Pakur, famous for stone and Beedi (Biri) making industry, is one of the important revenue-earning districts of newly created Jharkhand State. Its black stone chips have got Asiatic fame in constructional qualities. Pakur got elevated from sub-divisional Status to a district on 28th January 1994 vide Govt. of Bihar's notification no 19 (Personnel) dated 28.01.1994. Originally it was a Sub-division of Santhal Pargana District since 1868. When Santhal Pargana was divided into four districts i.e. Dumka, Deoghar, Godda and Sahibganj, Pakur was tagged with Sahibganj. It remained a Sub-division of Sahibganj till it was upgraded as district in the year 1994. It is surrounded by Sahibganj district in the north, Birbhoom District of West Bengal in the south, Murshidabad & a part of Birbhoom district of West Bengal in the east and Dumka & Godda Districts in the West. It exists between 23⁰ to 40⁰ & 25⁰ to 18⁰ - north latitude and between 86⁰ -28⁰ and 87⁰-57⁰ east longitudes.

    Topographically it is divided into three parts i.e. the hilly area, the rolling area, and the alluvial area. The hilly area includes the whole of Damini-i-koh form North corner of the district up to the Southwest touching the border of Birbhoom district of West Bengal. A narrow continuous strip of alluvial soil, lies between the Ganga feeder canal and the loop line of Eastern Railway, is very fertile. Rest of the part covers the rolling areas, which is less conducive for agricultural operation.

    This district, once known for its thick & extensive forests, is now bereft of much of its jungle wealth. The medicinal plants such as Sarpgandha, Raigami or Dhami, Kazwa, Chiryaita etc. are now almost extinct. There has been large-scale destruction of forests in the past few years. So the Subsistent agro based economy, which was earlier supplemented by forest and forest produce, has been badly affected. But the Paharia people of this districts carry on their livelihood on the forest products like bamboo, sabai grass, tasser, silk cocoon, lac, simal cotton & kendu leaves.

    There are three main rivers in this district namely Bansloi, Torai & Brahmini. Bansloi & Torai Rivers flow in the middle and Brahmini flows in the southern part of the District.

    The climate of the major portion of the district has a hot dry summer, a good rainy season and cool winter. However the climate conditions of Pakur are like West Bengal with the characteristics of damp heat. Summer begins from the middle of March here and extends up to June. Maximum temperature in may and early June is as high as 46.70 C. December & January are cool months.

    The year is divided into three main seasons. The winter season is from November to February, the summer from March to May and the monsoon from June to September. October is a month of transition from monsoon to winter.

    Owing to natural drainage, the floods are not possible in this area. However a considerable portion of district lying between the Ganges feeder canal and loop line of eastern Railway is liable to water logging when sudden rains swell the rivers and its subsidiary branches. Although localised Floods in the form of water logging are annual features but they make the soil fertile.
Thus the damage is considerably compensated by higher yield.

<Home>                                             Historical Background :                                                    <Go Top>

     The authentic history of this area is very little known before the medieval period. Basically two petty estates known as Pakur Raj and Maheshpur Raj existed in this area. These two Zamindars linked with Mughal administration were responsible for the care and nourishment of this Paharia domain. After the battle of Plassey  the victorious Britishers developed their administrative network to control these areas through Birbhoom district of West Bengal. Captain Boronie was the first British officer who prepared a plan to win over the Paharias, the real inhabitants of this area. Though this area has always  a separate identity but strategically  it was controlled by the Rajmahal hills during the British period.

      Pakur was not immune from patriotic fervour and played very important role in country’s struggle for freedom. The contribution of the Santhal heroes like Sidhu, Kanhu Chand & Bhairav will be remembered forever. Their immortal remain may be seen at different place in Santhal Pargana Division.

<Home>                                             Basicdata                                                                          <Go Top>

<Home>                                                                    Health:                                                                               <Go Top>

District Blindness control Programme sponsored by central Govt. is under operation.

Polio Eradication Programme sponsored by WHO is under operation.

<Home>                                                                     Education:                                                                      <Go Top>

Comparison with rest of India:

<Home>                                                        Communication:                                                           <Go Top>

Road/Transport : The district HQ is connected  with Blocks/Anchals by pucca roads. Blocks & Anchals HQs are linked with panchayats by pucca & Kaccha roads made under JGSY Schemes. Some uncovered areas are in the process of connection with Panchayat & Block HQ by link roads under rural connectivity programme of Govt. of India.

Rail : Pakur is situated on the loop line of eastern Railway between Sahibganj and Burdhwan. Though it is connected with Howrah and Malda division through the loop line but journey facilities are not sufficient for frequent tours in different parts of the country.Whereas Railway has a good source of revenue as freight charges for carrying black stone of Pakur to different Rail heads.

Telephone : All Block HQ & Police stations are connected with district HQ through Telephone lines. Telephone exchange functioning at District HQ is fully computerized now. Mobile service is also available. Tel- Comm facilities are sufficient for transmission of messages.

<Home>                                                                         Economy:                                                                   <Go Top>

Agriculture: This District is predominantly agricultural in character. The main occupation  of the people is cultivation. The indigenous people of the district are either working as agricultural labourers or cultivators. Kharif & Rabbi are the main agricultural season. The cultivable area is 75505 hectares while 16117.08 hectares are fallow land. Per capita cultivable land holding is 01.446 hectares. The soil is red, sedentary and suitable for paddy crops and rabbi crops like Khurthi, Arahar and Barbatti. It is also suitable for Wheat,Gram, Masoor, Mustard, rap seed & vegetables. Commercial crops like Jute, Sugarcane, Onion & Potato are also grown here. Orchards are also maintained for the production of fruits such as mango, papaya, guava and   Jackfruits etc.

Mines & Minerals : Pakur District is having a large number of stone mines and crushers. Approximately 500 mines & 800 crushers are in operation with the support of one lac labour force in present time. The stone industry is paying eight to nine crore rupees per year as royalty to the Govt. in addition to commercial taxes. The quality of Pakur black stone chips is excellent for constructional purpose. Black stones of Pakur are also exported in the South Asian countries.

         Though Pakur is not rich in minerals. However a number of economic minerals occur here and there and are being worked out.Among the minerals found are coal, china clay, fireclay, quartz, and silica sand and glass sand. However a lot of infra structural constrains stand in the way of development of the mineral industry

Animal Husbandry : The quality of livestock is very poor as cows are of local variety and  the average milk yield is around a litre per day. To some extent other cattle supplement the income of the people. Though its contribution to the family is almost insignificant but there is scope for enhancing income from animal husbandry.

<Home>                                                              Trade & Commerce:                                                       <Go Top>

           A preliminary attempt has been made to provide a rough estimate of income generations in the area. Paddy thrashing, leaflet making, bamboo baskets making are the source of their trading activities. In the absence of  major industries and employment opportunities the economic options are limited to agriculture. Stone chips, rice milling, forest produce like mahua, Sabai grass, tasser, bamboo selling are the source of their commercial activities. Barbatti is also good source of income for the Paharia tribe. Though in recent time poultry farming, Piggary, animal husbandry & fisheries have extended like commercial opportunities but no scientific structure is prevalent to crop it up. Even the private enterprises are not interested to experiment new things in these area for the betterment of the lot.

<Home>                                             Composition of Tribal Communities:                                      <Go Top>

          There are two main tribal groups in Santhal Pargana i.e. the Santhals and the Paharias. The Santhals are much in number than the Paharias. The ratio of Santhals and Paharia is 42% & 15%.

          Historically the paharias seem to have been the original inhabitants of the Rajmahal hills. The Santhals are Mongoloid and were introduced in the area by the British mainly to contain violent opposition of the paharias. The Santhals and Paharias have a traditional inimical relationship. To contain the aggressiveness of both these groups, ex-army men in large numbers were also settled in this area. The area has remained culturally surcharged with mistrust between the three communities who look upon them as exploiters and troublemakers. Paharias rely on the plainsmen for support in their quarrels with the Santhals although however this does not spare them from the exploitation by the plainsmen.

          The Santhals are relatively a progressive tribe and practice settled cultivation. They live in close-knit communities and maintain traditional leadership pattern. A section of Santhals has become Christians and has adopted relatively modern way of life. Due to the introduction of modern political system non-traditional leadership pattern has also emerged. The Santhals are hard working people and migrate in off-season to West Bengal and even to Assam. Even though they are settled cultivators their cultivation practices have not improved over time and there is no noticeable impact of modern agricultural technology in the area. The Secondary occupation of the Santhals is gathering of forest produce.

          The Paharias as a community have gone in to shell. They lost heavily in the past in their struggle with the Santhals and the British and have not recovered from the shock. They live mainly on the hills away from the Santhals and the plainsmen and are inaccessible to the administration. A section of them live on the foothills and are known as Sauria paharias. They are also called high landers, Hillman or hill race. In earlier correspondences they are also known as freebooters & cattle lifters. Very little is known about Paharias from the authentic sources. No comprehensive study like Santhals has been made on them. The hills Paharias largely practice slash and burn cultivation methods and supplement their income by collecting minor forest produce. Sauria Paharias practice settled cultivation and is taking minor jobs in Government Offices. Spread of primary education is good amongst the paharia groups but they have not made much progress in higher-level education.

          Poverty in its ugliest form can be seen in Paharia villages. Mal nutrition and diseases have rendered whole villages into a shambles. The traders and money lenders also have a merry time with the paharias due to their gamble nature, consequently the Paharias receive very little value for their produce.

<Home>                                                     Social and Cultural Activities:                                            <Go Top>

                  Since the tribal have no written records of their own however their original habitants might have been authentic records which show that during the 18^th century many Santhals Began settling down in Chhotanagpur and in the neighbouring district of this area. These people who demonstrated considerable skill in clearing jungle for cultivation began to migrate to Rajmahal hills on its northern eastern side. The Santhals may not have a very advance & sophisticated civilizations. So they are not bound to follow a fixed occupation by any caste rule. In fact their social life, philosophy or thinking, their rites & rituals practically center on different agricultural activities. They cling to their land as their principal occupation & means of subsistence. Hunting, fishing and food gathering are still considered important source of subsistence. This has also force the santhals to settle down in permanent villages. Though their hamlets are geographically separated from those of other communities.

      A clear picture of Santhal tribal polity can be had form the study of police rules of 1856. The headman of every Santhal village was called Manjhi and the pargana was the head of number of villages who was made responsible for the discharge of police duty. Regular police were abolished. The headman, the pargana and indirectly the villages themselves were made responsible for maintaining peace ad order. Every Santhal village community has its village council headed by the Manjhi. There is also a Jogamanjhi who acts as a moral supervisor of the village. A Jogparganayak in discharges of his moral duties assists him.

      Like the Hindus, Muslims & Christians the Santhals have their own religion. They do believe in various deities and in spirits. But the interaction of the villages with external economic, social, administrative elements and wider regional culture has resulted in a process of acculturation which however does not appear to have blurred the distinctive cultural identity of Santhals. Although the technology and economic life has undergone a great change but degree of change is less in the santhal religious sphere. In Santhal village there is a succession of the festivals connected with agricultural operations through out the year. The common festivals in the santhals annual calendar include Dussehera, Hariar, Irigundali, Janthar, Soharai, Sokarat, Baha, Magh, Mak-more, Erok & Baijayantri. Most of the festivals have their peculiar songs. The chief among the Santhal festival is Soharai, which is celebrated in the month of December & January with great zeal & joy.

       Though the Santhal society is patriarchal but the woman plays a very important role for the social fabrication. Although she occupies a difficult position but she is said to have right with obligations according to customs& traditions. The religion of Santhal is essentially men’s religion. Women are not allowed to be present at sacrifices except when they are offered in the house of the ancestors and family Gods. Now the civil condition of the Santhal women has also been under going changes along with the impact of modernism. This spirit of games and sports has been infused into them. Their contributions in this field are exemplary and require much more incentive & moral boost up for better performance in national and international games.