Capital : Patna

Districts :37
Languages : Hindi, Maithili, Bhojpuri
Introduction to Bihar
Bihar is the place that gave birth to Buddhism and ainism and helped in the gro!th o"
#i$hism and Hinduism, has a past that is unmatched an%!here in the !orld& 't !as the
center o" "irst republic in the !orld at (aishali and the cit% o" Pataliputra !as largest
and grandest in the !orld at the height o" its glor%& )here is an arra% o" tourist
destinations o" diverse interests in the state, though their potential has not been
e*ploited "ull% till no!& #tarting "rom the !orld "amous Buddhist Circuit to the Patna
#ahib o" Patna and Mithila Paintings o" Madhubani to sil$ production center o"
Bhagalpur, the state has much to o""er to the tourists& More than an%thing else, it is the
present image o" the state that is not allo!ing the state to be a "rontrunner in
attracting tourists&
Geography of Bihar
Bihar is located in the eastern region o" 'ndia, bordering +epal in the +orth, ,est
Bengal in the east, -ttar Pradesh in the ,est, and har$hand in the #outh& +orth
.angetic plain is an e*tension o" the )arai region o" +epal !ith man% tributaries o"
.anges li$e /oshi, .anda$, Baghmati, and /amla Balan "lo!ing through it&
't is a "lood prone region and one o" the most bac$!ard regions in the countr%& Central
Bihar, south o" .anges, is a region !ith rich agricultural resources& Most o" the north
and central Bihar is plain !ith no signi"icant elevation&
Brief History of Bihar
)he earl% histor% o" Bihar is lost as the major events and happenings !ere not
documented but !ith the advent o" ain and Buddhist te*ts documentation o" events
began& 0nd "rom these te*ts !e get to $no! about the si*teen Mahajanapadas that
"lourished during the 1th centur% BC&
(aishali, 0nga, 2ajgriha, Pataliputra, +alanda, and Mithila are just a "e! o" the places in
Bihar that $nit the histor% o" ancient 'ndia& (aishali in northern Bihar, the center o" the
Lichchavi $ingdom is rated as the most ancient and credited as the !orld3s "irst
republic& 't got its aura o" sanctit% !ith the birth o" Lord Mahavira here& )his !as also
the "avorite resting place o" Lord Buddha and he preached his last sermon here, !hich
!as later commemorated b% a lion capital erected b% /ing 0sho$a&
)he legends o" the courtesan 0mbapali3s e*4uisite beaut% added to the glor% and charm
o" (aishali& B% the "i"th centur% BC, the "ocus o" histor% shi"ted to Magadh !ith its
capital at 2ajgriha 5seen as the "irst recorded capital in 'ndian histor%6, and later
Pataliputra& 2ajgriha !itnessed the "irst Buddhist Council and the conversion o" the
Maur%an $ing Bimbisara to Buddhism& During the last da%s o" the Buddha, the political
masters thought o" shi"ting their capital "rom 2ajgriha to Pataliputra, !hich graduall%
became the pride o" 0sia and subse4uentl% the capital to the great empires o" +andas,
Maur%as, #ungas and .uptas& 't !as here that Megasthenes spent most o" his time as
an 0mbassador o" his #%rian $ing #eleu$os +i$ator&
During the medieval period, e*cept "or the brie" t!in$le o" #her #hah3s reign !ho rose
"rom his base in Bihar to the sultanate o" Delhi that ruled over the entire countr%, the
province o" Bihar rarel% enjo%ed the status o" an independent state7 rather it s!a%ed
!ith the "ortunes o" Delhi, aunpur and Bengal&
(arious sultans o" Delhi and later the Mughals, as !ell as emperors and princes, criss8
crossed Bihar in order to crush the rebellions in distant Bengal& Much later, Babur, in
pursuit o" the Lodhis, came as "ar as Bihar& Babur3s death brought Huma%un to the
throne o" Delhi and he had a hard time "ighting his 0"ghan adversar% "rom Bihar, #her
#hah& Most o" their decisive battles !ere "ought in and around Bihar& #her #hah !as
more than a match "or Huma%un and graduall% he paved his !a% to the throne o" Delhi&
During his brie" reign o" "ive %ears, #her #hah proved himsel" to be one o" the greatest
rulers o" medieval 'ndia&
0"ter the coming o" the British to 'ndia, Bihar again pla%ed an important role in deciding
the "uture course o" the countr% and Bu*ar became the place !here the "inal battle "or
supremac% in north 'ndia !as "ought bet!een the 9ast 'ndia Compan% and the
combined "orces o" the Mughals, and +a!abs o" Bengal and 0!adh in :71;&
Bihar !as part o" the Bengal presidenc% till :<::, !hen a separate province comprising
Bihar and =rissa !as created& 'n :<31, Bihar !as made an independent province& 0part
"rom the documented histor%, Bihar "inds mention in the legends and tales related to
the 2ama%an&
't is believed that the .oddess #ita, the !i"e o" Lord 2am, !as born in Mithila to /ing
ana$, the ruler o" the region&
Districts of Bihar
Bihar is divided into 37 districts "or administrative purposes 8 0urangabad, Begusarai,
Bhagalpur, Ban$a, Bhojpur, Bu*ar, Bhabhua 5/aimur6, Darbhanga, 9ast Champaran,
.a%a, .oplaganj, ahanabad 0r!al, amui, /atihar, /hagaria, /ishanganj, La$shisarai,
Madhepura, Madhubani, Munger, Mu>a""arpur, +alanda, +a!ada, Patna, Purnea,
2ohtas, #aharsa, #amastipur, #aran, #he$hpura, #heohar,
#itamari,#i!an#upaul,(aishali ? ,est Champaran
Economy of Bihar
)he #tate is !ell lin$ed b% road, state high!a%s, national high!a%s, rural and district
roads&
)he #tate has "airl% good rail!a% net!or$&
)here are airports at Patna and .a%a besides landing grounds in all major districts o"
the #tate& 0"ter the division o" state, most o" the industries !ent o"" !ith mineral8rich
har$hand&
2est o" the industries that the Bihar inherited "rom its earlier incarnation is mostl% agro
based& +orth Bihar has man% sugar "actories rel%ing on the traditionall% good
production o" sugarcane in the state&
Barauni is the onl% major industrial center in the state !here one can "ind an oil
re"iner% and man% allied industries& Munger has a large cigarette "actor% o" ')C group&
Bhagalpur is $no!n "or its sil$ production !hile Patna is home to man% small8scale
industries, man% o" them dealing in scrap iron&
=ther than Barauni, there are @ more important industrial centres namel%8 Mu>a""arpur
and Mo$ama& Mu>a""arpur is having industries li$e 2ail ,agon "actor%, po!er station
and 'DPL "actor% !here as Mo$ama houses important units li$e 2ail !agon "actor%, Bata
leather "actor% and McDo!ell Distllar%&
0griculture is the main occupation the people o" the #tate& Principal "ood grain crops are
padd%, !heat, mai>e, and pulses& Main cash crops are sugarcane, potato, tobacco,
oilseeds, onion, chilies, and jute&
Bihar Travel Information
Most o" the tourist places o" Bihar have strong connections !ith the great religions o"
the !orld li$e Buddhism, ainism, #i$hism, and Hinduism& ,itness to the glorious
teachings o" the some o" the most pious minds o" the past, the state attracts people
"rom all religions and "aiths&
)here are "e! pilgrimage destinations in 'ndia that are sacred to di""erent religions and
most o" them are in Bihar itsel"& Places li$e Patna, 2ajgir, and (aishali are sacred to all
the important "aiths and that is a great achievement o" Bihar& Aamous destinations "or
tourism are Patna, 2ajgir, Bodhga%a, .a%a, +alanda and (aishali&
Rivers of Bihar
=ne o" the most stri$ing "eature o" the river s%stem o" Bihar is the dominant role o"
.anga& )he important rivers that join the .anga "rom the north are .haghra, .anda$,
Burhi .anda$, /osi, Mahananda and its tributaries& #onpur, !hich is situated along
.anga3s ban$ is "amous "or the great bathing "estival, !hich is the occasion "or the
greatest cattle and elephant "air in the !orld& )he principal streams, !hich join .anga
"rom #outh, are /armanasa, #one, Punpun, Phalgu, #a$ri and /iul&
Education of Bihar
Historicall%, Bihar has been a major center o" learning, home to the universities o"
+alanda 5one o" the earliest universities o" 'ndia dating bac$ to the "i"th centur%6 and
(i$ramshila& -n"ortunatel%, that tradition o" learning !hich had its origin "rom the time
o" Buddha or perhaps earlier, !as lost during the medieval period !hen marauding
armies o" the invaders destro%ed these centers o" learning&
During the late :<7Bs and earl% :<CBs, the state government too$ over management o"
most privatel%8run schools& )his adversel% a""ected school education in the state since
the state government !as ill e4uipped to manage the schools through its bureaucrats
!ho !ere trained "or la! and order duties& )hough the state accorded them
government recognition, the standard started to "all& )han$"ull%, the state did not ta$e
over the schools run b% the Christian missionaries and these schools provided a "illip to
4ualit% education in Bihar& 0s in other states, the central government runs a number o"
/endri%a (id%ala%as 5Central #chools6 and a!ahar +avoda%a #chools "or rural
students& a!ahar +avoda%a #chools started b% the late Prime Minister 2ajiv .andhi
have been particularl% success"ul in providing 4ualit% education to the !ea$er sections
o" the societ%&
)he number o" Private schools, including school8chains and Missionar% #chools run b%
Christian Missionaries as !ell as Madrasas, or schools run b% Muslim clerics, has
increased in the post liberalisation era& Most o" the schools in Bihar are a""iliated !ith
the Bihar #chool 9*amination Board, !hile the /endri%a (id%ala% and a "e! other elite
schools including the Christian Missionar% #chools are a""iliated to the 'C#9 and CB#9
boards& Bihar has t!elve universities recognised b% the state&
Bihar is placed poorl% !ith respect to the literac% rate as per @BB: census !ith overall
literac% o" ;7&D3E& 0lthough the male literac% rate is some!hat better at 1B&3@E, the
"amale literac% is ver% poor at 33&D7E and is a major deterrent "or the developmenet o"
the state&
Food of Bihar
)he cuisine o" the state is an interesting mi* o" +orth and 9ast 'ndian cuisine& 2ice,
pulses, and roti are the most common "ood consumed b% the people o" this state& =ne
e*clusive item o" this state is #attu 5gram po!der6, commonl% ta$en as a mi*ture !ith
!ater, salt, and limejuice& 0 "avorite brea$"ast all over the state is Chura8Dahi
5"lattened rice and curd6 ta$en together !ith sugar or jagger%&
)he in"luence o" Bengal is evident in the !a% large 4uantities o" "ish are consumed in
the state& )here are several specialt% s!eets that are made all over the state "or special
occasions& /haja, til$ut, anarsa and the$u!a are some o" the preparations that "orm a
part o" ever% s!eet8toothed Bihari3s dreams&
Arts & ulture of Bihar
People o" the Bihar are 0r%ans !ho came "rom Central 0sia and entered this province in
around 1BB %ears be"ore Christ a"ter de"eating the aboriginal people& 0ccording to the
legends, great sage 0gast%a !as the "irst person !ho crossed the river .anda$ and
burnt do!n Danda$aran%a 5"orest o" this region as it !as $no!n in the (edic times6&
Patna Falam and Mithila paintings are t!o o" the most impressive and popular cra"ts o"
Bihar& ,ith the decline o" the Mughals, the Delhi artists migrated to Murshidabad 5a
great center o" commerce and a "lourishing to!n o" the +a!abs6& ,hen this Bengal
hamlet did not hold the artists "or long, the% thought o" Bihar& #ome o" them came over
to Patna and practiced their cra"t "ollo!ing a st%le that graduall% came to be $no!n as
the Patna Falam& )he st%le is "amous "or its so"t colors and the use o" hand made paper
or mica sheets& Most o" these paintings depict the da%8to8da% li"e o" the people o" Bihar&
Madhubani, in the heart o" the Mithila region, had a rich tradition o" !all paintings done
b% the village !omen& Hit b% a severe drought in :<11, an artist encouraged them to
tr% their !all paintings on paper& )he idea !as a great success and since then Mithila
paintings gained ground& )hese line paintings in primar% colors normall% depict village
scenes, human and animal "orms, gods and goddesses& 0 $ind o" artistic emotion can
be observed in these paintings& )ulsidas gives an elaborate description o" ho! the
entire Mithila region !as decorated "or the !edding o" #ita !ith 2am& Bhagalpur is
"amous "or its sil$ industr% all over the !orld and is considered one o" the best sil$
producing centers in 'ndia& =ther cra"ts o" Bihar include #ujni embroider%, lac bangle
ma$ing, and creation o" decorative and utilit% items o" #een$i 5a local dried grass6&
Dance & !usic of Bihar
at8atin Dance o" the Mithila region is per"ormed b% the Harijans 5name given to the
lo!er castes b% Mahatma .andhi6 !here one person per"orms the role o" at 5the
husband6 and atin 5the !i"e6 !earing mas$s and goes through the stor% o" their li"e&
Bidesia, a "orm o" dance drama is e*tremel% popular in the Bhojpuri8spea$ing region o"
Bihar& )he region o" Mithilanchal is "amous "or its cultural heritage and the songs o"
(id%apati 5"amous poet o" earl% medieval age6 can be heard even no! in the evenings
"rom several homes throughout the region& Bhojpuri "ol$songs are popular throughout
the countr% and second to none !hen it comes to beats and rh%thm&
ostumes of Bihar
#ari is the most popular attire "or !omen all over the state& )he sal!ar8$amee> is also
popular especiall% !ith the %ounger and urban !omen& )he traditional attire "or men
includes dhoti, $urta, and $haraun 5!ooden sandal6& Ho!ever, men have ta$en to the
more convenient attire o" shirts and pants, though !estern !ear is not so common
among !omen& 'n Mithila, a uni4ue part o" a man3s dress is the Paag, a turban !hose
color is meant to s%mboli>e the status o" the man !earing it&