Bijni

Bijni is a town in Chirang district under the jurisdiction of Bodoland Territorial Council which controls the districts of the Bodoland Territorial Region in the state of Assam. It is one of the fastest growing towns of Assam.

History

The Bijni branch of the Koch dynasty controlled its feudatory from the present-day Bijni town from 1671 till 1864 when it was attacked by Jhawlia Mech, a chieftain from Bhutan. This resulted in the capital moving to Dumuria. The 1897 Assam earthquake led to the disfigurement of many royal palaces and other monuments belonging to the dynasty and this again led to movement of the capital to a new safe haven. The control of Bijni by the Koch dynasty ended in 1956, as the Indian Government took direct control of the entire region.

Geography

Bijni is located on the northern bank of Brahmaputra river, at 26°31′N 90°40′E. It has an average elevation of 53 metres (173 feet). The main river in Bijni is Dolani, which currently has three bridges over it. The longest of them is the bridge between Bijni and Kawatika. The city is flanked by two bigger tributaries of the Manas river. The city also has a flyover, which cuts the road between the northern region and southern region.

Demographics

As of 2011 Indian census, Bijni had a population of 13257. Males constitute 50.4% of the population and females 49.6%. Bijni has an average literacy rate of 89.37%, higher than the national average of 74.04%; with male literacy of 93.65% and female literacy of 85.01%. 9% of the population is under 6 years of age. Bijni is surrounded by village Kawatika, Doturi, Batabari, Bhetagaon, Chhatianguri, Lechiagaon, Amguri, Puran Bijni, Gerukabari, Saktola, Goraimari and Baghmara, Majrabari, Bijni Panbari Road (Deukurapar).

Bijni was well known for carpentry works and furniture productions. In early 1960’s carpentry works were mainly lead by Sutars (aka Sutradhar) dynasty. Hiralal Sutradhar was one of finest artist of carpentry work.

Politics

Bijni is part of Kokrajhar (Lok Sabha constituency).