Articles on Kharagpur

In Bengali dictionary there is no literary meaning of the word ‘kharagpur’. Thus the word Kharagpur should have been derived from some terms, themes, subjects. It is said that Kharagpur is named after the old Khargeswar temple which was established 400 years back by  King Kharag Singh Pal . But it is also depicted in Mahabharata that Kharagpur exists from the age of Pandavas. So, Kharagpur was not named from the temple, rather the famous historic temple “Khargeswar” was named after “Kharagpur”.

Dr. Shyamapada Bhowmik in his book “Kharagpur: Itihas O Sanskriti” has thrown some light regarding this subject.

One of the popular hearsay is the place is named after the king of Bishnupur, Khargamalla at 841AD. But that time Kharagpur was ruled by Bengal King Devpal (810-850), an emperor per-excellence of Pal dynasty, whose far-flung kingdom was extended from Bramhaputra to Sindhu River and even in south India, which means almost the whole India was under him. So it is most unlikely that the place will be named after some other King who ruled later. Thus this is a rumor again.

If we split the word in two parts Kharag – Pur , then we have separate meaning. The literal meaning from the Samsad Dictionary are given below.

Kharag –n, a large falchion for immolating beasts; a large falchion; the horny appendage on the nose of the rhinoceros.
Pur –n, a house, an abode, a city, a town, a village.

The combination gives a meaning of the word — “A place inhabited with armed (with scimitar or sword or falchion) people”. This nomenclature is justifiable as it is mentioned in Mahabharata that this area was ruled by the Demon King Hiramba. It is a place of michological significance as Pancha Pandavas spent a part of their repatriation years here. Bhim had fallen in love with Hirimba, sister of Hiramba; which is why annoyed Hiramba clashed with Bhim and was killed by Bhim at the same place where Khargeswar Temple is located. So it can be concluded that Kharagpur was inhabited by armed people in ancient age and the name “Kharagpur” came from them.