SITAMARHI DISTRICT PROFILE

Sitamarhi district came into existence on 11th December 1972 after it was separated from the present Muzaffarpur district.

Sitamarhi is situated in the northern part of Bihar. The district is popularly known as the “Land of Goddess Sita”. Sitamarhi district is bounded by Nepal on the north, Muzaffarpur on the south, by

the districts Darbhanga and Madhubani on the east and on the west by the districts East Champaran and Sheohar.

The important rivers flowing through the district are Bagmati, Lakhandei, Adhwara.

INTRODUCTION

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The district headquarters was shifted here after the town of Sitamarhi was devastated in one of the worst ever earthquakes in January 1934.

Sitamarhi is a sacred place in Hindu mythology. Its history goes back to Treta Yug. Sita, the wife of Lord Rama sprang to life out of an earthen pot, when Raja Janak was ploughing the field somewhere near Sitamarhi to impress upon Lord Indra for rain. It is said that Raja Janak excavated a tank at the place where Sita emerged and after her marriage set up the stone figures of Rama, Sita and Lakshman to mark the site. This tank is known as Janaki-kund and is south of the Janaki Mandir.

In the course of time, the land lapsed into a jungle until about 500 years ago, when a Hindu ascetic, named Birbal Das came to know the site by divine inspiration where Sita was born. He came down from Ayodhya and cleared the jungle. He found the images set up by Raja Janak, built a temple over there and commenced the worship of Janaki or Sita.

The Janaki Mandir is apparently modern and is about 100 years old only. The town however contains no relics of archaeological interest.

Dumra is the district headquarters of Sitamarhi district. Sitamarhi district comprises three sub-divisions, namely Sitamarhi Sadar, Belsand

& Pupri which is divided into 17 blocks.

ADMINISTRATIVE

Total no. of Gram Panchayats in Sitamarhi district are 273. Sitamarhi district has 847 number of revenue villages.

Sitamarhi district is highly rich in agricultural productivity. It is the fourth largest producer of sugar cane in the state.

The district has a BIADA industrial area located outside the municipal boundary and produces cotton textile, tanned leather, milled rice, vegetable oil etc.

The town and its hinterland have several places of religious significance especially linked to the Ramayan and Goddess Sita.

ECONOMIC PROFILE

o Bairgania o Bajpatti o Bathnaha o Belsand o Bokhra o Choraut o Dumra o Majorganj

o Nanpur o Parihar o Parsauni o Pupri o Riga o Runnisaidpur o Sonbarsa o Suppi

o Sursand

Source: Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Govt. of Bihar

02000400060008000

100001200014000

2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11

6484 6288 7251 7464 8282

9832 10237 11311 11815

13404

Per Capita Gross State and District Domestic Product

Per Capita Gross District Domestic Product

Per Capita Gross State Domestic Product

DEMOGRAPHIC

Population 3423574

Population density 1500 per sq. km.

Population growth 27.47%

Sex ratio 899 per 1000 male

Literacy rate 53.53%

Languages spoken Hindi, Maithili & Bajjika

GEOGRAPHIC

Coordinates Latitude: 25º36” to 26.6º North Longitude: 85º29” to 85.48º East

Temperature 44° C (Max.) 5° C (Min.)

Average rainfall 1200 mm.

Area 2294 sq. km.

Height above sea level 56 meters

INDUSTRIAL

Registered industrial units 722

Registered medium & large units 01

No. of industrial areas 01

Types of industries Agro based, wood & wooden based furniture, mineral based, metal based, electrical machinery, repairing & servicing, engineering services, ready made garments based, chemical/ chemical based etc.

Source: MSME – DI Muzaffarpur, official website of district

The town’s proximity to the Nepal border and good connectivity are conducive for economic growth and development.

Agro based industries have a good scope in the district. Since it’s a religious place, tourism has a very good scope.

INVESTMENT

INDUSTRIAL PROFILE

There is an industrial area present in the district at Sitamarhi. Major Industries: Sugar factory, rice mills, oil mills. There is a large scale industry known as Bihar State Warehousing situated in

the district. Sitamarhi has scope to develop food processing industry due to its rich

agricultural produce.

Source: MSME – DI Muzaffarpur

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

Investment (Rs. Lakh)

INDUSTRIES AT A GLANCE

Registered industrial units 722

Total industrial units 786

Registered medium & large units 01

Estimated avg. no. of daily workers employed in small scale industries

4000

Employment in large and medium industries 128

No. of industrial areas 01

MAJOR INDUSTRIAL AREA

EXISTING MICRO & SMALL ENTERPRISES AND ARTISAN UNITS

Type of industry No. of Units Investment (Rs. Lakh)

Agro based 321 3409 Soda Water 4 36 Cotton textile 10 28 Woolen, silk & artificial thread based clothes 2 9 Ready-made garments & embroidery 12 35 Wood/wooden based furniture 60 120 Paper & paper products 12 9 Leather based 9 16 Chemical/chemical based 20 60 Rubber, plastic & petro based 8 10 Mineral based 14 40 Metal based (Steel Fab.) 60 120 Engineering units 42 126 Electrical machinery and transport equipment 46 100 Repairing & servicing 62 30 Others 40 40 Total 722 4188

There is an industrial estate situated in Sitamarhi district. It is developed on 10.29 hectares of land. 124 no. of plots are developed. 28 no. of units are produced.

Source: MSME – DI Muzaffarpur

INFRASTRUCTURE

The district has an industrial area situated at Sitamarhi. Total no. of hospitals and health centers are 256. There are total 123 commercial banks and financial institutions. Educational institutions

No. of primary schools – 1479 No. of middle schools – 619 No. of secondary and senior secondary schools – 64 No. of colleges – 25

AGRICULTURE AND FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY

The land use around Sitamarhi is mainly agricultural.

The district has a very rich and fertile land which is favourable for agriculture.

Paddy, wheat, maize, lentils are the main crops of the district.

POTENTIAL INDUSTRY

Micro & Small Enterprise

•Agro based products •Water treatment plant •Readymade garments •Restaurant

Major Clusters

•Nil

Service Enterprises

•Beauty parlours/ saloons •Health services •Computer training

institutes •Computer hardware &

repairing centre

LARGE SCALE INDUSTRY/ PUBLIC SECTOR UNDERTAKING

There is only one large scale industry/ public sector undertaking prevailing in the district namely Bihar State Warehousing.

S. No. Type of assistance Name and address of agencies

1. Provisional Registration Certificate (EM-1) & Permanent Registration Certificate ( EM-II)

District Industries Centre, Sitamarhi

2. Identification of Project Profiles, techno-economic and managerial consultancy services, market survey and economic survey reports

MSME Development Institute – Muzaffarpur Sitamarhi

3. Land and Industrial shed BIADA, Muzaffarpur

4. Financial Assistance All commercial/ lead Banks 5. For raw materials under Govt. Supply National Small Industries Corporation,

Patna 6. Plant and machinery under hire/

purchase basis. MSME – Muzaffarpur, DIC – Sitamarhi

7. Power/ Electricity Bihar State Electricity Board, Sitamarhi 8. Technical Know–how Director, MSME-DI, Muzaffarpur

9. Quality & Standard Bureau of Indian Standards

10. Marketing /Export Assistance Director, MSME-DI, Muzaffarpur

STEPS TO SETUP MSMEs

Source: MSME – DI Muzaffarpur

TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE Ra

ilway

•Sitamarhi is connected to Darbhanga, Narkatiyaganj through train • Nearest Railway Station: Sitamarhi

Road

•Sitamarhi is directly linked with Muzaffarpur, Patna and Nepal •National Highway NH 104 passes through the district

Airp

ort

•Nearest airport is at Patna

EDUCATION

There are many schools and colleges in the district. It has some reputed institutions such as Sita Ramdav Public School, N S Dav Public

School, Hellens School, Javahar Navodaya Vidyalaya etc.

HERITAGE & TOURISM

Janaki Temple: About 1.5 kms. Off the railway station, this is the birth place of Sita. Janaki-Kund is adjacent to the south of the temple.

Janaki Temple, Punaura: This is about 5 kms. west of Sitamarhi. This place also claims the honour of being the birth place of Sita.

Deokuli (or Dhekuli): It is 19 kms. west of Sitamarhi town. An ancient Shiva temple is situated here. A big fair takes place every year on the eve of Shivaratri. Legends have it that Draupadi, the wife of five Pandavas was born here. Now it lies in Sheohar district, carved out of Sitamarhi in 1994.

Haleshwar Sthan: This is 3 kms. north-west of Sitamarhi. As the myth goes, King Videha had founded a temple of Lord shiva on the occasion of Putra Yeshti Yajna. His temple was named as Haleshwarnath temple.

Panth-Pakar: It is 8 kms. north-east of Sitamarhi. It is said that after her marriage, Sita was carried in a palanquin to Ayodhya by this route. An old Banyan tree is still standing here under which she is said to have rested for a while.

Bagahi Math: Some 7 kms. north-west of Sitamarhi, in Bagahi village, there is a big Hindu monastery which contains 108 rooms. This is a famous place for worship and performing Yajna.

Pupri: There is a famous Baba Nageshwarnath (Lord Shiva) temple here. It is said that Lord Shiva had himself appeared as Nageshwar nath Mahadeo.

Goraul Sharif: It is situated some 26 kms. from Sitamarhi town. This is a very sacred place for Muslims, after Biharsharif and Phulwarisharif in Bihar.

Udyog Mitra, Dept. of Industries Govt. of Bihar Ground Floor, Indira Bhawan, RCS Path, Patna, Bihar 800 001. Tel : +91 612 2532695 Fax : +91 612 2532695 Email: info@udyogmitrabihar.com

Industries Department 2nd Floor, Vikas Bhawan, Bailey Road, Patna, Bihar 800 015

www.udyogmitrabihar.com