Sheikhpura, Bihar, India

🇮🇳 Sheikhpura is a town and a municipality in Sheikhpura district in the Indian state of Bihar. Sheikhpura is also an administrative headquarter of Sheikhpura district.

Postal code PIN code of Sheikhpura post office is 811105. Postal code for Mehus is 811102.

District Sheikhpura district is one of the thirty-eight districts in Bihar, India and a part of the Munger division with Sheikhpura as its administrative headquarters. Established on 31 July 1994 from the Munger district due to political efforts by Rajo Singh, it was the least populous district in Bihar as of the 2011 census. Shri Krishna Sinha, the first chief minister of Bihar, was born in Maur village, which is now situated in Barbigha block of this district.

History It is believed that during the Mahabharata era, a demoness named Hiḍimbā lived in the hillocks of Sheikhpura's eastern stretch. She married Bhima, one of the Pandava brothers, and they had a heroic son named Ghatotkacha. The hill was later named Girihinda after Hidimba where Giri means a hill in Sanskrit, and the village of Girihinda still exists today.

Sheikhpura also served as a significant administrative centre during the Pallava reign. It is also believed that the Afghan ruler Sher Shah Suri had the notable Dal Kuan (well) constructed there.

During the Mughal period, Sheikhpura was designated as a Thana. Under British rule, it became a Big Kotwali, and after independence, it was recognised as a Block. On 14 April 1983, Sheikhpura was established as a Subdivision. It was split from the Munger district into a separate district with headquarters in Sheikhpura on 31 July 1994 due to political efforts of Rajo Singh.

Geography The Sheikhpura district occupies an area of 689 square km (266 sq mi), comparatively equivalent to the Solomon Islands' Kolombangara.

Economy Sheikhpura is one of the smallest districts of Bihar. The population of Sheikhpura primarily depends on agriculture. Bonded labour may still occur. Small-scale mining operations of smaller hillocks with crushers is another of the main activities. In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Sheikhpura one of the country's 250 most-impoverished districts. It is one of the 36 districts in Bihar currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme.

Demographics According to the 2011 Census of India, Sheikhpura district had a population of 636,342, giving it a ranking of 516th in India. The district had a population density of 922 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,390/sq mi). Its population growth rate over the decade 2001–2011 was 20.82%. Sheikhpura had a sex ratio of 926 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 65.96%. 17.13% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 20.60% and 0.10% of the population respectively.

Languages At the time of the 2011 census, 56.90% of the population in the district spoke Hindi, 38.17% Magahi and 4.70% Urdu as their first language.