Dhamtari is a municipal corporation and headquarters of the Dhamtari district in the state of Chhattisgarh, India, which is part of the Mahasamund Lok Sabha constituency formed on 6July 1998. The district is home to 3.13 percent of Chhattisgarh's total population.
History
Dhamtari's population was 17,278 in 1955. At that time, the town was part of Raipur District in the state of Madhya Pradesh. In 2000, it became part of the new Chhattisgarh state and headquarters for the Dhamtari tehsil. As a terminus of a narrow-gauge railway running north of Raipur on the main Bombay-Calcutta line of the Bengal Nagpur Railway, Dhamtari became a trade centre. Goods shipped from there included timber, shellac, morabulum nuts, beedi leaves (for cigarettes), rice and animal hides.
The American Mennonite Mission was established in Dhamtari in 1899. By 1952 the mission had merged with the Mennonite Church in India (MC), which had its headquarters in Dhamtari. In 1955 the 558-member congregation was one of several missionary groups in Dhamtari, including the Dhamtari Christian Academy, Dhamtari Christian Hospital, the Samuel Burkhard Memorial Boys' Orphanage and a nursing school. At the present Dhamtari is a "Nagar Nigam". Dhamtari is also famous for its Marathi community which is one of the biggest gathering of Marathis in any state of India
Geography Dhamtari is in the fertile plains of Chhattisgarh. The district's total area is , and it is about 317 meters (1,040 feet) above sea level. It is bordered by the Raipur and Durg districts to the north, the Gariaband district to the east, the Kondagaon district and the State of Orissa to the south and the Balod and Kanker districts to the west. The fertility of the land in the Dhamtari District is due to the Mahanadi River and its tributaries (Sendur, Pairy, Sondur, Joan, Kharun, and Shivnath). Dhamtari is situated 65 km from capital Raipur.
Economy Lead deposits exist in the district. Most of the city's workforce is involved in the timber industry or rice or flour milling (Dhamtari has more than 200 rice mills), with the chemical industry also a significant presence. The Ravishankar Sagar Dam (Gangrel Dam) irrigates nearly of land, and is the primary supplier of potable water to the state capital of Raipur and the steel plant at Bhilai. The dam is about from the district capital. Asia's first siphon dam was built in 1914 at Madamsilli; the Sondhur and Dudhawa Dams are other important works.
List of mayors +Term of officeNamePartyNotes1922-1926Narayanrao MeghawaleIndian National Congress1932-1934Natthurao Jagtabh Indian National Congress1934-1936Khammanlal SawIndian National Congress1936-1937Babu Chotelal ShrivastavaIndian National Congress1937-1939Babu Chhote Lal ShrivastavaIndian National Congress1941-1946Ramgopal Sharma Indian National Congress1946-1950Giridhari lal mishra Indian National Congress1951-1952Ramgopal SharmaIndian National CongressNominated1952-1954Radheshyam KhareBharatiya Jana Sangh1955-1957Radheshyam KhareBharatiya Jana Sangh1969-1971Hanuman Prasad MishraBharatiya Jana Sangh1971-1974Pandri Rao PawarIndian National Congress1984-1987Karishn Kumar DhandhIndian National CongressNominated1995-2000Narayan Prasad GuptaBJP2000-2005Janki PawarBJP2005-2010Tarachand HindujaBJP2010-2015Narayan Prasad GuptaBJP2015-2020Archana ChoubeyBJP2020-2025Vijay Dewangan Indian National Congress2025-Jagadish Ramu Mehra BJP
Education Schools
Anjuman Higher Secondary School, Azim Premji School, Shankardah, Delhi Public School Govt. Boys Higher Secondary School, Govt. Girls Higher Secondary School, Hari Om Higher Secondary School, Kendriya Vidyalaya Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Mennonite Senior Secondary School, Model English Higher Secondary School, Nutan Higher Secondary School, Saraswati Shishu Mandir Higher Secondary School, Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandir, Sarvoooodaayaa Hindi School, St. Marys English Medium School, St. Xaviers School, Vidya Kunj Memorial school.
Colleges
Comp tech Degree College Genesis College Govt. Girls College Govt. P.G. College Govt. Polytechnic College KL College of Horticulture Vandemataram College
Transport
Railways and bus Dhamtari situated at Raipur to Jagdalpur national highway National Highway 30 (India), where majorly flawless fast Bus services is available almost 24 hours in every 5–15 minutes. Raipur to Dhamtari narrow-gauge line, now defunct provided service to the area, soon to be replaced by broad-gauge railway tracks.
Healthcare
Dhamtari Christian Hospital (DCH) Dhamtari District Hospital (DDH)
Media Newspapers
Prakhar Samachar
Places of interest
Gangrel Dam Khubchand Baghel (Rudri) barrage Bilai Mata Mandir (Vindhyavasini Mata)
Notable people associated with Dhamtari
Babu Chhote Lal Shrivastava
References
External links
Official Dhamtari government site