Nalateswari Temple

Getting there

• By air

  Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport at Durgapur is the nearest airport, about 70 km from Birbhum district.

• By train

  Nalhati Junction is in the town itself, on the Khana-Barharwa section of the Sahibganj loop. The junction connects Birbhum to Azimganj in Murshidabad district.

• By road

  State Highway 7 and National Highway 14 pass through Nalhati. Buses run from the Rampurhat bus stand, a hub for buses to Nalhati, and regular bus services connect Birbhum with Kolkata and Siliguri.

Why devotees come here

Nalateswari Temple stands on a low hill in Nalhati town, Birbhum district, West Bengal. Legend says the throat of Shakti fell on this spot, and the town takes its name from the temple. It is one of the 51 Shakta pithas in India.

Nalhati town takes its name from the Shakta pitha here. According to the mythologies, the nala, or throat, of Shakti fell on this spot, which makes it one of the 51 Shakta pithas in India. The Shakta pitha list spells the name Nalhateswari.

The temple stands on a low hill inside the town. A small portion of hill with very low altitude is visible within the town. Ana Shahid Baba Majar is on the same hill. The temple and the majar are the two tourist interests on the hill. Nalhati lies in the Rampurhat subdivision of Birbhum district, close to the border with Jharkhand. It is on the Chhotonagpur plateau, with an average elevation of 48 metres (160 feet).

Birbhum has its district headquarters at Suri. Rampurhat, Bolpur and Sainthia are its other important towns. Rampurhat is the third largest town in Birbhum. It is the administrative headquarters of Rampurhat subdivision, the most populous subdivision in the district. Nalhati Junction is part of the Eastern Railways zone, on the Rampurhat-Malda Town section.

Tips for your visit

• From Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport, you can continue to Birbhum by train, or by bus or personal cab.
• The Rampurhat bus stand sits beside the SBSTC depot, which runs daily government buses to major destinations across West Bengal.
• Each town in Birbhum has a railway station, and together they link the whole region of the district.
• Rampurhat Junction, the largest and busiest station in Birbhum, is 207 km from Howrah Junction by the shortest route.

Questions people ask