Purnia

Several possible origins for the name Purnia have been proposed. The name may originate from the Sanskrit word Purna–Aranya, which means "complete jungle".[2] Purnia could also be an altered form of the old name Purania, derived from the word purain or Lotus, which is said to have grown on the Kosi and Mahananda rivers. This derivation is stated by O'Malley and is also in the old gazetteer. Another alternative derivation is from the words Purn Aranya. W.W. Hunter and Buchanan have mentioned the name of Purnia, it being a forested area, using a combination of the words purn (full) and aranya (forest). In 2007 Purnia DM Mr Ramweshar formed a group to find, Purnea district records .Team member past due Sankar dy investigated British authorities information then he changed into concluded as, Purnea district became fashioned on 14 February 1770 before Bihar Bangal department. Each year, 14 February is celebrated in memory of the city's origin.

The city's name is also romanized as Purnea.

Purnia is part of the Mithila region.[3] Mithila first gained prominence after being settled by Indo-Aryan peoples who established the Mithila Kingdom (also called Kingdom of the Videhas).[4] During the late Vedic period (c. 1100–500 BCE), Videha became one of the major political and cultural centers of South Asia, along with Kuru and Pañcāla. The kings of the Videha Kingdom were called Janakas.[5] The Videha Kingdom was later incorporated into the Vajji confederacy, which had its capital in the city of Vaishali, which is also in Mithila.[6]

At the beginning of British rule, many people from Europe came to Purnia and settled here. At that time, Purnia was a complete 'Purania', which means jungle. In the early days, Europeans settled around the Saura river in the middle of the city, which we now know as Rambagh area.

However, later all these Europeans started coming west from Saura river and started making their own 'Kothi' . The civil lines we see in different parts of the country were also in Purnia. The only difference was that in the civil lines of Lucknow, Kanpur etc., British officers used to stay, while Gentlemen Farmers in Purnia.

Among the most active European zamindars in Purnia were Alexander John Forbes and Palmer. Alexander John Forbes bought the Sultanpur pargana from Mahajan Babu Pratap Singh of Murshidabad in 1859 AD and became a Zamindar. Forbes city (Forbesganj) in the Sultanpur pargana was named after him. But Forbes lived in the city of Purnia. He was interested in building the race course and all other kinds of clubs.

Today, in the city where we see the Girl's high school, Forbes Kothi was used to be there. The Kothi used to be full with European settlers in the past.

It is said that Forbes was fond of farming. Due to this hobby, he chose Sultanpur and did farming enthusiastically. He built a house, fronted by a big pond, house with two cannons to the east and west of the house, whose platform is still there.

Alexander Forbes and his wife Diana died of malaria in 1890. Time changed and the Forbes family sold the Sultanpur estate to the country's business house J. K. Singhania, because at that time there was a lot of jute cultivation going here.

Like Forbes, another Englishman lived in Purnia for a long time, his name was Palmer. He bought the zamindari of a king here and settled here. Palmer's only daughter, Mrs. Downing, was his heir. Mrs. Downing had two heirs - her son C. Y. Downing and daughter Mrs. Hays.

Today, the grand residence of Hez Saheb is the main building of Purnia College. There are different stories about Palmer, but other than those stories, this Englishman is still in the memories of Purnia.

Actually there is a dyke in the city which protects the city from floods. There is one area in the frontier of the city - Baghmara. From here, there is an embankment parallel to the Saura river, which was built by Palmer. This dam has been known as the Palmer Dam named after him.

Indigo cultivation was first started in Purnia by an Englishman named John Kelly. Later many Europeans cultivated indigo here vigorously. The Shillingford-dynasty was the foremost among them who built 'Nilha Kothi' in the places like Nilganj, Mahendrapur, Bhavbada. The story of Shillingford is also very interesting. He was a hunter. Still when we go from Purnea towards Dhamdaha and towards Sarsi area, we get to hear the story of Neelha farmer.

These English Gentleman Farmers have contributed most to the story of becoming Purnia from Poorania. These people did a lot of work regarding the city's settlement. Purnia was very open, green and open area.

[7]

Purnia and its surrounding lands lie in the sub-montane alluvial tract of the Gangetic Plain. The city however lies on the banks of numerous tributaries of the Koshi River. Two major rivers traverse Purnia city with the Kari Kosi river on the western end and the Saura river on the eastern end. The main city is situated between these two rivers. The subtown of Kushkibag and Gulabbag, which is also commercial hub of Seemanchal region is further east of the Saura river.

Purnia city has an area of 92 square kilometres (36 sq mi).

It has a slope from the north to the south and is traversed by a number of rivers and their tributaries. The district is composed of alluvial soil, partly old and partly new. The old alluvium is found in the north of the district where it consists of kankars (stone dust). The new alluvium is available in the south of the district and is composed of silt, clay and sand. The alluvial soil is supposed to be brought by the Ganges and its tributaries from the Himalayas and is very rich in fertilizing nutrients.

Purnia is known for its favourable climate; it has earned the name "Mini Darjeeling" for this reason. Purnia has a largely humid climate, with the highest level of rainfall in Bihar state and humidity rising to above 70%. A cold season, from November to February, is followed by a hot season from March to June. The monsoon season begins in early June and lasts until September; 82% of its total annual rainfall falls during the monsoon season.

January, the coldest month, has a mean daily minimum temperature of 5 to 10 °C and a mean daily maximum of 20 to 25 °C. Wind is typically light in the non-monsoon seasons but during the monsoon, storms and depressions originating in the Bay of Bengal cause heavy rain and strong winds.

As of the 2011 census, Purnia Municipal Corporation had a total population of 282,248, of which 148,077 were males and 134,171 were females.[10] It had a sex ratio of 906 females to 1,000 males. The population below 6 years was 43,050. The literacy rate for the 6+ population was 73.02%, compared to the 74.04% national average.[11] Purnia Urban Agglomeration, comprising Purnia Municipal Corporation and Kasba (Nagar Panchayat),[12] had a population of 310,817 in 2011.[13]

In 2011 the population was 75.2% Hindu and 23.3% Muslim. Purnia has a majority Maithil population.

Purnia is a developing city with a primarily agricultural economy. Over the past few years it has shown steady economic growth. This is mainly due to increased awareness, modernization, changing lifestyles, and technical advancements in various fields. However, the economy depends indirectly on the monsoon season.

Due to Purnia's growing economy, growing demands, improved connectivity, and infrastructure, it has become a known centre for trade and commerce among the traders of Bihar, West Bengal, and Nepal. In fact, the Nepal-based Chaudhary Group, known across Nepal and India for its Wai Wai noodles, has opened up a manufacturing unit in Maranga.

Purnia has always been a centre of education in the north Bihar region. Zila School, founded in 1800 during the period of British rule, is Purnia's oldest school, and one of the city's largest. Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Garhbanaili (14 km away from main city) is a prestigious school run by the government. Vidya Vihar Residential School, the leading Boarding School of Bihar has its campus at Parora on Purnea. India's leading school chain G D Goenka Public School has its 3rd campus of Bihar in Purnea after Patna and Gaya. Purnia also has a Kendriya Vidyalaya. Other prominent schools are -

• Don Bosco public school
• S.R. DAV Public
• Ursuline Convent English/Hindi Medium School
• Millia Convent English Medium School
• Purnia High School
• Indian Public School
• B.B.M. High School
• St. Peter Residential School
• Mount Zion Mission School
• Bright Career English School
• Bijendra Public School
• Saraswati Vidya Mandir
• Saraswati Shishu Mandir
• St. John's High School
• Greenfield Public School

There are colleges for higher studies concentrating engineering, law, arts, and home science. Having recognition from the state government and various other government universities such as Aryabhatta Knowledge University, Bihar Agriculture University and Purnea University, these colleges include:

• Purnia College
• B.M.T. Law College
• Vidya Vihar Institute of Technology
• Millia Group of Colleges (managed by Millia Education Trust)
• Bhola Paswan Shastri Agriculture College
• Purnia Mahila College
• Millia Institute of Technology
• Millia Polytechnic Rambagh
• Government Polytechnic of Purnea
• Purnia College of Engineering
• Simanchal Institute of Medical Science, Kasba (OPD functional from Jan 2018)
• Purnia Medical College and Hospital, Sadar Hospital (Construction)
• Shershah Institute of Medical Sciences
• Medical College and Hospital by Millia Educational Trust

3D animation and multimedia institute:

• Animation School (Madhubani Bazar)

The Indian Red Cross Society has the largest blood bank in the state after Patna, with a capacity of 1,000 units. The Bihar government recently inaugurated one of the three megastock warehouses for drugs/medicines at Kasba, which aims to serve the 13 districts of North Bihar.

The Indira Gandhi Stadium houses the Sports Authority of India sports hostel for athletes. The DSA and Zila School grounds are the city's outdoor stadiums.

The region has been blessed with Purnea University (9th University of Bihar). The university is the only in Purnea Commissionerate. It includes colleges of Purnea, Katihar, Araria and Kishanganj.

Phanishwar Nath Renu's popular story "Maare Gaye Gulfam" which was adapted into a film Teesri Kasam (The Third Vow), by Basu Bhattacharya (produced by the poet-lyricist Shailendra) in 1966 was shot in Purnia, in which old Purnea is pictured, especially 'the Gulabbag Mela'.

Purnia held the record for making and displaying the world's longest tricolour flag, with the length measured at 7,100 metres (7.1 km) before it was broken on 12 August 2019 by Raipur, Chattisgadh.[16][17][18]

• Satinath Bhaduri (1906–1965), novelist and politician
• Phanishwar Nath 'Renu' (1921–1977), novelist
• Balai Chand Mukhopadhyay (1899–1979), playwright and poet
• Bhola Paswan Shastri, three-time Chief Minister of Bihar
• Sushant Singh Rajput, actor
• Gurmeet Choudhary, actor
• Ajit Sarkar, politician
• Sweta Singh, News Editor
• Manish Vatsalya, Film Director

• Chunapur

• Chakrabarti D.K. (1996b). From Purnea to Champaran: The distribution of sites in the north Bihar plains. South Asian Studies, 12: pp. 147–158