# Bandel

Bandel is a city in the Hooghly district of the Indian state of West Bengal. It was founded by Portuguese settlers and falls under the jurisdiction of Chandernagore Police Commissionerate. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA). Bandel is a major rail junction station of Eastern Railway zone, and is 38 km from Howrah railway station. Sir James Brooke, the first White Rajah of the Kingdom of Sarawak was born here in 1803.

## Geography
### Location

Bandel is located at 22°55′22″N 88°22′46″E﻿ / ﻿22.922743°N 88.379542°E﻿ / 22.922743; 88.379542 and it has an elevation of 16 m. The main river that flows by Bandel is Hooghly. The town is in Gangetic Plain.

### Climate

Like the rest of the Ganges Delta of West Bengal, the climate is tropical wet-and-dry in nature. A prolonged hot and humid weather is the main characteristic of the climate of Bandel. The monsoon stays from early June to mid-September. Winter persists for almost three months, from mid-November to mid-February. The weather remains dry during the winter and humid during summer.

## Economy

* Dunlop Factory: The famous Dunlop factory is situated at Sahaganj near Bandel. This factory was built by Dunlop India Limited (DIL) in 1936. It is the first tyre manufacturing plant in Asia. However, it has been shut down owing to some issues in its administration.
* BTPS: Bandel Thermal Power Station was started with a capacity of 82.5 MW in 1965. It has since been expanded and currently has a rated capacity of 530 MW. It is operated under the West Bengal Power Development Corporation (WBPDCL).
* Bakery: Bandel is the base of many bakery industries.
* Bandel Bazar: Bandel Bazar is one of the biggest and important markets of the district. It's the hub of agricultural import and export. Vegetables, fruits (especially mango, watermelon) and rice are exported from the market.
* Banks: At Bandel, there are branches of banks such as Allahabad Bank, Axis Bank, Bandhan Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, State Bank of India, UCO Bank, and, HDFC Bank.
* Jupiter Wagons Ltd: Jupiter, an engineering company which manufactures railway based products such as Fright Wagons, Bogie & CMS Crossings, is located in front of Bandel ITI near Sahaganj.

## Transport
### Train

Bandel has its own railway junction. At Bandel, there are two railway stations, Hooghly railway station and Bandel Junction. Bandel Junction is an important railway station of Eastern Railway and is a model rail station. Bandel junction has 4 lines trains can go to. The station is situated approximately 40 km from Howrah station on the Howrah–Bardhaman main line. The Bandel–Katwa line meets the Howrah main line, here at Bandel Jn. Another branch line connects Bandel with Sealdah railway station and Kolkata railway station via Naihati. An EMU car-shed, as well as a goods yard, is situated in the neighbourhood of Bandel station.

### Road and bus

State Highway 6/Grand Trunk Road passes through Bandel. The Grand Trunk Road divides Keota and Sahaganj. It passes through the urban areas of the city. To the north, the road is divided into two parts because the flyover at Dunlop is not yet completed and its construction is halted. However, as of March 2025, the flyover would resume its construction and be completed. The flyover is said to start from Keota and end at the north part of Iswarbaha covering a distance of more than 1 km.

#### Private bus

* 4 Chunchura Court - Memari
* 8 Chunchura Court - Kalna
* 23 Chunchura Court - Tarakeswar
* 17 Chinsurah to Tarakeswar
Besides, there are auto rickshaws, e-rickshaws, cycle-rickshaws, etc. These all contribute to the public transport of Bandel.

### Air

The nearest airport to Bandel is the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Dum Dum, Kolkata.

## Prominent Places
### Bandel Church

The most well known place in Bandel is the Bandel Church (Basilica of Holy Rosary, Bandel). Bandel Church is one of the oldest Christian Churches in West Bengal. It is located in the southern part of Sahaganj, Bandel. It was built by the Portuguese in 1599, dedicated to Nossa Senhora do Rosário (Mother Mary). It is a parish church and part of the Archdiocese of Calcutta. It is one of the most prominent historical landmarks in Hooghly district as well as West Bengal.

## Festivals

Like other parts of West Bengal, Durga Puja is the biggest festival of Bandel. Kartik Puja is one of the famous festivals celebrated in Bandel (Sahaganj-Bansberia area). Lakshmi Puja, Kali Puja, Viswakarma Puja, Saraswati Puja, Poila Boisakh, Ganesh Puja, Chhath Puja, Dol Yatra are also widely celebrated at Bandel. Puja pandals are built in various places for many of the above festivals. Olaichandi Mela (fair) is the biggest fair observed at Bandel in early summer after the Dol Yatra. Christmas is well attended at Bandel Church. Eid is the major festival celebrated by the Muslim community of Bandel. Another festival, 'Sitla Puja', is exclusive to Bandel, which is celebrated few weeks after the Dol Yatra.

## Education
### Schools

* Don Bosco School Bandel
* Auxilium Convent School Bandel
* Kendriya Vidyalaya Bandel
* Abbot Shishu Hall
* Bandel St.John's High School
* Hooghly Girls' High School
* Blooming Buds School
* Disha Public School
* Binodini Girls' High School
* Dunlop English Medium School
* Bandel Vidyamandir High School (Established in 1953)
* Elite Co-ed High School (Established in 1998)
* Pearl Rosary School
* Bandel Mahatma Gandhi Hindi Vidyalaya (Established in 1956)
* Bandel Branch High School
* Fernando Convent

### Engineering colleges

* Modern Institute of Engineering and Technology
* West Bengal Survey Institute
* ITI College, Bandel

### ICSE Affiliated Schools

* Pearl Rosary School

## Places/Divisions
### Debanandapur

Debanandapur is a village and gram panchayat in Bandel. It is the birthplace of the Bengali author Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay and is about 3 km west from Bandel Station. His dwelling house is still there. There also is a library named Sarat Smrithi Pathagar, which includes a museum room containing the things used by the famous writer. The village has some 19th-century atchala temples. It is one of the seven important villages named Saptagram at the time of Mughals.

### Manushpur

Manushpur is a census town in Chinsurah Mogra CD Block in Chinsurah subdivision of Hooghly district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located at 22.931389°N 88.374278°E. As per the 2011 Census of India, the place has a population of 8,148. Keota, Manushpur, Naldanga, Kodalia, Kulihanda, Dharmapur and Simla form a cluster of census towns on the eastern side of Hugli-Chuchura.

### Kazidanga

Kazidanga is a village located to the west of Bandel Junction. The Saraswati river flows through the edge of Kazidanga. Kazidanga More is located in the middle of the place.

### Kodalia

Kodalia is also a census town in Chinsurah Mogra CD Block in Chinsurah subdivision of Hooghly district in the Indian state of West Bengal. As per 2011 Census of India Kodalia had a total population of 8,994. It is located at 22.90724°N 88.379956°E. Keota, Manushpur, Naldanga, Kodalia, Kulihanda, Dharmapur and Simla form a cluster of census towns on the eastern side of Hugli-Chuchura.
Kodalia is located to the immediate south of Kazidanga as well as Bandel Junction. A large part of Kodalia has a vegetation cover. It is home to many places of worship. This mostly includes Hindu temples and Mosques. Like Kazidanga, the Saraswati river also flows through the edge of Kodalia.

### Keota

Keota is probably the most economically important part/division of Bandel. It includes Bandel More, which is the most economically important place in Bandel. Most of the shops, restaurants, clothing places and many more are located in Bandel More. Keota also includes a decent amount of urban places. Keota and Sahaganj form the majority of Bandel's urban area and population. Keota's population in 2025 is approximately 27,300. A decent number of buildings are located at Keota.

### Sahaganj

Sahaganj is the largest part/division of Bandel. It is also the only part of Bandel that is located beside the Hooghly River. It is 4 km from the Bandel station. It, along with Keota, form the majority of Bandel's urban area and population. Sahaganj's estimated population is about 90,000 as of 2020. The total area of Sahaganj is about 5.1 km². The highest number of accommodations, as well as buildings are located at Sahaganj. The Bandel Church, Don Bosco School Bandel, Auxilium Convent School Bandel and Bandel St.John's High School are all located in Sahaganj. A large number of schools, hotels and restaurants are located here as well. The postal code of Sahaganj is 712104.
The Hooghly River can be accessed via the Itkhola Ghat (locally called Chuni Miyar Ghat). Although the place is now closed because of unsafety in the ghat.
As for the economy, Sahaganj plays a big role for Bandel's economy. The Dunlop Factory, the Jupiter Wagons Limited Industry and the numerous amount of shops and markets in the place contribute to the economy.
A unit of Dunlop India Ltd. is located here. Ruias purchased Dunlop India Ltd. from the Dubai-based Jumbo group owned by late Manu Chhabria. The postal code is 712104. and resumed production in January 2007 after 8 years. After few months of starting production Ruias also stopped production again, till December 2012 there is no hope of light for the workers. Jupiter, an engineering company which manufacture railway based products such as Fright Wagons, Bogie & CMS Crossings, is located in front of Bandel ITI.

## Nearby Places
### Tribeni

Tribeni is 8 km from Bandel on the Bandel–Katwa line. Tribeni Tissues Limited, a specialty paper manufacturing company and a major supplier of tissue paper to the cigarette industry, is located at Tribeni. It was taken over by ITC in 1990. Tribeni in West Bengal is derived from the junction of three rivers – Hooghly (a branch of the Ganges), Kunti & Saraswati. The Tribeni Burning Ghat has Hindu religious values.

### Other places

* Naihati - 1 km
* Mogra - 7 km
* Bansberia - 4 km
* Kalyani - 11 km