CHIEF MINISTER Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday declared Jhargram as the 22nd district of the state. The new district has been carved out of West Midnapore. Announcing that April 4 will now be celebrated as Jhargram Diwas, Mamata told a gathering in Jhargram: “The area has witnessed a lot of bloodshed. Innocent lives were lost and people were scared to come here. Now, spring has finally arrived here.” Jhargram, a part of the Jangalmahal area, was a hotbed of Maoists activities between 2008 and 2011.
The new district comprises eight blocks, nine police stations and one municipality. It has a population of around 11,37,000 and four Assembly constituencies — Jhargram, Gopiballavpur, Nayagram and Binpur. While R Arjun was appointed as Jhargram district magistrate, Abhishek Gupta was named the SP. Mamata announced that a budget Rs 200 crore has been sanctioned for development projects to be undertaken in the area.
“The government will build a new stadium at Nayagram and renovate the Jhargram stadium. Multi-specialty hospitals as well as schools and colleges will be built in all blocks of the new district. We also have plans to set up a university here,” she said.
The CM added that around 35,000 people have been recruited in the police from Jangalmahal.
“Local people here have special skills in archery. The government will set up an archery academy in Jhargram to train talented youth. We shall also give special emphasis to promote Chau dance. If people here get proper training, then they will be unmatched in archery and Chau dance,” Mamata said.