About District

Malda is a district covering an area of 3733 sq Km with Bihar and Uttar Dinajpur at the North, Murshidabad at the South, Bangladesh at the east, and Jharkhand and Bihar at the West. It shares a 165.5 km international border with Bangladesh. Having a central location it is an important junction and entry point to Siliguri from South Bengal. The river Ganga makes its first entry into West Bengal near Manikchak of Malda. As it is a low-lying basin, it is prone to flood.

Malda district also spelled Maldah or Maldaha (Bengali: [malda], [maldɔɦ], often [maldɔɦo]; is a district in West Bengal, India. It lies 347 km (215 miles) north of Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal. Mango, jute, and silk are the most notable products of this district. The special variety of mango, Fazli, produced in this region is popularly known by the name of the district and is exported across the world, and is internationally acclaimed. The folk culture of Gambhir is a feature of the district, being a unique way of representing of joy and sorrow of the daily life of the common people, as well as the unique medium of presentation on national and international matters.

District headquarters is English Bazar, also known as Malda, which was once the capital of Bengal. The district maintains the traditions of the past in culture and education. Old Malda, the town which lies just east of the confluence of the Mahananda and Kalindi rivers, is part of the English Bazar metropolitan city. The town rose to prominence as the river port of the old capital of Pandua. During the 18th century, it was the seat of prosperous cotton and silk industries. It remains an important distributing center for rice, jute, and wheat. The area between the historical monument of Jame Masjid (1566) and the landmark of Nimasarai tower across the river Mahananda, constituted a municipality in 1867. Rice, jute, legumes, and oilseed are the chief crops in the surrounding area. Malda is the largest producer of excellent quality jute in India. Mulberry plantations and mango orchards occupy large areas; mango trade and silk manufacture are the main economic activities. The Independence Day of Malda is 17 August 1947.