Naharkatiya

Naharkatia

Naharkatiya
Naharkatia Naharkatiya
city
	Aerial view of Naharkatiya near Tuesday Market.
	Naharkatia Location in Assam, India.
	Coordinates: 27°17′N 95°20′E / 27.28°N 95.33°E
Country	India
State	Assam
District	Dibrugarh
Government
• Body	Naharkatiya Town Committee
Elevation	121 m (397 ft)
Population (2011)
• Total	18,937
Languages
• Official	Assamese
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	786610
Telephone code	(+91)374
Vehicle registration	AS-06

Naharkatia (also spelled as Naharkatia or Nahorkatiya) is a town and a town area committee in Dibrugarh district in the Indian state of Assam. It is well known for petroleum and gas reserves. Earlier, Duliajan, the head office town of Oil India Limited was in its circle. However, the towns are close, within a 30-minute journey.

Demographics

According to the 2011 India census,^[2] Naharkatia had a population of 18,937 which 9,790 are males while 9,147 are females. Naharkatia has an literacy rate of 87.29%, higher than the state average of 72.19%; male literacy is 91.23%, and female literacy is 83.08%. In Naharkatia, 9.76% of the population is under 6 years of age.

The town is an amalgamation of many communities, mainly Assamese, Bengali, Indian Gorkha, Bihari and many Marwari people reside in the town area. A few Punjabi families have also lived in the town for many years.

However, Buddhist descendants of a Mongolian tribe known as Phakials or Tai-Phakes, also reside outside the town . Their village houses a Buddhist monastery and handicrafts woven by them are very beautiful. The monastery is a tourist attraction and is considered to be meditation center in a serene atmosphere.^[3] The town is more attractive due to the three tea estates.

Theres also few Bodo, Manipuri peoples reside outside the town.

Transport

The Naharkatia Railway station serves as the railhead. Buses run frequently to and from Duliajan, Namrup, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Moran, Guwahati, Jorhat and Sibsagar.

Geography

Burhi Dihing, a tributary of Brahmaputra, runs through the town.

Sasoni Gojpuria, Gabhoru Dolong, Merbill Echo-Tourism,^[4] and Namphake are villages a few kilometres away.

History

Naharkatia's name is connected with the history of killing or punishment of Prince Nahar, an adopted son of the Tai-Ahom king Siukhampha, also known as Khora Raja, punished by Kalia Chaodang. According to local saying, 'one Ahom Noble Kalia Chaodang' was entrusted to punish Prince Nahar at Bardoiyamukh for his misdeeds against the important Tai-Ahom nobles including the Ministers. This Kalia alias Kola Chaodang was finally settled near today's Naharkatia Railway Station and from this episode, the area became Nahakatia. Nahar+katiya, i.e., the person who cut or beheaded Nahar at the instance of Tai-Ahom king Siukhampha settled there. Naharkatiya was frequented by many Indian royals, including Austric King Sung-Saumara, Kachari kings Bicharpatipha, Mahamanukyapha, Tai-Ahom kings Chaolung Siukapha, Siukhampha alias Khora Raja during the attack of Koch General Chilarai on the capital Gargaon in 1562. Jaydhvajsimha visited while in exile during the Mughal invasion by Nabab Mirjumla,1662.

Burmese General Mingimaha Tilwa traveled this route to Mung-dun-chun-kham in the early part of the 19th century.

Ahom General Patalsing Barbarua founded Jaypur garh against the advancing Burmese through this route, finally sacrificing his life at the hands of the Burmese at Jaypur.

Sriram Ata founded his Vaisnavi Satra there. Nocte Chief Narottama accepted the Vaisnav faith there.

Near Naharkatiya, historical Tipam, Jaypur and Namrup (derived from Namruk) rests. The oldest oil pool is located there. It is famous for tea gardens. It produced athletes and sports organisers.

Economy

The town is a commercial hub for nearby tea gardens and villages.

A few kilometres away, a rainforest is found along Joypur, and cross it to get into Arunachal Pradesh. The illegal wood business has been minimized by regulation.

Culture

Bihu is the major indigenous festival of Assam. During this season, a Bihu dance competition is held in Langharjan stadium. It is a week-long celebration for all the indigenous Assamese communities in the region.

Durga Puja is another local festival observed. The idol of the goddess Durga is worshiped and the town is decorated with lights and pandals. On the last day a procession is organized, known as Bhasan. In the past, prizes were given to the best Durga Puja Pandal Committee.

A major population of the Tai Phake tribe reside in the Namphake Village.Sangken or the Water Festival is a festival celebrated in the month of April by the Tai Phake people and it continues to be a special attraction for tourists visiting Namphake village during this period.

Mangalbaria (Tuesday) Bazaar is the local market.

A sports stadium known as Langharjan Field is situated at the outskirts of the town.

Education

Naharkatiya has three English schools, two Hindi schools, one Bengali school and many Assamese schools. The largest populated school in Naharkatiya is St. Mary's Higher Secondary School. The schools had more than 2K students (2000) as of 2012. Shankardev Sishu Vikash Kendra is an Assamese school known for its good results in metric and also in yearly examinations. Naharkatiya Model High School and Weingken English School are among the English schools.

The four major education centers are:

Naharkatia Higher Secondary School (Class VI - XII) (1939). Assamese Medium with Arts, Science and Vocational studies in Higher Secondary Section.
St. Mary's School, Naharkatia (1958) (English medium). The school initially had class L.K.G - Class X. Since 2008 the school has extended its education to higher secondary section and offers education in the Arts.
Naharkatia Vidya Mandir School (two schools of Bengali medium) (Class I-V) (Class VI-X).
Naharkatia Hindi (R.K. Jitani) School (two schools of Hindi medium) (Class I-V) (Class VI-X).

Other educational institutions are Naharkatia New High School, Bidya Mandir, R K Jitani School, St. Xaviers School, Model School and Naharkatia Junior College.

Naharkatiya College is the only institution of higher education. It offers bachelor's degrees in Arts and Commerce. It has a study center of Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University (KKHSOU).

Sports

Naharkatia is very active town when talked about sports. It has given birth to several sports-person representing the state and the nation. The natives are very good with football, hockey, handball and cricket. The youths are more drawn towards cricket and tae-kwon-do (Korean martial arts).

Politics

Naharkatia is the 120th Assembly constituency of Assam, which is a part of Dibrugarh (Lok Sabha constituency).^[5]

Members of Legislative Assembly

1978: Sasha Kamal Handique, Communist Party of India (Marxist).
1985: Kusumbar Tairai, Independent.
1991: Sasha Kamal Handique, Communist Party of India (Marxist).
1996: Pranati Phukan, Indian National Congress.
2000: Pranati Phukan, Indian National Congress.
2001: Pranati Phukan, Indian National Congress.
2006: Pranati Phukan, Indian National Congress.
2011: Pranati Phukan, Indian National Congress.
2016: Naren Sonowal, Asom Gana Parishad.

Organizations

References

^ "redirect to /world/IN/03/Nahorkatiya.html". www.fallingrain.com.
^ "Census of India 2011: Data from the 2011 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". census2011.co.in. Archived from the original on 14 March 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
^ Namphake Village , Naharkatiya
^ "Pledge to promote wetland tourism - Dibrugarh villagers take vow to turn Merbil into favoured destination". telegraphindia.com.
^ "List of Parliamentary & Assembly Constituencies" (PDF). Assam. Election Commission of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2006. Retrieved 6 October 2008.