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East Champaran district
District of Bihar
Clockwise from top: Bhimalpur Forest, Kesariya Stupa, Lauriya Araraj pillar of Ashoka, George Orwell's birthplace, and Motihari station in 1906
Interactive map of East Champaran district
Coordinates (Motihari): 26°39′00″N 84°55′30″E
Country	India
State	Bihar
Division	Tirhut
Headquarters	Motihari
Urban local bodies (ULBs)	9
Government
• District Magistrate	Saurabh Suman Yadav (IAS)
• Superintendent of Police (SP)	Swarn Prabhat (IPS)
Area
• Total	3,968 km2 (1,532 sq mi)
Population  (2011)
• Total	5,099,371
• Density	1,285/km2 (3,328/sq mi)
Demographics
• Literacy	55.79 per cent (2011)
• Sex ratio	901
Language
• Official	Hindi
• Additional official	Urdu
• Regional	Bhojpuri
Time zone	UTC+05:30 (IST)
Vehicle registration	BR-05
Major highways	NH 27 NH 527C NH 527D
Average annual precipitation	1241 mm
Website	eastchamparan.nic.in

East Champaran district, or Purvi Champaran district, is an administrative district in the Tirhut division of the state of Bihar in India. The district headquarters is located at Motihari. Historically, the territory of the present district formed part of the wider Champaran region, in which Mihsī was an established historical territorial and administrative centre. The Ain-i-Akbari, compiled during the reign of Akbar, directly records Mihsī as a pargana of Sarkar Champaran (“Parganah Mihsí, Sirkár Champáran”), providing documentary evidence of Mehsi's place in the historical administrative organisation of Champaran.

The historical importance of Mehsi continued into the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. A Persian correspondence entry dated 5 August 1769 refers to the Peshkar of Mihsi in Champaran, demonstrating the continued administrative use of the name. In 1885, J. Beames listed Mihsi among the three mahals of Sarkar Champaran, alongside Simranw and Majhowa. The 1938 Bihar and Orissa District Gazetteers: Champaran records Mehsi as a settlement in the southern part of the former Champaran district and describes it as having been regarded as a sadar or chief civil station in Champaran when the East India Company first acquired possession of the area. It also records that Mehsi gave its name to the historical Mehsi Pargana.

Prior to 1971, there was a single Champaran district. On 1 December 1971, it was divided into East and West Champaran (Purvi and Paschimi Champaran).

Notable Palaces

Bhimalpur Forest

Bhimalpur Forest near Mehsi

Bhimalpur Forest is an emerging eco-tourism and biodiversity site located in Bhimalpur village in Mehsi, a town in the East Champaran district of Bihar, India. The forest area lies near the Burhi Gandak River and has gained attention for its greenery, afforestation programmes, and proposed biodiversity park development.

Gandak Biodiversity Park area in Bhimalpur

The forest has been developed through plantation and environmental conservation initiatives supported by the Government of Bihar and local administrative authorities. Large-scale plantation drives were conducted in the area under afforestation campaigns, including the “Didi Ki Paudhshala” initiative, which contributed to increasing green cover and ecological restoration in the region.

Burhi Gandak River near Bhimalpur Forest

Bhimalpur Forest is known for its natural scenery, riverine environment, and biodiversity. Wildlife reported from the surrounding region includes nilgai, peafowl, jackals, and several species of migratory birds. The area is being developed as an eco-tourism destination with proposals for boating facilities, walking tracks, medicinal plant zones, nature trails, and visitor infrastructure.

Afforestation area in Bhimalpur

The forest is situated approximately 7 kilometres from Mehsi town and is considered one of the notable natural attractions of the Mehsi region. Local media reports have described the site as Bihar’s first proposed biodiversity park in a forest area near the Gandak basin.

Forest landscape in Bhimalpur

Someshwar Nath Mandir, Areraj

Someshwar Nath Mahadev Mandir is a well established temple situated in Areraj. The significant divinity of the heavenly temple is of Lord Shiva. Explorers and pilgrims of Lord Shiva go to the holy place from India as well as from Nepal. The merriments on the event of an occasional reasonable known as Shrawani Mela, during July and August. There are numerous different temples nearby around and thus just Areraj is known as the holy place of East Champaran.

Ashokan Pillar

See also: Pillars of Ashoka

Ashoka Pillar

Ashokan Pillar is situated in Lauria Nandangarh, or Lauriya Navandgarh which is a city or town around 14 km from Narkatiaganj and 28 km from Bettiah in West Champaran district of Bihar state in northern India. It is found near the banks of the Budhi Gandak River. Lauriya Nandangarh is a chronicled place which goes under West Champaran district of Bihar.

Kesariya

Kesariya Baudha Stupa

Kesariya is arranged on the eastern banks of the River Gandak and views the enormous 104-feet-tall stupa, which is viewed as the tallest Buddhist stupa. In like manner, Kesariya orders conspicuous situations in East Champaran the travel industry just as history of Buddhism. The stupa was found in the year 1998.

Gallery

• 
  Motihari Railway Station, 1906
• 
  Henry Bazaar(1906), Motihari
• 
  Birth palace of George Orwell, Motihari
• 
  The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi paying homage at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, at Motihari.
• 
  Stone Pillar Gandhi Museum
• 
  Lauriya Ashoka Pillar, Areraj
• 
  The Mosque of Naukatola, Raxaul, was approximately built between 1960-1965

Stone pillar at the Gandhi Museum

External links

• East Champaran district website
• Official Website of Tirhut Division
• Motihari (East Champaran)
• East Champaran District Info Archived 26 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine

Geography and connectivity

The district contains a number of historically and geographically significant towns, including Motihari, Mehsi, Kesaria, Dhaka and Raxaul. Mehsi is situated in the northern part of East Champaran and is connected with the surrounding regional road and rail network. The Bihar Government's administrative records identify Mehsi as a distinct circle and Nagar Panchayat within East Champaran district.

The district headquarters, Motihari, is connected with Mehsi and other towns of northern Bihar through the regional transport network. Mehsi is also associated with the historical road connections between Motihari, Mehsi and the Muzaffarpur region.

The district occupies an area of 3,968 km² and had a population of 5,099,371 in the 2011 Census. Agriculture is an important part of the district economy. The district includes agricultural, forest and riverine areas as well as numerous urban and rural settlements.

Geography

East Champaran district is situated in northern Bihar and forms part of the Tirhut division. The district shares boundaries with West Champaran, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur and Gopalganj districts.

Mehsi is a town in the southern part of East Champaran district and is situated on the NH 27 corridor connecting East Champaran with Muzaffarpur. The National Highways Authority of India identifies the Motihari – Mehsi – Muzaffarpur section as an 80-kilometre stretch of NH 27.

Regional centre

Mehsi is a historically documented town and an important regional centre of East Champaran district. Its historical name, Mihsī, appears in the Ain-i-Akbari as a pargana of Sarkar Champaran (“Parganah Mihsí, Sirkár Champáran”), demonstrating its established administrative position in the historical organisation of Champaran.

Mehsi retained administrative importance during the colonial period. A Persian correspondence entry dated 5 August 1769 refers to the Peshkar of Mihsi, while J. Beames included Mihsi among the mahals of Sarkar Champaran in 1885. The Bihar and Orissa District Gazetteers: Champaran (1938) further records Mehsi as a sadar, or chief civil station, of Champaran at the time when the East India Company acquired possession of the district and associates the settlement with the historical Mehsi Pargana.

In the present-day district, Mehsi is recognised by the East Champaran district administration among its urban local bodies. Mehsi also occupies a significant position in the district's transport network. The NH 27 corridor is officially described by the National Highways Authority of India as Kotwa (Motihari)–Mehsi–Muzaffarpur, placing Mehsi directly on the principal road connection between Motihari and Muzaffarpur. Mehsi is additionally served by Mehsi railway station (MAI), providing a rail connection within the regional railway network.

The combination of Mehsi's documented historical administrative role, present urban status, strategic position on the Motihari–Mehsi–Muzaffarpur transport corridor and railway connectivity establishes Mehsi as one of the notable urban and regional centres of East Champaran.

Transport

Roadways

The district has an extensive road network connecting its towns with neighbouring districts and major urban centres. NH 27 is one of the principal highways serving East Champaran.

The NH 27 corridor connects Motihari, Mehsi and Muzaffarpur. The National Highways Authority of India records the Motihari–Mehsi–Muzaffarpur section as an 80-kilometre stretch of NH 27, extending from km 440.000 to km 520.000.

Mehsi therefore forms a named town on the NH 27 road corridor between East Champaran and Muzaffarpur.

Railways

Bapudham Motihari railway station is the principal railway station serving the district headquarters. The district is connected by railway with Muzaffarpur, Raxaul and other parts of Bihar and India.