Bihar

Bihar is a landlocked state in Eastern India, bordered by West Bengal to the east,
Uttar Pradesh to the West, Jharkhand to the south as well as an international boundary with Nepal, a Himalayan state.

The word “Bihar” coined from a Pali word ‘Vihara’, which means Buddhist Monasteries. It is one of the oldest inhabited places in the world with history of 3000 years. Bihar remained an important place of power, culture and education. The state is evident to innumerable ancient monuments.

Bihar comprises 38 districts. Various districts together make a division in the state. There are nine divisions, including Patna, Tirhut, Saran, Darbhanga, Kosi, Purnia, Bhagalpur, Munger and Magadha.

This eastern Indian state experiences Indian subcontinent type of climate with mildly cold winter and hot summer. June, July, August and September pick good rainfall. The best time to visit Bihar is anytime from October, November, February and March as there is pleasant climate.

Bihar remained epicentre of power, pelf, culture and education for thousands of years. It held an important position through different annals of history from Gupta Empire to evocations of Gandhi ji. Bihar produces several political stalwarts who drew revolution in India’s politics.

Bihar is the 3rd largest state by population. Over 80% of its population lives in villages.

Patna is the capital of Bihar.

Hindi and Urdu are the official languages of Bihar. However, majority of people speak Angika, Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Maithili and Baijjika.

Bihar is epicentre of Hinduism, Islamism, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism. Mahabodihi Temple, a World Heritage Site, is situated in Bihar.

Bihar’s Maithili region practises Madhubani painting, a style of Indian painting.

The state also contributes to the Indian classical music. Shehnai maestro, Ustad Bismillah khan, was born and brought up in Bihar. He received India’s highest civilian award Bharat Ratna in 2000.

Bihar’s leading dailies are Hindustan Times, Hindustan, The Times of India, The Economic Times, Prabhat Khabar, Dainik Jagaran and Aj.

Rice is the staple food of Bihar. Bihar’s Hindu upper and middle classes are vegetarian. Non-vegetarian food is also popular, but most Hindus don’t eat meat on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Mustard Oil is the traditional cooking medium. Litti (dough stuffed with sattu which is powder of roasted brown chickenpeas) and Chokha (mashed potatoes, fried onions, salt, carom seeds and cilantro) is the favourite dish of Bihar.

Chhat is the major festival of the state. It is the worship of the Sun God. The festival is celebrated twice a year: once in summers (Chaiti Chhath) and once a week after Deepawali (Kartik Chhat).

Over 6 million tourists visit Bihar each year. Bihar props education based tourism, as it preserves world’s ancient universities: Nalanda University and Vikramshila University. The major tourist destinations of Bihar are Vaisali, Rajgir, Patna, Pawapuri, Bodhgaya, Nalanda and Kesaria.

Mahatma Gandhi Setu is the world’s second longest river bridge in Patna, Bihar.

Foreign tourists need to obtain a visa from Indian High Commission. Those who are coming from Yellow Fever countries will have to produce a valid vaccination certificate.

Bihar is well connected by rail, road and air. There are two airports in Bihar: Lok Nayak Jaiprakash Airport, Patna and Gaya Airport, Gaya. The Patna airport operates direct flights to major India’s cities, including Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, Ranchi, Lucknow and Mumbai. And the Gaya airport operates direct international flights to Colombo, Singapore, Bangkok and Paro.