Adra

Geography

The major sub-divisions of Adra are Agradoot, Subhasnagar, Beniasole, Sixty Four Unit, Palashkola, Kantaranguni, Jhariadih, Panchudanga, Mission para, Laldanga, Daulatpur, Arabinda Pally and SER colonies (North and South). Purulia district forms the lowest step of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. The general scenario is undulating land with scattered hills. Raghunathpur subdivision occupies the northern part of the district. 83.80% of the population of the subdivision lives in rural areas. However, there are pockets of urbanization and 16.20% of the population lives in urban areas. There are 14 census towns in the subdivision. It is presented in the map given alongside. There is a coal mining area around Parbelia and two thermal power plants are there – the 500 MW Santaldih Thermal Power Station and the 1200 MW Raghunathpur Thermal Power Station. The subdivision has a rich heritage of old temples, some of them belonging to the 11th century or earlier. The Banda Deul is a monument of national importance. The comparatively more recent in historical terms, Panchkot Raj has interesting and intriguing remains in the area. Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map. Adra is the divisional headquarters of the Adra division of South Eastern Railway. The economy of the town is driven by the presence of the railways there. It is one of the three important coal loading divisions (the other two being Bilaspur and Dhanbad) which supply coal to power plants across India. An important railway junction, Adra railway station connects to Asansol on the Howrah-Delhi Main Line, Tatanagar on the Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line, Kharagpur on the Kolkata-Chennai and Kolkata-Mumbai lines, and…