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History

Geography

Flora & Fauna

Road and Rail Map of district Barabanki

The land of Barabanki district possesses a rich heritage in keeping with its glorious past. This district since its inception has been the meditorium for numerous saints and ascetics, sanctum sanctorum of 'Sadhna' for the literary intellectuals and battlefield for the freedom fighters. For bringing the whole world under one umbrella, Sufi Saint Haji Waris Ali Shah of international fame, motivated people through the message of JO RAB WAHI RAM i.e. the supreme power, God is One, is the flower of this fertile land. Satnami Saint Shri Jagjiwan Das and Saint Malamat Shah lit the torch of communal harmony for the countrymen at large. The place of pilgrimage of the KANWARIYAS' Mahadeva, the Kurukshetra of Mahabharat and the Parijaat tree - the animate symbols of Mahabharat era are also present as mile stones of the spiritual tilt of this sacred land of Barabanki district.

History
ORIGIN OF NAME OF DISTRICT
The district of Barabanki also known as the 'Entrance to Poorvanchal', has the privilege of being the penance ground to numerous saints and ascetics. There are several ancient sayings to the naming of this district. The most popular among them is that, due to the reincarnation of 'Bhagwan BAARAH' on this poise land, this place came to be known as 'BAANHANYA' which in course of time got corrupted to Barabanki. The headquarters of the district was at Dariyabad until 1858 AD, which was later shifted to Nawabganj in 1859 AD the other popular name of Barabanki.

As the saying goes, in ancient times this district was part of the kingdom ruled by Suryavanshi kings, whose capital was Ayodhya. King Dashrath and his famous son, Lord Ram were of this dynasty. Guru Vashisht was their Kulguru, and he preached and taught the young royal princes of the dynasty at Satrikh, initially known as Saptrishi.

This district was under the rule of the Chandravanshi kings for a very long period. During the Mahabharat era, it was part of the 'Gaurav Rajya' and this part of land was known by the name Kurukshetra. Pandav along with their mother Kunti had spent some time on the banks of river Ghaghra during their exile.

'Parijaat ' world's unique tree, Kunteshwar Mahadev temple, and its extremely ancient Shivling, Kunteshwar (Kintur) on the poise banks of Ghaghra, Bazaar Dharam Mandi (Dhamedi), and the famous Lodheshwar Mahadeva's Shivling etc. are proof enough that this region had an important place even five thousand years ago during the Mahabharat period.

As per the historical documentation available, in 1030 AD this region was attacked by Sayyed Salar Masood, brother of Mahmood of Ghazni. In the same century Qutubuddin Gaha of Madina annexed the Hindu princely states, thereby establishing the Muslim dominance then on. During the reign of the great Mughal emperor Akbar this district was dividedly under the sirkars of Awadh and Manikpur.

Many kings and princes opposed the expansion of British rule into this district by waging wars against them. During the British Raj, several kings fought for their independence and laid down their lives doing so, the great revolutionaries ! Raja Balbhadra Singh Chehlari along with about 1000 revolutionaries sacrificed their lives for independence from the British rule.The last battle of the First War of Indian Independence was fought in December 1858 AD here in this district.

During the middle of the nineteenth century the revolutionaries put up their last front at 'Bhitauli ' which proved unsuccessful in comarison to the strong British forces. Leaving behind the Bhitauli front the independence fanatics along with Begum Hazrat Mahal, Nana Saheb entered into the territory of Nepal to continue their freedom struggle from there.

Freedom fighters with Subhash Chandra Bose

In 1921 AD Gandhiji started the Non-cooperation Movement, thereby igniting the flame of independence once again. Here too, the district leading from the front, opposed the arrival of Prince of Wales to India. As a result, protests were organised and large number of freedom fighter courted arrests at the Government High School, Nawabganj, Shri Rafi Ahmad Kidwai was also arrested. During 1922 AD Khilafat Movement, 1930 AD Salt Movement, and in 1942 AD the Quit India Movement, the people of this district actively participated in these movements thereby giving sleepless nights to the British Raj. As a result, the District Congress Office was sealed. But, the local leaders continued their protests remaining underground. The Haidergarh Post office was looted on 24th August 1942 as a mark of protest by the revolutionaries. Similar incidents took place at the GPO Barabanki and Satrikh.

Shafiqur Rehman Kidwai with Jawahar Lal Nehru

The people of this district enthusiastically respond to the call of Satyagraha and large numbers courted arrest. At last, on August 15,1947, the country achieved its long-awaited independence. Every home in Barabanki along with the rest of the country celebrated the occasion with great enthusiasm.

DISTRICT AS AN ADMINISTRATIVE ENTITY
District Barabanki was known as Dariyabad with its headquarters at Dariyabad town established by an officer in the army of Mohammed Shah Shariqi by the name Dariab Khan. It remained the district headquarter till 1858 AD. The district headquarter was shifted to Nawabganj in 1859 AD now known as Barabanki. This was done during the expansion of the district by the British, when Kursi from district Lucknow and Haidergarh from district Rae Bareli were added to the, then Dariyabad district.

Geography

LOCATION & BOUNDARIES
The district Barabanki is situated about 29 Kms. in the East direction of Lucknow the Capital of Uttar Pradesh. This district being one of the four districts of Faizabad division, is located in the heart of Awadh region and it lies between Latitudes 26° 30' North and 27° 19' North and Longitudes 80° 58' East and 81° 55' East. District Barabanki is surrounded by district Faizabad in the East, districts Gonda and Bahraich in the North East, district Sitapur in the North West, district Lucknow in the West, district Rae Bareli in the South and district Sultanpur in the South East. The river Ghaghra forms the North Eastern Boundary separating Barabanki from Bahraich and Gonda.

AREA
According to the 1991 census the area of the district was 4401 sq. kms. The area is liable to vary from year to year due to the slightest change in the coarse of the river Ghaghra, because this slight variation makes a noticeable change in the overall area of the district.

TOPOGRAPHY
The district can be topographically divided into three main regions. First TARAI region, the area in the North East towards river Ghaghra. Second GOMTI PAR region, the wide area from South West to South East of the district. Third is called the HAR region, which is situated at some height to the Gomti Par region. The whole tract is gently undulating land with gentle slope from the North West to South East.

RIVER SYSTEM AND WATER RESOURCES
The district is well fed by rivers Ghaghra, Gomti and Kalyani with their tributaries for major part of the year. Although some of them dryout during summers and create havoc during rainy season by flooding.

GHAGHRA
Ghaghra is the most important river of the district. It, being a mountain river, is the main resource of water round the year. Ghaghra flows from the northern boundary of the district to the South East. Some portion of Tehsil Fatehpur and some portion of Tehsil Ram Sanehi Ghat falls on its banks. Ghaghra forms the northern boundary separating Barabanki from Bahraich and Gonda.

GOMTI
This is the second important river in the district, being a river with its origin in the plains itself flows, throughout the year. Gomti flows from Lucknow into this district and covers the northern part of tehsil Haidergarh and some portion of the tehsil Ram Sanehi Ghat.

KALYANI
Kalyani is a small river of local origin. It flows through the district along with its tributaries, covering most of central portion of the district. Kalyani creates havoc during the rains, flooding considerable part of the district, though during summers there is hardly any water in certain sections of the river.It is an important source of water for major period of the year, with banks precipitous at a number of places.

RAIT
Rait is a small stream which flows dangerously during rains, flooding its adjoining areas, but dries up during the summers.

GEOLOGY
The district being a part of the plains, conforms to the same geological sequence as the plain itself. The soil structure of the district is composed of alluvial soil, the soil brought in by the rivers. The upper belt is called 'Uparhar' and the soil texture is yellowish clay. The basin land of the rivers is mostly sandy soil, and the land adjacent to the rivers is sandy loam. The only mineral of any note found in the district is sand, which is available in sufficient quantity on river banks, and is used in construction works. The district is also noted for its deposits of brick earth.

CLIMATE
The district lies in the plains of the State, and hence its climatic conditions are quite similar to the average climatic condition of the plains. Hot to very hot in summers, cold to quite cold during winters and humid to very humid and sultry during rainy season. Most of the rain occurs from June to September and often in November to January. The winter sets in November and continues till February end. The maximum temperature recorded in 1997-98 was 45.0°C and minimum was 2.5°C. The average rainfall recorded for 1997-98 was 1056 mm.

Flora & Fauna

FLORA
One of the sayings is that Barabanki got its name due to excessive forests. But, unfortunately today very little land area remains as a token of forest in this district. With passage of time, pressure of the increasing population and the need to grow more food, ultimately became the reason for clearing of the majority of forest cover for cultivation. As of today, majority of the forest cover in Barabanki district is on uneven land scape and consists of a mixed variety of vegetation mainly bushes. The forests are small and scattered. The total area under forests is approximately 5308 hectares. with 29% in tehsil Ramsanehi Ghat, 27% in tehsil Fatehpur and 15% in tehsil Haidergarh. Most of the forest cover is on the banks of the river Gomti and Kalyani. In addition to this, on 1034 Kms of PWD roads in the district are trees on both its sides. The trees like Shishum,,Arjuna, Kanji, Khair, Saagaun, Subabul, Neem, Eucalyptus, Babul, Kanju, Gold Mohar, Kesia, Akesia, Mango and Jamun are found in sufficient numbers.

GROVES
The land area under groves, gardens and plantations is fairly distributed throughout the district, Groves in the district consist mostly of mango and are concentrated in tehsil Nawabganj, Ramnagar and Fatehpur.

FAUNA
Animals in the wild have greatly decreased in number and variety in the district due to excessive hunting and poaching during the past century. The various animals found here are Neel Gai (Blue Bull), Hiran (Deer), Barasingha (Swamp deer), Padha (Black Buck), Cheetal (Spotted deer), Fox, Jackal, Porcupine. The Neel Gai has become a menace to the farmers here in the district due to their increasing numbers. However, all the above animals are on the protected list.

BIRDS
The birds of the district are similar to those of the adjoining districts. The chief game of birds found are several varieties of Ducks, King Fisher, partridges, pigeons, peacock and several other water birds.

REPTILES
A number of varieties of snakes and other reptiles are found almost everywhere in the district especially in the rural areas. Some of the poisonous snakes found here are Cobra, Krait and Rat snake. Several non-poisonous snakes have also been noticed and python being the main among them. The other reptiles found in the district are the chameleon and Bichhkhopra.

FISH
Fish are found in the rivers, streams, ponds, canals, catchment areas and artificial reservoirs of the district. There are a number of species of fish which have been found in this district so far, the chief being the rohu (Labeo rohita), nain(cirrhina mrigala), mangur(clarius batrachus), saul(ophiocephelus spp.), katla.