Gomoh


Gomoh is a census town in Topchanchi CD Block Dhanbad Sadar subdivision of Dhanbad district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It has a major railway junction situated on the Grand Chord Line under Dhanbad division of the East Central Railway. Gomoh is the meeting point for trains coming from Howrah, Ranchi/Bokaro and Puri/Bhubaneswar.

History

Gomoh is also known for its historical importance. From here, on his great escape, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose caught Howrah-Kalka Mail on 18 January 1941. There is a statue of Netaji right between the platform no. 1 & 2 at Gomoh railway station which reminds people of his historic halt. Every year on 23 January, the railway employees and the people of this town organize a small cultural program to celebrate Netaji's birthday.
People of this town organize a week-long fair in Railway Football Ground starting from 11 March every year in remembrance of the assassinated 'Labour Leader' Sadanand Jha. There are two big playgrounds in Gomoh.

Geography

Location

Gomoh is located at. It has an average elevation of 245 metres.
Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the area. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.
Gomoh is a largely dust-free area surrounded by hills.

Overview

The region shown in the map lies to the north of Dhanbad city and is an extensive rural area with villages scattered around hills. One of the many spurs of Pareshnath Hill, situated in neighbouring Giridih district, passes through the Topchanchi and Tundi areas of the district. The Barakar River flows along the northern boundary. The region shown in the map covers several CD blocks – Topchanchi, Govindpur, Tundi, Purbi Tundi and a small part of Baghmara. The Kolkata-Agra National Highway 19 / Grand Trunk Road cuts across the southern part of the region.

Demographics

As per the 2011 Census of India, Gomoh had a total population of 31,495 of which 16,443 were males and 15,052 were females. Population below 6 years was 3,956. The total number of literates in Gomoh was 23,233.
India census, Gomoh had a population of 28,576. Males constitute 54% of the population and females 46%. Gomoh has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 78%, and female literacy is 60%. In Gomoh, 14% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Social structure

Gomoh consists of people from diverse religious and professional backgrounds.
The major role in development of Gomoh was of Netaji. For the peoples living in Gomoh there are many problems like lack of education, worst electricity supply and many more.
Religious diversity is the hallmark of Gomoh. A number of Anglo-Indians can be found here since the British era as a result of which Christians are here from a long time. The Sikh community settled here before Independence as businessmen. A gurudwara at Loco Bazar is visited by many Sikhs from surrounding areas every day. Bengalis form a large part of the population and have contributed largely to the culture of this place. However, their population has been dwindling for the last few decades. On Durga Puja one can get a glimpse of Kolkata in Gomoh, especially at Durga Para, which is home to the oldest Durge Puja in the area. Muslims also contribute substantially to the population and culture of this region. There is also a masjid and a madarsa at Purana Bazar and a Jama Masjid at Loco Bazar. Id-Gah and graveyard of Muslims is in Laludih area.
A majority of the people are railway employees since Gomoh is a railway-based town. These people do not belong to the city but got transferred from different parts of the country. After retirement, a good number of these employees choose to settle down in Gomoh giving rise to the population of the city. There is a strong business class also in Gomoh. Businesses ranging from food grain wholesaling to clothing and apparel to building material to confectionery and bakery products etc. can be found. Though Marwaris are dominating the business scenario, one can find the representation of all the religious groups. Some people are also engaged in agriculture, growing certain cereals and vegetables.
Main festivals celebrated include Durga Puja, Dipawali, Holi, Chatth Puja, Id, Gurunanak Birthday, and Christmas.

Infrastructure

Gomoh has an area of 8.96 km2. It is 37 km from the district headquarters Dhanbad. It has a railway station. Buses are available in the town. It has 50 km roads and both open and closed drains. The two major sources of protected water supply are hand pumps and tap water from treated source. There are 5,313 domestic electric connections and 60 road lighting points. Amongst the medical facilities it has 1 hospital with 30 beds and 12 medicine shops. Amongst the educational facilities, it has 17 primary schools, 13 middle schools, 9 secondary schools, 1 senior secondary school and 1 general degree college. Amongst the recreational and cultural facilities, it has 2 cinema theatres and 1 auditorium/ community hall. It has the branch offices of 3 nationalised banks, 1 cooperative bank and 1 agricultural credit society.

Education

As Gomoh is a small town, only a few educational institutes up to the Secondary level exist. Notable among them is the St. Mary's Day School, a prominent institute up to Standard X started by the late William Spencer Easton. This school alone has produced many talented and notable people from the Gomoh area. There are some more CBSE schools up to Standard X such as Blossom Public School and Guru Nanak Public School. There are other high schools which are affiliated to Jharkhand Academic Council i.e. Azaad Hind High School, Bishop Rockey High School & St. John de Brito High School. The Kendriya Vidyalaya Gomoh K.V. Gomoh is a school managed by the Railways.
Girls High School is an all-female school. Perhaps this is why female literacy is higher here than in many prominent cities of Jharkhand and than the national female literacy rate.
Pandit Nehru Memorial College caters to graduation level studies. However, these facilities are not sufficient since students have started taking up various specialized courses in diversified fields. For all such advanced courses students from this area either depend on Bokaro Steel City or Dhanbad or go to any metro city. Many students have shown their thread of talent in Olympics, National-level sports, quiz and talent shows. Many youngsters from this place have even participated in various events abroad. For junior kids, a good school exists at Jeetpur, Nurture kindergarten Play School.

Healthcare

Healthcare facilities are also grossly inadequate. Even to this date Gomoh lacks a good doctor as well as a nursing home. Though there are some government and private nursing homes, they fail to provide even the most basic treatment. The medical units operating in the area are:
  1. PHC Gomoh at Jitpur
  2. Railway Hospital
  3. A few other privately run small clinics