in bringing the city from antiquity to Modernity.Climate

The summer, April-June is extremely hot and humid (28/40 deg C,90% Max.) and winter is pleasntly cold, around 06/20 deg C. The air pollution is comparatively less, so the air is comparatively clean. Best months to visit are Oct-Mar. It is better to avoid visits in summer and monsoon (Mid Jun to Sep) due to prolonged power-cuts ,heat and rain flooding in the town.Famous for exporting lichi. Long ago, the area was famous for hand-woven textiles, sugar cane, Indigo, Opium etc. The district has a few sugar mills - now old and dilapidated. It has been the commercial hub of North Bihar and the wholesale market of all types of Mumbai, Surat and Ahmedabad Textiles mills in famous Marwari community dominated Suta Patti. Commodities wholesalers are in "Gola" Market of Saraiyagunj. Commercial hub of the town is Motijheel.

Muzaffarpur area is largely an agricultural based economy. The principal agricultural crops are rice, wheat, pulses, jute, maize and oil seeds. Cauliflower, cabbage, tomato, radish, carrot, beet-root etc. are some of the vegetables. Rice and wheat account for the major portion of the gross area sown. Maize is the next important crop for the district. Sugar cane, potato and barley are some of the non-cereal crops grown. The district is famous for delicious-mango and lichi, which are exported to other parts of the country & even abroad.

Main livestock of the town includes cows, buffaloes, bulls and bullocks, sheep, goats and pigs and poultary. Muzaffarpur Town has several industries, big and small. Prabhat Zarda Factory [10], Bharat Wagon and Engineering Ltd. [11], 220 MW thermal power plant [12], at present defunct, Bihar Drugs & Organic Chemicals Ltd., Muzaffarpur - a unit of IDPL [13], units of Leather Development Corporation, Muzaffarpur Dairy, a unit of the Bihar State Dairy Corporation unit Bihar State Cooperative Milk Producers' Federation Ltd, Muzaffarpur producing Sudha brand packaged milk are the major industries located in Muzaffarpur town and its periphery. The above industries have generated considerable employment and have also been helpful in establishing a number of small industries including a few cottage industries. The most important item that is manufactured in Muzaffarpur town is railway wagon. Muzaffarpur town is a important centre for the wholesale cloth trade. Agro-based Industries are also established in the town.

Hotels: There are a few hotels with A.C. and non-A.C. rooms.Litchi crop which is available from May to June only is mainly cultivated in the districts of Muzaffarpur, Vaishali, Sitamarhi, West & East Chaparan, Darbhanga and Samastipur in area of about 25.27 thousand hectare with total production of about 3 Lakhs tones which is roughly 70% of national output in 54% of the area under litchi plantation in the country. The quality of litchi exported from India is considered to be best thoughIndia's share would amount to less than 1%.
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   26°7'42"N   85°22'56"E

Comments

  • Yaad aata hai wo Muzaffarpur Wo Motijheel ka sama, Puja market ki chat, Wo Vaishali ki ice cream, Wah usme thi kuchh baat Wo Mahraja ki mithai, wo Bharat Jalpan ka dosa Wo Daudi Market ki pav bhaji aur Shubhraj ka samosa. Wo bike ka safar, wo MDDM wale road ki hawa, Wo Jubba Sahni Park ki raunak aur Devi Mandir ka sama. Wo Zilla School maidan mein cricket aur harne pe jhagra, Wo Mithanpura ki galiyaan aur galiyon mein bhatakna, Sab chhut gaye hai dur Yaad aata hai wo Muzaffarpur. Wo January ki kadake ki sardi, wo baarishon ke mahiney, Wo garmi ke din, jab chhutate they paseeney. Wo dusehre ki dhoom, wo chatth mein shradda, Wo holi ki masti, wo doston ki toli, Wo diwali ke patakhe aur janmashtmi ki roli. Wo Pankaj Market ki galiyan , wo North Point,Sunshine ki ladkiyan. Wo Shyam ki balcony aur wo Jawahar ka sound, Wo MDDM college ki kudiyan aur unki jodiyan, Wo bina license ki bike riding,aur Town thane pe police ka pakarna, Bas chhut gaye hai dur Humko yaad aata hai apna muzaffarpur
  • yaad ata h muzaffarpur Puja market ki chat,wo bike ki racing b/w maripur se amar cinemahall, Wo Vaishali ki ice crearaja ki mithai, wo Bharat Jalpan ka dosa Wo Daudi Market ki pav bhaji aur Shubhraj ka samosa. Wo bike ka safar, wo MDDM wale road ki hawa, Wo Jubba Sahni Park ki raunak aur Devi Mandir ka siyaan aur galiyon mein bhatakna, Sab chhut gaye hai dur Yaad aata hai wo Muzaffarpur. Wo January ki kadake ki sardi, wo baarishon ke mahiney, Wo garmi ke din, jab chhutate they paseeney. Wo dussti, wo doston ki toli, Wo diwali ke patakhe aur janmashtmi ki roli. Wo Pankaj Market ki galiyan , wo North Point,Sunshine ki ladkiyan. Wo Shyam ki balcony aur wo Jawahar ka sound,Yaad aata wo Muzaffarpur Wo Motijheel ka sama Puja market ki chat, Wo Vaishali wo MDDM wale road ki hawa, Wo Jubba Sahni Park ki raunak aur Devi Mandir ka sama.Sab chhut gaye hai dur Yaad aata hai wo Muzaffarpur. wo doston ki toli, Wo diwali ke patakhe aur janmashtmi ki roli.Wo MDDM college ki kudiyan aur unki jodiyan Wo MDDM college ki kudiyan aur unkie ka pakarna, Bas chhut gaye hai hum but yaad aate Humko muzaffarpur ki harek sam ;
  • mera muzaffarpur bahut yaad aata hai. bachpan ke wo bite din muzaffarpur me. kalyani ka wo shor jaha se hoke school jana motijheel ke sindhi chhat se chhat aur ras madhuri khana, jawahar prabhat aur amar me picture dekhna apni shop sutappati me jana. mera muzaffarpur mera sunshine school. kash wo mere muzaffarpur ke din lout aaye. i miss mera chota sa pyara sa muzaffarpur.
  • Muzaffarpur the the famous district of Bihar famous for his unique identity as india,s most graduate people residing here. Leechy the world famous fruit......
  • muzaffarpur me kuch ho ya na ho bt lichy aur mddm KI LARKi FAMOUS hai.............
  • Waris Ali, Bhagwan Das ,Ramdayalu Singh,Binda babu,Mahesh babu and Ajazi Brothers[Dr. Maghfoor Ahmad Ajazi-Maulana Manzoor Ahsan Ajazi] were the veteran freedom fighters of this place.
  • bahuat yaad ata hai bhart jalpan ka wo rasmadhuri st xaviers ki wo yadein
  • i m proud because i m frm muzaffarpur
  • i am shifting to this city, maybe, around August . Thanks folks for sharing your experiences about the city . They were really interesting . This city, most importantly, people residing here hopefully turns out to be even better . Regards
  • mai apni taraf se mafi mangana chahta hu muzzafarpur ki kuch ladkiyo se jinhe maine juth muth ka badnam kiya......asal mai hi kuch din pehle bahut kamina insan tha....maine kuch ki jindgi ke sath barbad kr diya tha....mai khud choti kayani ka rehne wala hu....or mai apne muz se bahut pyar krta hu....waha ki sari ladkiya meri behan jaisi hai......
  • Anshu Dikshant Singh "Chandan" {At+Po.- Rajpur, P.S.- Raghunathpur, Dis.- Siwan (Bihar)}
  • sb yaad hai or sb yaad hai
  • i got educated to such an extent due to my loving city. it has given me the most loving frnds who are so valuable that nothing can measure it. my soul, my heart, my whole life love muzaffarpur. it is an elysium for me and i wish to see it as an elysium.
  • We should preserve the culture, heritage of Muzaffarpur, the captial of North Bihar, ancient civilisation of Vaisali. Now this beautiful city become capital of Garbage and needs systematic development.
  • i lov so much muzafarpur,it is my heart ,and soul.
  • This city is my home town. I love my city. The city need to more grow in the areas of education, construction, power, law & order and agriculture to compete with other growing cities. I wish all citizens of the city to live here with peace and pleasure.
  • Its famous for Lichee..
  • Muzaffarpur hai to Lichee hai, Muzaffarpur hai to Diwali hai, Muzaffarpur pur ki san BaBa GaribSthan.
  • teri bhen nhi hai mddm college me.....
  • Show all comments
This article was last modified 11 years ago