Kushmandi

A forest situated near the India-Bangladesh border, has many ponds and old trees. It is very beautiful place where many people come for picnics in winter. On X-mas day and New year day the place becomes crowded by the travelers for enjoying nature's beauty of the place and Mahipal dighi.

Mahipal dighi, a large lake, is located in Kushmandi block. It has a length of 4 km approx and a diameter 0.6 km. It was dug by King Mahipal II of the Pal dynasty. There are debris of a Indigo kuthi on the northern bank of the Lack which was established by Mr. Thomas, an indigo merchant, a friend of William Carey.

An ancient temple situated at Aminpur. This is "Panchamukhi" (Five headed) Shiva temple, which is very rare in India. This temple is constructed by Zamindar of Aminpur. Famous Maatia Maa Kali temple is also situation nearby.

As per 2011 Census of India, Kushmandi CD Block had a total population of 198,752, all of which were rural. There were 100,317 (50%) males and 98,435 (50%) females. Population below 6 years was 25,687. Scheduled Castes numbered 88,967 (44.76%) and Scheduled Tribes numbered 15,622 (7.86%).[15]

As per 2001 census Kushmandi block had a population of 175,086 of which 89,130 are males and 85,956 are females.[16]

The only large village (with 4,000+ population) in Kushmandi CD Block was (2011 population in brackets): Nahit (4,630).[15]

Other villages in Kushmandi CD Block included (2011 population in brackets): Maligaon (1,472), Udaypur (2,378), Akcha (711), Berail (2,459), Deul (1,781), Kushmundi (3,948), Karangi (3,772) and Kalikamora (689).[15]

Decadal growth of population in Kushmandi CD Block for the period 2001-2011 was 13.52%.[17] Decadal growth of population in Dakhin Dinajpur district during the same period was 11.52% down from 22.15% in the previous decade.[11] Decadal growth of population in West Bengal for the corresponding periods was 13.93% and 17.77% respectively.[18]

The large scale migration of the East Bengali refugees (including tribals) started with the partition of Bengal in 1947. Up to around 1951, two-fifths of the refugees settled in South Bengal, the balance settled in the North Bengal districts of West Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar. Erstwhile West Dinajpur alone received around 6.5% of the early entrants. The steady flow of people into Dakshin Dinajpur has continued over the years from erstwhile East Pakistan and subsequently from Bangladesh.[19]

As per the 2011 census, the total number of literates in Kushmandi CD Block was 113,240 (65.43% of the population over 6 years) out of which males numbered 62,611 (71.82% of the male population over 6 years) and females numbered 50,629 (58.96% of the female population over 6 years). The gender disparity (the difference between female and male literacy rates) was 12.86%.[15]

See also – List of West Bengal districts ranked by literacy rate

As per 2014 District Statistical Handbook: Dakshin Dinajpur (quoting census figures), in the 2001 census, in Kushmandi CD Block, Hindus numbered 105,711 and formed 60.38% of the population. Muslims numbered 67,819 and formed 38.73% of the population. Christians numbered 1,049 and formed 0.60% of the population. Others numbered 507 and formed 0.39% of the population.[21] In the 2011 census, 119,891 (60.32%) were Hindus and 77,239 (38.86%) Muslims, while 890 were Christian.[20]

According to the 2011 District Census Handbook: Dakshin Dinajpur, during 2011 census, majority of the population of the district were Hindus constituting 73.5% of the population followed by Muslims with 24.6% of the population. The proportion of Hindu population of the district increased from 59.9% in 1961 to 74.0 %in 2001 and then dropped to 73.5% in 2011. The proportion of Muslim population in the district decreased from 39.4% in 1961 to 24.0% in 2001 and then increased to 24.6% in 2011.[22]

At the time of the 2011 census, 93.32% of the population spoke Bengali, 5.24% Santali and 1.64% Rajbongshi as their first language.[23]

In Kushmandi CD Block in 2011, amongst the class of total workers, cultivators numbered 32,188 and formed 42.49%, agricultural labourers numbered 34,251 and formed 45.22%, household industry workers numbered 1,004 and formed 1.33% and other workers numbered 8,305 and formed 10.96%.[26] Total workers numbered 75,748 and formed 38.11% of the total population, and non-workers numbered 123,004 and formed 61.89% of the population.[27]

Note: In the census records a person is considered a cultivator, if the person is engaged in cultivation/ supervision of land owned by self/government/institution. When a person who works on another person’s land for wages in cash or kind or share, is regarded as an agricultural labourer. Household industry is defined as an industry conducted by one or more members of the family within the household or village, and one that does not qualify for registration as a factory under the Factories Act. Other workers are persons engaged in some economic activity other than cultivators, agricultural labourers and household workers. It includes factory, mining, plantation, transport and office workers, those engaged in business and commerce, teachers, entertainment artistes and so on.[28]

There are 228 inhabited villages in Kushmandi CD Block. All 228 villages (100%) have power supply. 227 villages (99.56%) have drinking water supply. 16 villages (7.02%) have post offices. 217 villages (95.18%) have telephones (including landlines, public call offices and mobile phones). 75 villages (32.89%) have a pucca (paved) approach road and 50 villages (25.93%) have transport communication (includes bus service, rail facility and navigable waterways). 8 villages (3.51%) have agricultural credit societies. 4 villages (1.75%) have banks.[29]

The land is fertile for agricultural production, particularly in the southern part of the district. The rivers are flood-prone but droughts also occur occasionally. There are numerous tanks and some marshes and bils. Multiple cropping is widely practised. The Tebhaga movement by the share croppers, towards the end of British rule, is widely known. There are some forests, mostly in areas bordering Bangladesh.[30]

Kushmandi CD Block had 192 fertiliser depots, 14 seed stores and 39 fair price shops in 2013-14.[31]

In 2013-14, Kushmandi CD Block produced 129,177 tonnes of Aman paddy, the main winter crop from 42,367 hectares, 8,630 tonnes of Boro paddy (spring crop) from 2,725 hectares, 218 tonnes of Aus paddy (summer crop) from 117 hectares, 7,502 tonnes of wheat from 2,412 hectares, 68,732 tonnes of jute from 4,793 hectares and 31,194 tonnes of potatoes from 1,118 hectares. It also produced pulses and oilseeds.[31]

In 2013-14, the total area irrigated in Kushmandi CD Block was 6,738 hectares, out of which 1,278 hectares were irrigated by tank irrigation, 1,633 hectares by river lift irrigation, 859 hectares by deep tube wells and 2,968 hectares by shallow tube wells.[31]

In 2013-14, Kushmandi CD Block had offices of 3 commercial banks and 4 gramin banks.[31]

Dakshin Dinajpur district is listed as a backward region and receives financial support from the Backward Regions Grant Fund. The fund, created by the Government of India, is designed to redress regional imbalances in development. As of 2012, 272 districts across the country were listed under this scheme. The list includes 11 districts of West Bengal.[32][33]

Mahishbathan in South Dinajpur's Kushmandi block is famous for masks (Made by Gamari Wood) based on popular folk and mythological characters like Moshan, Narorakshas, Hanuman, Chamkali, Chamunda etc., with bamboo vases, trays, incense stands, pen stands also being manufactured by the artisans here.

Mask-making began not too long ago, when artisans across the region practiced this art form; from 1990 attempts were made to unify them under the wings of the Mahishbathan Gramin Hostoshilpo Samiti, and scholars from different parts of the world come here to observe the age-old intricate process of bamboo-carving. Bamboo pieces are kept submerged in large reservoirs containing water mixed with mulberry gum powder, bleaching powder and sal; the pieces are taken out after a week and sun-dried. The price of a mask depends on the type of wood it is carved from - with timber varieties such as Gamari, Sal, Mango, Pakur, and Mahogany mainly being used. The wooden masks are meant for use in Gambheera dances or Palas (musical folk theaters), as the carvers, or the performers, treat each mask philosophically, by considering it as the Mukha (face), rather than a Mukhosh (mask) – the belief being that it comes alive as soon as one puts his face behind it. These ornate wooden masks adorn a large number of homes in Bengal and beyond, with a large number of these masks being exported to the USA, and even enjoying pride of place at the annual State Handicrafts Fair.