Southwest Bengal is a region in West Bengal, consisting of the districts of Jhargram, Paschim Medinipur and Purba Medinipur.

Cities

Jhargram

• 1 Jhargram — famous for its forests and undulating topography

• 2 Belpahari — a forest paradise at the foothills

Paschim Medinipur

• 3 Kharagpur and Midnapore — headquarters of Paschim Medinipur, home to one of the IITs

• 4 Chandrakona — temple town, home to Prayag Film City

Purba Medinipur

• 5 Tamluk (Tamralipta) — headquarters of Purba Medinipur

• 6 Contai (Kanthi) — the gateway to the beach resorts in the region

• 7 Digha — a popular beach spot

• 8 Haldia — a developing port city

• 9 Kolaghat — a popular picnic spot

• 10 Mahishadal and Geonkhali — Mahishadal is known for its Rajbari complex, while Geonkhali is a picnic spot at the confluence of Hooghly and Rupnarayan rivers.

• 11 Mandarmani — a beach resort

Other destinations

• 1 Moghalmari — an archaeological site with a Buddhist monastery dated between 6th to 12th century

Understand

Southwest Bengal is an emerging educational, economic and tourist hub of West Bengal. It is home to the Haldia Port, a major seaport acting as a feeder to the Port of Kolkata. The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur is also in this region. Most of the well-known beach spots are in Southwest Bengal.

Southwest Bengal was also an epicentre of political movements during the British Raj. It was the birthplace of Khudiram Bose, a young freedom activist who was hanged in 1908. Another freedom activist, Matangini Hazra, was killed by a gunshot in 1943. During the Quit India Movement, a parallel government named "Tamralipta Jatiya Sarkar" was formed in Tamluk.

Geography

Southwest Bengal is diverse in landscape. The road from Bankura to Balasore cuts across the region and divides it into two natural divisions. To the east of this road, the soil is fertile alluvial and the area is flat. To the west, the Chota Nagpur Plateau gradually slopes down creating an undulating area with laterite rocks and soil. The coastal areas of the region are occasionally affected by cyclones and tornadoes.

Talk

The Manbhumi dialect of Bengali is prevalent in this region. In particular, the word bôte ('okay') is used in Manbhumi more often than in any other Bengali dialect. The dialect is more Odia-centric in Contai and Dantan and less so in Midnapore.

Besides, Odia is another common language in the region, especially along the border with Odisha.

Get in

By train

The major railway stations are in Digha, Kharagpur and Tamluk.

By car

National Highway 16 (NH 16) crosses over Kharagpur, Kolaghat and Panskura. NH 116, a spur road of NH 16, runs over Tamluk and Haldia. Its spur road, NH 116B, runs over Contai and Digha.

Go next

• Odisha — Southwest Bengal's southern neighbour is famous for beaches and pilgrimage.