Urbanization of the Siliguri town: Understanding the transformation from Union Board to Municipal Corporation (1915-1994)

Abstract

Siliguri situated in the foothills of the Himalayas and about eight hundred and forty two feet above the sea level is now a part of the district of Darjeeling in the state of West Bengal .During the colonial period there were three police stations under Siliguri subdivision i.e Siliguri, Phansidewa and Khoribari. Siliguri is termed as the uncrowned capital of Northern part of Bengal popularly known as North Bengal. Some notable scholars and academicians have contributed in the studies of urbanization of Darjeeling hill town and very few academic works have been done. The focus was largely on the growing commercial activities of Siliguri after post- partition era. Certain areas of study have not been touched. The proposed article intends to understand the various issues or factors which transformed Siliguri from a sleepy hamlet to a Municipal Corporation within a very short period during 20th century and to find out the importance of its strategic geographical location in the context of ongoing Indo-Chinese conflict after Doklam.