Dergaon

For the Dergaon meteorite of 2001, see meteorite falls.

Dergaon
Town
Dergaon Location in Assam, India Dergaon Dergaon (India)
Coordinates: 26.7°N 93.97°E / 26.7; 93.97
Country	India
State	Assam
District	Golaghat
Government
• Body	Dergaon Municipal Board
Elevation	82 m (269 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	20,097
• Rank	29 th (Assam)
Languages
• Official	Assamese
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
Vehicle registration	AS 05 (Golaghat)

Dergaon (IPA: ˈdɜːˌgɑ̃ʊ) is a town and a municipality in the Golaghat district of Assam, India. It is 282 km from the state capital Guwahati.

Bhaxar Oja Hemchandra Barua, the compiler of Hemkosh (the earliest Assamese-English dictionary) was from Dergaon.

History

Dergaon also known as Devargaon which implies the village of god Shiva. This area was captured from the Kacharis during the reign of Suhungmung. It has the famous Negheriting Shiva Doul constructed by Swargadeo Rajeswar Singha In 1765.

Ahoms kings had established here a royal station (Rajabahor), a Pilkhana (centre of elephant training) and a dockyard called Negeri Noasali.

Geography

Dergaon is located at 26.7°N 93.97°E / 26.7; 93.97. It has an average elevation of 82 metres (269 feet).

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Dergaon had a population of 13,364. Males constitute 56% of the population and females 44%. Dergaon has an average literacy rate of 85%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 88% and, female literacy is 81%. In Dergaon, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Politics

Dergaon is a part of Kaziranga (Lok Sabha constituency). Kamakhya Prasad Tasa of Bharatiya Janata Party is the incumbent MP since the year 2024.

Dergaon (Vidhan Sabha constituency) is a constituency in the 126 member Assam Legislative Assembly. It is reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates. The present MLA is Bhabendra Nath Bharali of Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) preceded by Smti. Arati Hazarika Kachari of Indian National Congress.

Transport

Dergaon is very well connected by roadways to all the places of Assam. The National Highway 37 passes through Dergaon. Barua Bamun Gaon (BBGN) railway station is the closest railway station of Dergaon. The nearest airport is Rowriah Airport which is at Jorhat town.

Education

Dergaon Kamal Dowerah College (DKD College) (website), Police Training College (website) and Dergaon Higher Secondary School are some of the oldest educational institutions in Dergaon. Started in 1908, Dergaon Higher Secondary School has recently observed its 100's anniversary. Besides these, the Girls' H.S. School, Indrani Devi High School and Shishu Bharati High School has also given much importance on the all-round development of the students of this town. Don Bosco High School, established in 1995, a prominent English medium school of the town, had the first result of HSLC in 2007. Shankardev Shishu Niketan, Dergaon, pioneer in Assamese medium for private sector schools, is also significant for its good education, brilliant results and co-curricular activities. Apart from this Shankardev Sishu Niketan Kakodonga, located in Majukuchi gaon and established in the year 2001 is also considered as a very good high school in dergaon producing notable results in the last years. There are a number of private junior colleges and schools in Dergaon, among these Radiant College, Udayan Academy, Alpine English School, Maria Nivas School are some of the well known private institutions in the town.

Notable people

• Hemchandra Barua, Assamese writer, social reformer
• Syed Abdul Malik, Assamese author, poet
• Nilmani Phookan Jr, Assamese poet and academic

References

• Gogoi, Nityananda (2016). Historical Geography of Medieval Assam. India: EBH Publishers.