BIRBHUM

district, West Bengal state, northeastern India. Its area (1,757 sq mi [4,550 sq km]) comprises two distinct regions. To the west lies an undulating, generally barren upland, part of the eastern fringe of the Chota Nagpur plateau, rising to 3,000 ft (900 m); to the east is a densely populated, alluvial plain of the Gangetic Delta. The Ajay, Mor, Mayurakshi, Bakreswar, and Dwarka are the principal rivers. A project on the Mayurakshi provides irrigation for about 600,000 ac (240,000 ha) and 2,000 kW of electric power. Rice, legumes, wheat, corn (maize), and mangoes are the chief crops in the east; coal, china clay, and iron-ore deposits are worked in the west. The district's principal industries include cotton and silk weaving, rice and oilseed milling, and metalware and pottery manufacture. Siuri (q.v.) is the district headquarters. Pop. (1981) 2,095,829.