The state of Bihar lies in the eastern part of India. In the north are the Himalayas and the country of Nepal. The Ganga which flows through the state is the most important river. It is joined by the Gandak and Ghagra rivers from the north and the son from the south.
Bihar is not in summer and cools in winter. This kind climate is good growing crops, if there is enough rainfall. But the farmers of Bihar can never be re. Sometimes the monsoon brings enough rain. At other times there is too little rain. When there is not enough rain, the crops dry up often there is too much rain. This brings terrible floods and once again. The crops are spoilt. This is one reason why Bihar is one of the poorest states in India. Digging more canals and wells help the farmers to grow better crops.
The state consists of a fertile plain. It has been made fertile by the rivers flowing through it when they flood and deposit silt. The Ganga divides the northern plain into two parts. The Most of the people are more farmers. Their fields are small so they cannot use machines. The most important crops are rice and sugar –cane. Wheat, barley, Jowar, bajra, jute and tobacco are also grown.
There is big oil refinery at Barauni.
The capital of Bihar is Patna. It stands at the meeting of Ganga and Gandak rivers. It is an old and famous city. Hundreds of years ago it was called Pataliputra. At Patna the government has built a bridge across the Ganga. It is the largest road –bridge in the world. The bridge makes it much easier for people to travel from north t south.
A new state has been created out the Bihar, on November 15, 2000 called Jharkhand. Its capital is Ranchi. This state has a large number of industries. One of the country’s largest steel plants is at Bokaro. The life of the people changes here. Some are farmers, but many work in factories.
The sate is very rich in minerals. A mineral is a rock that has a large amount of a certain metal in it. It is called an ore. Iron, coal, mica, manganese and copper ore are found in large quantities.
Many factories have been built near the rich coal fields of Jharia. From iron –ore, iron is taken out. Then from iron, steel is made. One of India’s largest iron and steel mills is at Jamshedpur. There is a huge fertilizer factory at Sindri.
The men who work in the mines are called `miners’. They lead a very hard life. A mine is a place from which a mineral, is dug out of the ground. When this happens, tunnels are dug downwards and then the men go down into the mine in lifts. The lifts also carry the mineral to the top o the mine. A miner’s work is difficult and very dangerous. Sometimes accidents take place and hundreds of miners are killed.
The Damodar River flows through this state. The Damodar River used to flood almost every year and bring sorrow to west Bengal. To help the farmers, out government have constructed hue dams across the river Damodar which formers large lakes. The water stored in the lakes is used in the fields when the monsoon does not bring sufficient rain and during the dry season. Since the building of the dams along the Damodar, the floods are being controlled. The dams also supply hydro-electric power to west Bengal and Jharkhand.