Ranibandh is a community development block (CD block) that forms an administrative division in Khatra subdivision of Bankura district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
History
From Bishnupur kingdom to the British Raj
From around the 7th century AD till around the advent of British rule, for around a millennium, history of Bankura district is identical with the rise and fall of the Hindu Rajas of Bishnupur. The Bishnupur Rajas, who were at the summit of their fortunes towards the end of the 17th century, started declining in the first half of the 18th century. First, the Maharaja of Burdwan seized the Fatehpur Mahal, and then the Maratha invasions laid waste their country.
Bishnupur was ceded to the British with the rest of Burdwan chakla in 1760. In 1787, Bishnupur was united with Birbhum to form a separate administrative unit. In 1793 it was transferred to the Burdwan collectorate. In 1879, the district acquired its present shape with the thanas of Khatra and Raipur and the outpost of Simplapal being transferred from Manbhum, and the thanas of Sonamukhi, Kotulpur and Indas being retransferred from Burdwan. However, it was known for sometime as West Burdwan and in 1881 came to be known as Bankura district.
Red corridor
106 districts spanning 10 states across India, described as being part of the Left wing extremism activities, constitutes the Red corridor. In West Bengal the districts of Paschim Medinipur, Bankura, Purulia and Birbhum are part of the Red corridor. However, as of July 2016, there had been no reported incidents of Maoist related activities from these districts for the previous 4 years.
The CPI (Maoist) extremism which started in the district in the mid-nineties was mainly concentrated in five police station areas of Khatra subdivision – Sarenga, Barikul, Ranibandh, Raipur and Simlapal. They also functioned across the adjoining areas of Paschim Medinipur and Purulia districts.
The Lalgarh movement, which started attracting attention after the failed assassination attempt on Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, then chief minister of West Bengal, in the Salboni area of Paschim Medinipur district, on 2 November 2008 and the police action that followed, had also spread over to these areas. The movement was not just a political struggle but an armed struggle that concurrently took the look of a social struggle. A large number of CPI (M) activists were killed. Although the epi-centre of the movement was Lalgarh, it was spread across 19 police stations in three adjoining districts – Paschim Medinipur, Bankura and Purulia, all thickly forested and near the border with Jharkhand. The deployment of CRPF and other forces started on 11 June 2009. The movement came to an end after the 2011 state assembly elections and change of government in West Bengal. The death of Kishenji, the Maoist commander, on 24 November 2011 was the last major landmark.
Geography
Ranibandh is located at .
Ranibandh CD block is located in the south-western part of the district and belongs to the hard rock area.
Ranibandh CD block is bounded by Khatra and Hirbandh CD blocks on the north, Raipur CD block on the east, Binpur II CD block, in Paschim Medinipur district, on the south and Manbazar I, Manbazar II and Bandwan CD blocks, in Purulia district, on the west.
Ranibandh CD block has an area of 428.51 km2. It has 1 panchayat samity, 8 gram panchayats, 90 gram sansads (village councils), 186 mouzas and 169 inhabited villages. Ranibandh and Barikul police stations serve this block. Headquarters of this CD block is at Ranibandh.
Large forests areas exist in Sonamukhi, Joypur, Bishnupur, Khatra and Ranibandh areas.
Gram panchayats of Ranibandh block/ panchayat samiti are: Ambikanagar, Barikul, Haludkanali, Puddi, Rajakata, Ranibandh, Routora and Rudra.
Demographics
Population
According to the 2011 Census of India, Ranibandh CD block had a total population of 119,089, all of which were rural. There were 60,290 (51%) males and 58,799 (49%) females. Population in the age range of 0 to 6 years was 13,922. Scheduled Castes numbered 13,641 (11.45%) and Scheduled Tribes numbered 56,061 (47.07%).
The concentration of Sabar people, a primitive tribe, is high in Ranibandh and Raipur CD blocks.
Villages in Ranibandh CD block are (2011 census figures in brackets): Ranibandh (2,366), Rautara (2,367), Rudra (2,876), Ambikanagar (3,228), Haludkanali (530), Barikul (988) and Rajakata (2,077).