List of Districts in West Bengal: The West Bengal Districts consist of 23 in number with Kolkata as the state’s capital. However, in 2022 the West Bengal Cabinet approved the creation of 7 new districts which will result in total districts in West Bengal will be 30. The current districts are grouped into 5 administrative divisions namely; Presidency, Burdwan, Medinipur, Malda, and Jalpaiguri.
About West Bengal
Also, called Poshchim Bongo is an Indian state located in the east of the country along the Bay of Bengal. It has a land area of 88,752 km2 in which around 91 million people live. It is the thirteenth largest state by land area and is the fourth most populous state in terms of human population. Internationally it shares a border with Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh. The state’s capital is the city of joy Kolkata which is the third largest metropolitan city, the seventh populous city, and the sixth largest state economy of India.
List of Districts with Division of West Bengal
When India got its independence and the province of Bengal was partitioned, the state of West Bengal was divided into only 14 districts. Then some more districts were added or carved out of the old ones resulting in the formation of the current 23 districts. The following is the list of the current total districts in West Bengal is 23 divided as per the administrative division they fall into;
|
Presidency Division |
Burdwan Division |
Medinipur Division |
Malda Division |
Jalpaiguri Division |
List of Districts |
Kolkata |
Paschim Bardhaman |
Purba Medinipur |
Malda |
Jalpaiguri |
Howrah |
Purba Bardhaman |
Paschim Medinipur |
Murshidabad |
Alipurduar |
|
North 24 Parganas |
Hoogly |
Bankura |
Uttar Dinajpur |
Cooch Behar |
|
South 24 Parganas |
Birbhum |
Purulia |
Dakshin Dinajpur |
Kalimpong |
|
Nadia |
|
Jhargram |
|
Darjeeling |
West Bengal District’s Headquarters and Establishment Date
Following is the list of district headquarters and the establishment date of the district:
Sl. No |
Name of District |
Name of Headquarter |
Date of Establishment |
1 |
Alipurduar |
Alipurduar |
2014 |
2 |
Bankura |
Bankura |
1947 |
3 |
Birbhum |
Suri |
1947 |
4 |
Cooch Behar |
Cooch Behar |
1950 |
5 |
Darjeeling |
Darjeeling |
1947 |
6 |
Dakshin Dinajpur |
Balurghat |
1992 |
7 |
Hoogly |
Chinsura |
1947 |
8 |
Howrah |
Howrah |
1947 |
9 |
Jalpaiguri |
Jalpaiguri |
1947 |
10 |
Jhargram |
Jhargram |
2017 |
11 |
Kalimpong |
Kalimpong |
2017 |
12 |
Kolkata |
Kolkata |
1947 |
13 |
Malda |
English Bazar |
1947 |
14 |
Murshidabad |
Baharampur |
1947 |
15 |
Nadia |
Krishnanagar |
1947 |
16 |
North 24 Parganas |
Barasat |
1986 |
17 |
Paschim Bardhaman |
Asansol |
2017 |
18 |
Paschim Medinipur |
Medinipur |
2002 |
19 |
Purba Bardhaman |
Bardhaman |
2017 |
20 |
Purba Medinipur |
Tamluk |
2002 |
21 |
Purulia |
Purulia |
1956 |
22 |
South 24 Parganas |
Alipore |
1986 |
23 |
Uttar Dinajpur |
Raiganj |
1992 |
West Bengal District’s Area with Population
Following are the approximate estimation of the area and the population per district (based on 2011 data);
Sl. No |
Name of District |
Approx. Area |
Approx. Population |
1 |
Alipurduar |
3,383 km2 |
1,491,250 |
2 |
Bankura |
6,882 km2 |
3,596,674 |
3 |
Birbhum |
4,545 km2 |
3,502,404 |
4 |
Cooch Behar |
3,387 km2 |
2,819,086 |
5 |
Darjeeling |
2,093 km2 |
1,595,181 |
6 |
Dakshin Dinajpur |
2,219 km2 |
1,676,276 |
7 |
Hoogly |
3,149 km2 |
5,519,145 |
8 |
Howrah |
1,467 km2 |
4,850,029 |
9 |
Jalpaiguri |
2,844 km2 |
2,381,596 |
10 |
Jhargram |
3,038 km2 |
1,136,548 |
11 |
Kalimpong |
1,044 km2 |
251,642 |
12 |
Kolkata |
185 km2 |
4,496,694 |
13 |
Malda |
3,733 km2 |
3,988,845 |
14 |
Murshidabad |
5,324 km2 |
7,103,807 |
15 |
Nadia |
3,927 km2 |
5,167,601 |
16 |
North 24 Parganas |
4,094 km2 |
11,060,148 |
17 |
Paschim Bardhaman |
1,604 km2 |
2,882,031 |
18 |
Paschim Medinipur |
6,308 km2 |
4,776,909 |
19 |
Purba Bardhaman |
5,432 km2 |
4,835,532 |
20 |
Purba Medinipur |
4,736 km2 |
5,095,875 |
21 |
Purulia |
6,259 km2 |
2,930,115 |
22 |
South 24 Parganas |
9,960 km2 |
8,161,961 |
23 |
Uttar Dinajpur |
3,140 km2 |
3,007,134 |
Economic Significance of Districts of West Bengal
Sl. No |
Name of District |
Economic Significance |
1 |
Alipurduar |
|
2 |
Bankura |
|
3 |
Birbhum |
|
4 |
Cooch Behar |
|
5 |
Darjeeling |
|
6 |
Dakshin Dinajpur |
|
7 |
Hoogly |
|
8 |
Howrah |
|
9 |
Jalpaiguri |
|
10 |
Jhargram |
|
11 |
Kalimpong |
|
12 |
Kolkata |
|
13 |
Malda |
|
14 |
Murshidabad |
|
15 |
Nadia |
|
16 |
North 24 Parganas |
|
17 |
Paschim Bardhaman |
|
18 |
Paschim Medinipur |
|
19 |
Purba Bardhaman |
|
20 |
Purba Medinipur |
|
21 |
Purulia |
|
22 |
South 24 Parganas |
|
23 |
Uttar Dinajpur |
|
Geographical and Historical Significance of West Bengal
Sl. No |
Name of District |
Historical Significance |
Geographical Significance |
1 |
Alipurduar |
|
|
2 |
Bankura |
|
|
3 |
Birbhum |
|
|
4 |
Cooch Behar |
|
|
5 |
Darjeeling |
|
|
6 |
Dakshin Dinajpur |
|
|
7 |
Hoogly |
|
|
8 |
Howrah |
|
|
9 |
Jalpaiguri |
|
|
10 |
Jhargram |
|
|
11 |
Kalimpong |
|
|
12 |
Kolkata |
|
|
13 |
Malda |
|
|
14 |
Murshidabad |
|
|
15 |
Nadia |
|
|
16 |
North 24 Parganas |
|
|
17 |
Paschim Bardhaman |
|
|
18 |
Paschim Medinipur |
|
|
19 |
Purba Bardhaman |
|
|
20 |
Purba Medinipur |
|
|
21 |
Purulia |
|
|
22 |
South 24 Parganas |
|
|
23 |
Uttar Dinajpur |
|
|
Recent Development of West Bengal
Some of the recent initiatives undertaken by the Central and State Governments in West Bengal are:
- Tajpur port in Purba Medinipur
- 100 Km cover of the Kolkata Metro.
- Bengal Silicon Valley project in the New Town of Kolkata.
- World Trade Center, Kolkata.
- Khadya Sathi (Food Security) and Swasthya Sathi Scheme of West Bengal Govt.
- Widening and Strengthening of NH 116 B by Union Road and Transport Ministry that connects Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal to Balasore district of Odisha.
- The second campus of the Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI) is in Kolkata.
- Durgapur-Haldia pipeline project by GAIL.
FAQs on List of Districts in West Bengal
Q1. Which are the largest and smallest districts of West Bengal in terms of land area?
The largest district of West Bengal is South 24 Parganas with a land area of 9,960 km2 and the smallest is Kolkata with a land area of 185 km2.
Q2. Which are the most populous and least populous districts of West Bengal?
The most populated district of West Bengal is North 24 Parganas with 11,060,148 people living in it and the least populous district is Kalimpong with 251,642 people living in it approximately.
Q3. Which are the first 14 districts of West Bengal that are formed after the independence of India?
The first 14 districts of West Bengal were; Bankura, Birbhum, Burdwan, Calcutta (Kolkata), Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Hooghly, Howrah, Malda, Midnapore, Murshidabad, Nadia, West Dinajpur, and 24 Parganas.
Q4. Among the current 23 districts name the most recently formed ones.
Name of 23 district of west bengal the most recent ones are formed in the year 2017, and these are; Jhargram, Kalimpong, Purba Bardhaman, and Paschim Bardhaman.
Q5. Name the proposed 7 additional districts of West Bengal by the Cabinet in 2022.
The proposed list of districts is; Sundarban, Ichhamati, Basirha, Ranaghat, Bishnupur, Jangipur, and Berhampore.
Q6. How Many District in West Bengal are there?
Currently, West Bengal district list 2023 has 23 districts. In 2022, the West Bengal Cabinet approved the addition of new districts, bringing the total to 30 soon.
West Bengal initially had 14 districts at the time of India’s independence in 1947. Over the years, more districts were added:
– 1950: Koch Bihar (15 districts)
– 1954: Chandannagore (16 districts)
– 1956: Dinajpur, 24 Parganas, and Midnapore were bifurcated (19 districts)
– 2014: Alipurduar (20 districts)
– 2017: Kalimpong, Jhargram, Purba, and Paschim Bardhaman (23 districts)
Q7. West Bengal District List
West Bengal total district name list, each with a unique history and cultural significance, are as follows:
1. Alipurduar (2014)
2. Bankura (1947)
3. Paschim Bardhaman (2017)
4. Purba Bardhaman (2017)
5. Birbhum (1947)
6. Cooch Behar (1950)
7. Darjeeling (1947)
8. Dakshin Dinajpur (1992)
9. Hooghly (1947)
10. Howrah (1947)
11. Jalpaiguri (1947)
12. Jhargram (2017)
13. Kolkata (1947)
14. Kalimpong (2017)
15. Malda (1947)
16. Paschim Medinipur (2002)
17. Purba Medinipur (2002)
18. Murshidabad (1947)
19. Nadia (1947)
20. North 24 Parganas (1986)
21. South 24 Parganas (1986)
22. Purulia (1956)
23. Uttar Dinajpur (1992)
These districts vary in size, population, and historical significance, contributing to West Bengal’s rich diversity.
Q8. Here are the list of New Districts in West Bengal.
On August 1, 2022, the West Bengal Cabinet approved the creation of seven new districts, expanding the state’s total to 30. These new districts will be formed as follows:
1. Ichhamati and Basirhat Districts from North 24 Parganas.
2. New Sundarban District from South 24 Parganas.
3. Bishnupur District from Bankura.
4. Jangipur and Berhampore Districts from Murshidabad.
5. New Ranaghat District from Nadia.
Q9. Which is the newest district in West Bengal?
The latest additions to West Bengal’s districts include Purba Bardhaman and Paschim Bardhaman, both formed on April 7, 2017, through the division of the Bardhaman district. Additionally, the Jhargram district was established just a few days prior, on April 4, 2017.