# Begusarai district

Begusarai District is one of the thirty-eight districts of the Indian state of Bihar. The city of Begusarai is its administrative headquarters and is part of the Munger division.

## History

Begusarai was established in 1870 as part of Munger District. In 1972, it was given district status.

## Geography

Begusarai district occupies an area of 1,918 square kilometres (741 sq mi). The district lies on the northern bank of the river Ganges. Begusarai district is a part of Munger division. It is located at latitudes 25.15N & 25.45N and longitudes 85.45E & 86.36E. The Ganges river separates Begusarai district from Patna District and Munger District.

### Flora and fauna

In 1989 Begusarai district became home to the Kanwar Lake Bird Sanctuary Kanwar Lake Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Sanctuary, which has an area of 63 km$^2$ (24.3 sq mi). It is Asia's largest freshwater oxbow lake. In November 2020, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) declared it the first Ramsar site in Bihar.

## Demographics

Religions in Begusarai district (2011) :
| Religion | Religion | Percent | Percent |
| Hinduism | Hinduism | 86.00% | 86.00% |
| Islam | Islam | 13.70% | 13.70% |
| Other or not stated | Other or not stated | 0.30% | 0.30% |
According to the 2011 census Begusarai district has a population of 2,970,541, roughly equal to the nation of Armenia or the US state of Mississippi. This gives it a ranking of 128th in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of 1,540 inhabitants per square kilometre (4,000/sq mi). Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 26.44%. Begusarai has a sex ratio of 895 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 63.87%. 19.18% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 14.55% and 0.05% of the population respectively.
* Hindi (79.77%)
* Urdu (9.53%)
* 'Other' Hindi (7.94%)
* Maithili (2.43%)
* Others (0.33%)
At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 79.77% of the population in the district spoke Hindi, 9.53% Urdu and 2.43% Maithili as their first language. 7.94% of the population spoke 'Others' under Hindi.

## Politics

| District | No. | Constituency | Name | Party | Alliance | Remarks |
| Begusarai | 141 | Cheria-Bariarpur | Raj Banshi Mahto | RJD | MGB | |
| Begusarai | 142 | Bachhwara | Surendra Mehata | BJP | NDA | |
| Begusarai | 143 | Teghra | Ram Ratan Singh | CPI | MGB | |
| Begusarai | 144 | Matihani | Raj Kumar Singh | JD(U) | NDA | Switched from LJP to JD(U) |
| Begusarai | 145 | Sahebpur Kamal | Sadanand Yadav | RJD | MGB | |
| Begusarai | 146 | Begusarai | Kundan Kumar | BJP | NDA | |
| Begusarai | 147 | Bakhri | Suryakant Paswan | CPI | MGB | |
Current Member of Legislative council Bihar Vidhan Parishad (Begusarai-Khagaria)
| S.no. | Name | Party | Party | Alliance |
| 1. | Rajiv Kumar | | Indian National Congress | MGB |

### Administration
#### Subdivisions

* Begusarai
* Manjhaul
* Teghra
* Balia
* Bakhari(SC)
* Baghi
Source:

#### Cities and towns

* Bakhri
* Ballia
* Barauni IOC Township
* Barauni
* Begusarai
* Cheria Bariyarpur
* Manjhaul
* Mansurchak
* Matihani
* Teghra

#### Villages

* Bachwara
* Manjhaul
* Meghaul Pethiya
* Mohanpur
* Nayatol
* Nipaniya
* Parihara
* Sahebpur Kamal
* Simaria
* Vandwar

## Economy

Barauni is the major industrial town in the district. It has big industries like Barauni Refinery, Barauni Thermal Power Station, Urvarak Nagar Barauni, Garhara electric locomotive shed and Pepsi bottling plant. Shri Krishna Singh wanted to build an industrial corridor from Begusarai-Bakhtiyarpur-Fatuha, so he looked to construct Rajendra Setu in Mokama. Begusarai is one of the largest milk-consuming districts in India. Sudha dairy plant is also one of the biggest exporters of milk all over Bihar.

## Transportation

Barauni Junction is the major railway junction. Another major railway station is Begusarai. Begusarai is well connected by road to other parts of Bihar and the country.

### Railways

Barauni Junction is one of the important stations in Bihar. It is a junction and is connected to India's main cities of New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai via broad gauge routes. Begusarai railway station is located in Begusarai city.

### Roads

National Highway 28 starts at Barauni and leads to Lucknow. National Highway 31 passes through the district and leads to Guwahati. Both National Highways have junctions here. It is also called Assam Road. Many small city buses pass through here. Begusarai district also has Rajendra Setu on the Ganges near Simariya, which was the first railroad bridge in independent India on the river Ganges. A six-lane bridge is under construction in Begusarai on the Ganges in Simaria. It will be complete by December 2024.

## Education

Rashtrakavi Ramdhari Singh Dinkar College of Engineering (RRSDCE) was laid on 22 December 2013 by Nitish Kumar, paving way for the eighth government engineering college in Bihar. G D College is a notable undergraduate and postgraduate degree college of the district.

## Notable people

* Ajit Anjum, journalist from Begusarai
* Ramdhari Singh Dinkar, poet, essayist, patriot and academic.
* Kranti Prakash Jha, Bollywood actor
* Sriti Jha, TV actress
* Kanhaiya Kumar, politician and leader of the Indian National Congress (former AISF and CPI )
* Mathura Prasad Mishra, member of parliament (1st, 2nd and 3rd Lok Sabha)
* Manoj Kumar Mishra, known for his work on quantum chemistry
* Shyam Nandan Prasad Mishra, Minister of External Affairs (India) of India
* Ram Sharan Sharma, historian
* Balmiki Prasad Singh, former Governor of Sikkim
* Bhola Singh, politician, leader of Bharatiya Janta Party (former Member of Parliament from Begusarai Lok Sabha constituency)
* Chandrasekhar Singh, known for turning Begusarai into a communist bastion
* Kamdev Singh, well known gangster from Begusarai
* Rakesh Sinha, politician, professor and Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha