Islam in West Bengal
Since the partition of India in 1947, the majority of the Bengali Muslims have lived in Bangladesh. However, the Indian state of West Bengal also has over 24.6 million Muslims, who form 27% of the state's population.[1] Muslims are minority in all districts of Bengal except Maldah and Murshidabad.
The comparative poverty, illiteracy and lack of political representation of Bengali Muslims compared to Indian Muslims at large has resulted in higher birth rate and hence, growth rate of Bengali Muslims, though there has been allegations that illegal immigration from Bangladesh has resulted in the high rise of the population. It is also said that this rise is due to proximity to muslim-dominated districts of neighboring state of Bihar. [2] In addition, records from the British colonial era indicate that the majority of Bengali's in Undivided Bengal and Assam were Muslim and Hindus were the second largest group.
Population
Population by district
| # | District | Total population | Muslim population | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murshidabad | 7,103,807 | 4,707,573 | 70.2% |
| 2 | South 24 Parganas | 8,161,961 | 2,903,075 | 35.57% |
| 3 | North 24 Parganas | 10,009,781 | 2,584,684 | 25.82% |
| 4 | Maldah | 3,988,845 | 2,045,151 | 51.27% |
| 5 | Barddhaman | 7,717,563 | 1,599,764 | 20.73% |
| 6 | Uttar Dinajpur | 3,007,134 | 1,501,170 | 50.92% |
| 7 | Nadia | 5,167,600 | 1,382,682 | 26.76% |
| 8 | Birbhum | 3,502,404 | 1,298,054 | 37.06% |
| 9 | Haora | 4,850,029 | 1,270,641 | 26.20% |
| 10 | Kolkata | 4,496,694 | 926,414 | 20.60% |
| 11 | Hugli | 5,519,145 | 870,204 | 15.77% |
| 12 | Purba Medinipur | 5,095,875 | 743,436 | 14.59% |
| 13 | Koch Bihar | 2,819,086 | 720,033 | 25.54% |
| 14 | Paschim Medinipur | 5,913,457 | 620,554 | 10.49% |
| 15 | Jalpaiguri | 3,872,846 | 445,817 | 11.51% |
| 16 | Dakshin Dinajpur | 1,676,276 | 412,788 | 24.63% |
| 17 | Bankura | 3,596,674 | 290,450 | 8.08% |
| 18 | Puruliya | 2,930,115 | 227,249 | 7.76% |
| 19 | Darjiling | 1,846,823 | 105,086 | 5.69% |
| West Bengal (Total) | 91,276,115 | 24,654,825 | 27.01% |
Trends
| Census year | % of total population | Decadal growth |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 19.85% | NA |
| 1961 | 20% | 36.48% |
| 1971 | 20.46% | 29.76% |
| 1981 | 21.51% | 29.55% |
| 1991 | 23.61% | 36.89% |
| 2001 | 25.25% | 25.91% |
| 2011 | 27.01% | 21.80% |
References
- ^ a b Population by religious community: West Bengal. 2011 Census of India.
- ^ "Bengal beats India in Muslim growth rate - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 5 May 2016.
- ^ B.P. Syam Roy (28 September 2015). "Bengal's topsy-turvy population growth". The Statesman.
