Basti district

This article is about the district. For its eponymous headquarters, see Basti, Uttar Pradesh. For the Bollywood movie, see Basti (film).
Basti district
बस्ती जिला
District of Uttar Pradesh

Location of Basti district in Uttar Pradesh
Country India
State Uttar Pradesh
Administrative division Basti
Government
 • Lok Sabha constituencies Basti
Area
 • Total 4,309 km2 (1,664 sq mi)
Population (2011)
 • Total 2,461,056
 • Density 570/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
 • Urban 138,117
Demographics
 • Literacy 69.69 per cent
 • Sex ratio 962
Major highways National Highway 28
Average annual precipitation 1166 mm mm
Website Official website

Basti district (Hindi: बस्ती जिला, Urdu: ضلع بستی‎), is one of the districts of Uttar Pradesh state, India and Basti town is the district headquarters. Basti district is a part of Basti Division. The ruins of Mahua Dabar town are located in the Basti district.

Origin of name

Basti came from the original name basisthi, Basisth the great sage ashram situated in this area [1] Sher Shah Suri made a well and a sarai here and hence receiving the name.

In 1801, the town Basti became a tehsil headquarter, and in 1865, it was chosen as the headquarters of the newly established Basti district of Gorakhpur Commissionary.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, Basti district has a population of 2,461,056,[2] which roughly equals to that of Kuwait[3] or the US state of Nevada.[4] This ranks it the 179th populous district in India.[2] The district has a population density of 916 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,370/sq mi).[2] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 18.05%.[2] Basti has a sex ratio of 959 females for every 1000 males,[2] and a literacy rate of 69.69%.[2] The sex ratio of Basti is 959, better than the national sex ratio of 940.27 but better than Uttar Pradesh's 908. The child sex ratio of Basti is 922, which again is better than the national average of 914 female children per 1000 males.

Languages

Vernaculars spoken in the district include Awadhi in western areas and Bhojpuri in the eastern side. The district Basti may be considered as the demarcation of the languages Awadhi and Bhojpuri. In city, due to increase in educated population, khari boli of Hindi is also observed in daily conversations.[5]

Education

The district follows a usual 10+2+3 pattern of education as elsewhere in India. Some notable schools and institutions of the district are :

Administration

Basti town is the district headquarters of the district.[1] Basti district, a part of Basti division, is formed of 4 tehsils: Basti, Harriya, Sonaha Bhanpur and Rudhauli, and 13 development blocks, 139 Nyay Panchayats, 1 Pargana named Amodha or Amorha as well as 10 Gram Sabhas. The development blocks included are:

Economy

The district is noted for its cotton textiles and sugar industries. Cottage industries and small-scale industries including the manufacturing units of brass ware, iron and carpentry goods, agricultural implements, bricks, agro-products, foot-wear, soaps, candles, and pottery are present here. Basti is also known for its bamboo, eucalyptus (Eucalyptus teritrornis), mango and shisham (Dalbergia sissoo) populations. Three sugar factories are housed in the district. Sugarcane, maize, paddy, pulses, wheat, barley and potato are commonly cultivated. The most of the population is depending for their livelihood on agricultural practices. The district is well connected through NH 28 which reflects on its good economy. The city is well connected through railways also.

Basti Railway platform

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Basti one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640).[13] It is one of the 34 districts in Uttar Pradesh currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[13] The City is also known as the place where Nationwide Youth organisation "National Association of Youth" founded and run from Basti.[14]

Transportation

NH 28 passing near Basti facilitates inter district road transport

The main line connecting Lucknow with Gorakhpur and places in Bihar and Assam in the east passes through the south of the district. The main line has 7 railway stations which are, from east to west, Munderwa,[15] Orwara, Basti, Govindnagar, Tinich, Gaur, and Babhnan within the district. There is a daily Intercity express between Gorakhpur, Basti, Gonda and Lucknow. National Highway 28, a part of the East West Corridor project of Government of India and NHAI,[16] also passes through Basti.

Flora and fauna

The forest cover of the district has dwindled with increasing use of land for agriculture. There are areas with high prevalence of mango (Mangifera indica), mahua (Madhuca longifolia), sal (Shorea robusta), and bamboo (Bambusa arundinacea) trees. Some of the wild animals of the district are the nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus), antelok (Anelok cervicapra), pig (Sus scrofa), wolf (Canis lupus), jackal (Conis aureus), fox (Vulpes bengalensis), hare (Lepus ruficandatus), monkey (Macaca mulatta), wild cat (Felis bengalensis) and the porcupine (Hystric leucura). Several species of game birds are also seen, including the peafowl (Pavo cristatus), the black partridge (Frencolinus francolinus) and the gray partridge (Francalinus pondicervanus). A number of migratory water fowls visit the water bodies of the district in winter, such as the goose (Anser anser), common teal (Anas crecca), red-crested pochard (Netta rufina), white-eyed pochard (Aythya rufa) and the wigeon (Mareca penelope). The cobra (Naja naja), krait (Bungarus caeruleus), and rat-snake (Ptyas mucosus) are commonly found. The Indian crocodile or naka (Crocodylus palustris), and the ghariyal (Gavialis gangeticus) are also found in the river Ghaghra. The common fish species are rohu (Lebeo rohita), bhakur (Catla catla), nain (Cirrhina mrigala), parhin (Wallagonia attu), krunch (Labeo calbasu), and tengan (Mystus seenghala).[1]

Notable people

Some notable persons from the district include:

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Origin of name". Basti Govt. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "District Census 2011". Census2011.co.in. 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-30.
  3. ↑ US Directorate of Intelligence. "Country Comparison:Population". Retrieved 2011-10-01. Kuwait 2,595,62
  4. ↑ "2010 Resident Population Data". U. S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-09-30. Nevada 2,700,551
  5. ↑ Gopeshwar Tripathi, ed. (2009). "Bhojpuri: A language of India". Ethnologue: Languages of the World (16th ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Retrieved 2011-09-30.
  6. ↑ "Home page". Retrieved 26 July 2013.
  7. ↑ "Karma Devi Smriti Mahavidyalaya". Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "JNV". Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  9. ↑ "AIIIT". Retrieved 14 June 2015.
  10. ↑ "Catholic Diocese of Gorakhpur". www.dioceseofgorakhpur.org. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
  11. ↑ "LITTLE FLOWER H S KALWARI BASTI". upmspboard.com. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
  12. ↑ "Welcome to Little Flower Congregation (Gorakhpur Nepal). Little Flower Congregation (CST Fathers),Ashrams & Institutions, Kalwari,Little Flower Ashram". cstfathersgorakhpur.org. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
  13. 1 2 Ministry of Panchayati Raj (8 September 2009). "A Note on the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme" (PDF). National Institute of Rural Development. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
  14. ↑ "NAY". Retrieved 18 Jan 2016.
  15. ↑ "Welcome - Munderwa". Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  16. ↑ http://www.nhai.org/nhdpmain_english.htm

External links

Siddharthnagar district
Gonda district Sant Kabir Nagar district
   Basti district  
Faizabad district Ambedkar Nagar district

Coordinates: 27°15′N 83°00′E / 27.250°N 83.000°E / 27.250; 83.000

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