Dhanbad Travel Guide, India

Located on the Chota Nagpur Plateau, Dhanbad is one of the most important cites of Jharkhand because of its coal reserves. Referred to as the ‘coal capital’ of India, it has been seen as one of top cities of India.  Since it is situated just 168kms from Ranchi, it is an important industrial and commercial center with a population of almost a million.

Dhanbad stretches from 23.8° N 86.45° east and covers an area of 2052 sq.km. Due to its location, Dhanbad is a scenic city. Three rivers mainly the Damodar, Katri and Jamunia flow through the city. The climate like most of Jharkand is characterized by warm summers, harsh winter and heavy rainfall. The topography of this region does not facilitate agriculture, which is why most of the people work in the coalmines and surrounding industries.

With over 112 coalmines, Dhanbad has been named ‘the city of coal’. In recent years, it has become famous for its industrial establishments and coal mining. Due to its rich coal reserves the city draws numerous industries to it. Some of them are the IISCO(Indian Iron and Steel Company), BCCL(Bharat Coking Coal Ltd), CIL(Coal India ltd) and Tata Steel. Large areas have been taken over by these companies and have been converted into townships for their employees with water, roads, power and sanitation facilities. The city is also well connected by rail and road to the other parts of the country.

Another reason why Dhanbad is an important town, is because the East Central Railway division has been set up here.

Dhanbad is also an important center for education. The Indian School of Mines, draws students from all over India through, through IIT JEE. The other schools and colleges of this city include the P K Roy Memorial College, R S P College, Jharia, R S More College, S S L N T M College Sindri College and the Patliputra Medical College.

The city also attracts many tourists who come to view the splendor of the Damodar Dam. The other important sites include the Charak Pathar, the Chati Gobindpur, Gopalpur, Jhinjhipahari, Meva, Panrra, Topchanchi, Maithon, Panchet and the Jama. There are also a large number of tourist destinations near Dhanbad. These are the Maithon Dam, Topchachi, Panchet Dam, Parasnath hills, famous for Jain tirthankara, staute (sicsic), the Bhatinda Water Falls and the Lilori-Sthan(Temple).