Alipurduar district
| Alipurduar District | |
|---|---|
| District of West Bengal | |
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 Alipurduar District
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| Coordinates: 26°29′N 89°34′E / 26.48°N 89.57°ECoordinates: 26°29′N 89°34′E / 26.48°N 89.57°E | |
| Country |
 India
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| State | West Bengal |
| Headquarters |
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| Area | |
| • Total | 3,383 km2 (1,306 sq mi) |
| Population (census 2011 of India) | |
| • Total | Almost 17 lakh |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Bengali, English |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| ISO 3166 code | ISO 3166-2:IN |
| Website | Official website |
Alipurduar District is the 20th district in the state of West Bengal, India. It consists of Alipurduar municipality, Falakata municipality and six community development blocks: Madarihat–Birpara, Alipurduar–I, Alipurduar–II, Falakata, Kalchini and Kumargram. The six blocks contain 66 gram panchayats and nine census towns. The district has its headquarters at Alipurduar. It was made a district on 25 June 2014.
Alipurduar, the second largest sub-division during British rule was created on 7 July 1876. The late Colonel Hedayet Ali Khan was the first assistant commissioner of Alipurduar and it was named after him. In independent India, Alipurduar earned reputation as one of the largest sub-divisions of the country. Alipurduar was an outlying sub-division of Jalpaiguri district. However, since the sub-division was nearly 100 km from Jalpaiguri, the position of sub-divisional officer/sub-divisional magistrate gained prominence with the SDO office catering to the diverse needs of the people of the sub-division. Post independence, the first SDO of Alipurduar was GD Goswami. The sub-division became the first independent posting of many IAS officers of West Bengal Cadre.
The demand for separate district of Alipurduar arose from the feeling of alienation felt by the people of Alipurduar who felt that they were being neglected by the government and the district administration. The huge distance between many areas of Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri town, the district headquarters, had been a constant source of irritation, expense and inconvenience for the people of Alipurduar. Alipurduar sub division was as large as the other two sub divisions of Jalpaiguri district (in geographical area and population) which added fuel to the demand for separation of Alipurduar sub division from Jalpaiguri district.
Alipurduar was bifurcated from Jalpaiguri district and made a separate district on 25 June 2014. On this day, Shri Nikhil Nirmal IAS became the last SDO and SDM of erstwhile Alipurduar sub division while Alice Vaz R IAS became the first district magistrate of Alipurduar District. Vaz had served as SDO Alipurudar in her first independent posting during 2007. The decision to make Alipurudar a separate district was welcomed from all corners since it would pave the way for better governance and inclusive growth.
Apart from the Alipurduar municipality, the district contains nine census towns and rural areas of 66 gram panchayats under six community development blocks: Madarihat–Birpara, Alipurduar–I, Alipurduar–II, Falakata, Kalchini and Kumargram.
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