Overview

Ranchi ( ; Hindi: [ˈrãːtʃiː]) is the capital city and also the largest district by population of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Ranchi was the centre of the Jharkhand movement, which called for a separate state for the tribal regions of South Bihar, northern Odisha, western West Bengal and the eastern area of what is present-day Chhattisgarh. The Jharkhand state was formed on 15 November 2000 by carving out the Bihar divisions of Chota Nagpur and Santhal Parganas. Ranchi is being developed as a Smart City because it was selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi's flagship Smart Cities Mission. Ranchi is also one of the oldest cities in Jharkhand. Jagannath Temple and Ratu Palace are some sights which witnessed the history of Ranchi. Ranchi is also nicknamed the City of Waterfalls. Ranchi is rapidly growing its economy, and certain parks, special economic zones and industrial areas are being developed. Of late, new sectors and modern areas have been built for the city's development. == Etymology == According to one popular tale, Thomas Wilkinson, a British captain, choose Archi (an Oraon tribal village) as headquarters. Archi means bamboo forest in local Nagpuri dialect. The British inadvertently named Archi as "Ranchi". Captain Wilkinson renamed Kishunpur village as Rachi. Up to 1927, the place was known as Rachi. In his book The Mundas and Their Country, anthropologist Sarat Chandra Roy writes that the name of the city is derived from the Mundari word aranchi, referring to a short stick used in driving cattle, whereas others have opined that aranchi refers to bi-weekly market. According to another local story, Ranchi's name comes from a local bird named rici that was found mostly in the Pahari Mandir premises. Rici is the name for the black kite (Milvus migrans) in the Mundari language, the modern-day landmark of Ranchi city, the Pahari Mandir, is also known as Rici Buru (रिचि बुरु) — the hill of the kites — and the city originated on the foothills of Rici Buru with the construction of Bada Talab by Commissioner Thomas Wilkinson at the same site. == History == The earliest evidence of use of several iron slag, pot sheds, iron tools found in Chota Nagpur region around 1400 BCE. Magadha Empire exercised indirect control over the territory, which lasted until the reign of the Ashoka. Armies of Samudra Gupta passed through the region on their expedition to the Deccan. In the 4th century CE, Nagvanshi king Raja Pratap Rai chose Chutia as his capital which is now a place in Ranchi. Few ruins of Chutia trace back to the 2nd century CE. With the expansion of the Mughal Empire, the sovereign status of the Nagvanshi dynasty was technically affected, but they continued to rule and administer independently. Thakur Ani Nath Shahdeo made Satranji as capital of Barkagarh estate near Subarnarekha river. He built Jagannath Temple in 1691. After the Battle of Buxar, Nagvanshi became a vassal of the East India Company. The British reduced Nagvanshi rulers to Jamindar in 1817 due to rebellion of Jagirdars under Nagvanshi against tax imposition by East India Company and directly ruled Chotanagpur. In 1833, Captain Wilkinson established headquarter of the South-West Frontier agency in Lohardaga but in 1843 they moved the headquarters to the village of Kishunpur, which he renamed into Ranchi after the hamlet located at the foot of the Hill. In 1855, Thakur Vishwanath Shahdeo declared independence from British rule. British attacked Satranji but he defeated British forces. He ruled independently for two years. In the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Thakur Vishwanath Shahdeo led soldiers of Ramgarh Battalion with Madhav Singh who was Jamadar of Ramgarh Battalion. Pandey Ganpat Rai, Tikait Umrao Singh and Sheikh Bhikhari also joined the rebellion. They attacked the British in Ranchi and compelled to flee them. But later they were defeated by East India company forces in Chatra and in Pithuriya with the help of the king of Pithuriya, Jagatpal Singh and hanged. British made Ranchi as municipality in 1869. Ranchi was first termed as a town in the census of 1872, when entire Ranchi thhana has 116,426 inhabitants. Nagvanshi shifted their capital to Ratu from Palkot in 1870. Udai Pratap Nath Shah Deo built Ratu Palace in Ratu in 1900. He donated large tracts of land to build the infrastructure of the city. Freedom fighter Birsa Munda died in the Ranchi jail on 9 June 1900. In 1912, Jyotirindranath Tagore, the eldest brother of Rabindranath Tagore, settled in Ranchi. Tagore Hill, where his house was located, has been named after him in remembrance. The last ruler of the Nagvanshi dynasty was Lal Chintamani Sharan Nath Shahdeo (1931–2014). After independence, Ranchi saw significant increase in its population. Its population rate of growth was 3.5% in 1901 to 1941, which increased to 14% in 1951–1971. This was because of increased industrial and educational institutions being set up, as well as the arrival of post-partition refugees. Ranchi became an 'administrative-cum-industrial' town in 1958 when Heavy Engineering Corporation was set up. The succeeding years saw Ranchi becoming the headquarters for the Steel Authority of India Ltd and Central Coalfields Ltd. The city remained the summer capital of Bihar till the creation of Jharkhand in November 2000, when Ranchi became the capital of the new state. == Geography == Ranchi lies at 23°22′N 85°20′E near the Tropic of Cancer. The city covers an area of 175 km2 (68 sq mi) and its average elevation is 651 m above sea level. Ranchi is located in the southern part of the Chota Nagpur plateau, which is the eastern section of the Deccan plateau. Ranchi has a hilly topography and its dense tropical forests a combination that produces a relatively moderate climate compared to the rest of the state. However, due to the uncontrolled deforestation and development of the city, the average temperature has increased. === Climate === Although Ranchi has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Climate Classification: Cwa), its location and the forests surrounding it combine to produce the unusually pleasant climate for which it is known. Summer temperatures range from 20 to 42 °C, winter temperatures from 0 to 25 °C. December and January are the coolest months, with temperatures dipping to the freezing point in some areas (Kanke). The annual rainfall is about 1,430 mm (56.34 inches). From June to September the rainfall is about 1,100 mm. Ranchi has been ranked 32nd best “National Clean Air City” (under Category 1 >10L Population cities) in India. == Demographics == === Population === As of 2011 India census, Ranchi Municipal Corporation has a population of 1,073,427, The urban agglomeration had a population of 14,56,528 making it the 32nd most populous urban agglomeration in India. Males constitute 52.1% of the population and females 47.9%. Ranchi has an average literacy rate of 87.68%. The city witnessed a sudden surge in population after the creation of the new state of Jharkhand in 2000. Owing to the rising employment opportunities and opening of numerous regional and state level offices, banks and FMCG companies, the city witnessed a rapid influx of employment seeking migrants. As per a study done by ASSOCHAM in late 2010, Ranchi was one of the highest employment generating Tier-III cities in India with a share of 16.8%, followed by Mangalore and Mysore. === Language === Hindi is the lingua franca in Ranchi. Nagpuri is regional language of the region. Hindi is spoken by 799,133, Urdu by 130,457, Bengali by 37,450, Kurukh by 24,762 people, Mundari by 24,858 and Maithili by 16,746 people. === Religion === Hinduism is the prominent religion of Ranchi followed by 64.31% of the population. Islam is the second most followed religion in the city by 16.42% of the people. Minorities are Christians 8.52%, Sikhs 0.39%, Jains 0.22%, Buddhists 0.06%, those that did not state a religion are 0.35%, and others are 9.72%. == Governance and politics == === Civic administration === The municipal corporation covers an area of 175 km2 (68 sq mi) and is divided into 55 administrative wards, each represented by an elected corporator. At the time of the creation of the state of Jharkhand in 2000, the Bihar Municipal Act, 1922 was adapted as the Jharkhand Municipal Act, 2000 to govern all ULBs in the new state. Ranchi Municipal Corporation was governed by its own municipal act, the Ranchi Municipal Corporation Act, 2001. With the enactment of the Jharkhand Municipal Act 2011, these two ceased to be in effect and the 2011 became the only governing legislature for all city governments in Jharkhand. Under section 26 of the Jharkhand Municipal Act, 2011, the positions of mayor and deputy mayor are elected directly i.e. the position holders are voted in by the people themselves. The last municipal election was in 2018 with a voter turnout of 49.3%, up from 38% in the last election in 2013. Asha Lakra and Sanjiv Vijayawargia – both from the Bharatiya Janta Party – won the mayoral and deputy mayoral seats. The 2018 municipal election was the first time the mayoral and deputy mayoral candidates in Jharkhand could use political party symbols, while the candidates for councilor seats continued to use symbols allotted to them by the Jharkhand State Election Commission. The next municipal election will take place in 2023. The Jharkhand Municipal Act, 2011 mandates the establishment of ward committees for each ward in the municipality. Though ward committees have been formed in Ranchi, they are not active. === Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha Constituencies === Ranchi city is part of the Ranchi Lok Sabha Constituency. Sanjay Seth won the seat in the 2019 General Election and represents this constituency at the Lok Sabha as a Member of Parliament. Ranchi is part of the Ranchi Vidhan Sabha Constituency and the representative Member of Legislative Assembly at the Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha is Chandreshwar Prasad Singh. Singh has held the post since 2000, with the last Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha election being in 2019. Both politicians belong to the Bharatiya Janata Party. == Public utilities == The various infrastructure and civic services demands of the city are met by different entities, including Ranchi Municipal Corporation, state government departments, and parastatal organisations. The Ranchi Master Plan 2037 was created by a private consultant firm under the clientship of the Ranchi Municipal Corporation, Urban Development and Housing Department, and Ranchi Regional Development Authority. Roads in Ranchi are developed and maintained by the municipal corporation, Jharkhand Government, Ranchi Regional Development Authority, and National Highways Authority of India. The Water Supply Section of the municipal corporation is responsible for issuing water connections, maintaining hand pumps in wards, collecting water usage charges and fines, whereas the state government Drinking Water Supply and Sewerage Department supplies the water. Ranchi is served by Dhurwa Dam. The Health Department of the corporation is responsible for the Solid Waste Management of the city. RMC operates buses in the city and has outsourced this to a private agency. == Transport == Airways - Birsa Munda Airport is the busiest airport in the state which connects direct flights from major cities of india like New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bengaluru, Lucknow and many more cities also a new terminal of airport is purposed. Railways - Ranchi has four railway stations which connects direct trains from ranchi to major capital cities of india which includes New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Patna, and major of the cities of india. Their Names are 1. Ranchi railway station 2. Hatia railway station 3. Muri Junction railway station 4. Tatisilwai railway station. Roadways - Ranchi is well connected with all the major cities of india as and its neighbour states with National Highways Authority of India all districts of jharkhand is well connected through road network as well there are two bus terminals Khadgarah and railway bus terminal majority of busses operate from these terminals. == Economy == Ranchi is one of the major industrial cities of Eastern India and located in the region called