Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh

Ambikapur is a city and headquarters of Surguja district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. It is one of the oldest cities in the state, in east-central India. Ambikapur is also the divisional headquarters of Surguja Division which consists of the six districts of Surguja, Korea, Manendragarh, Balrampur, Surajpur and Jashpur.

Ambikapur was the capital of the Princely state of Surguja before Indian Independence. The name of the city is derived from the Hindu goddess Ambika (Mahamaya) Devi, who is the central figure of worship for the Hindus in the area. The area under Ambikapur Municipal Corporation is 35.360 km2.

Cleanest city in India (1-10 lakh population category) Consecutive 8 years. According to Swachh Survekshan 2022, Ambikapur is the cleanest city of Chhattisgarh as well as the cleanest city in India amongst cities with a population of 1 to 10 lakhs.

Geography
Ambikapur is located at 23.2°N, 83.03333°W. It has an average elevation of 623 metres (2078 feet). The district is spread over a forest-rich area of 22,237 km2. Most of the district's terrain is forested and hilly. Natural resources include bauxite, forest products and paddy crops. Mainpat (near Ambikapur) a well known tourist place is called Shimla of Chhattisgarh. Mainpat is on a plateau with the area surrounded by jungles. The place has beautiful hill slopes, jungles, waterfalls and is a hill station that has not been exploited. There is a Tibetan settlement that offers an excellent opportunity for inter action with them. In fact, Mainpat is also known as 'Mini Tibet' because of the settlements.

Land
The land is classified into six categories. About 41.67% is under agriculture, while about 5.70% remains fallow. A further 11.44% of the land could be brought under cultivation by improvements in farming techniques and reclamation of marginal areas. A further 1.27% is barren and uncultivated while 33.09% is forest cover and 6.83% is covered by buildings, roads and other infrastructure.

This distribution of cultivated land reflects the patterns and intensity of early agricultural practices and the extent of the population, combined with physical factors. Areas with a high concentration of cultivated land are generally those with longer histories of settlement and agricultural use.

Demographics
2011 census, Ambikapur municipal corporation had a population of 264,575 and the urban agglomeration had a population of 343,173. The municipality had a sex ratio of 920 females per 1,000 males and 11.3% of the population was under six years old. Effective literacy was 88.20%; male literacy was 92.73% and female literacy was 83.29%.

Ambikapur is inhabited by people from across India. Moderate weather makes it an attractive place for settlement. Unlike the capital, the district population comprises aboriginal populations including the Pandos and Korwas, who still live in rural areas.

Mainpat near Ambikapur is home to a significant number of Tibetan migrants who took refuge in India after the Chinese annexation of Tibet in 1959.

Government and politics
The city is part of the Sarguja Lok Sabha constituency represented by Member of Parliament BJP, and in the state assembly through the Ambikapur Assembly constituency, represented by MLA Rajesh Agrawal from the Bhartiya Janata Party.

Civic administration
The city is governed by the Municipal Corporation of Ambikapur or Nagar Nigam Ambikapur, which is administered under the Chhattisgarh Municipal Corporation Act,1956. The municipal corporation has two parts, elected body and administrative body. The elected body is headed by the Mayor Ajay Tirkey from the Indian National Congress. The last election to Ambikapur Municipal Corporation took place in 2019. The administrative body is headed by the Municipal commissioner Mr. Luvkush Singrol. The city is divided into 48 wards and each ward is represented by a councillor directly elected by the people from the ward. The mayor of the city is elected indirectly from amongst the councillors.

Civic utilities
Electricity is supplied by the state's Chhattisgarh State Power Distribution Company Limited. Ambikapur Municipal Corporation supplies 10.6 MLD of water to the city. Drinking water was initially sourced from the Banki Dam, but after pipeline expansion and construction of an automatic filter plant in Katkalo under the AMRUT scheme, in 2020 will also be sourced from the Ghughutta Dam in Nawagarh. The city has a total of 16 tanks for this purpose.

The Municipal Corporation is responsible for the solid waste management of the city. Ambikapur generates 45 metric ton solid waste everyday, 90% of which is segregated through a decentralised waste management model. Household waste is collected door-to-door by 447 SHG women of 48 wards. The city has achieved 100% segregation of waste at the household level. It has no landfills and has been declared a zero-waste city since it converted its 15-acre landfill into a park in 2016. Ambikapur has implemented Solid Liquid Resource Management (SLRM) for disposal of municipal solid waste. There is no sewerage system in the city. Toilets are linked to individual septic tanks.

In the Ambikapur block 74.51% of the total geographical area is cultivated. The Ambikapur Development Plan 2021 (Draft) was created by the Chhattisgarh Directorate of Town and Country Planning.

Rail
Ambikapur Railway Station is connected to the Anuppur railway junction, a bordering town in Madhya Pradesh, by a broad gauge railway. Trains reach Ambikapur from Delhi, Katni, Satna, Jabalpur, Durg, Bhopal and the state capital Raipur. More destinations, such as New Delhi, can be reached from Anuppur railway junction.

Ambikapur - Delhi Special,Jabalpur - Ambikapur Express, Ambikapur – Shahdol, Ambikapur – Surajpur – Anuppur – Bilaspur – Raipur – Durg Express and Bhopal – Chirmiri Passenger run from major cities Delhi, Bhopal, Gwalior, Katni, Raipur and Jabalpur.

ABKP-NZM AC Special

The train from AMBIKAPUR TO HAZRAT NIZAMUDDIN (NEW DELHI). Route from Ambikapur-Anuppur-Katni-Damoh-Jhansi-Agra-Harzat Nizamuddin

Road
Ambikapur is well connected by road to other major cities of Chhattisgarh such as Raipur, Bilaspur, Durg, Bhilai, Korba and Raigarh. Daily bus services also runs for Varanasi, prayagraj, Renukoot in U.P (170 km), Raipur (345 km) and Garhwa in Jharkhand, Aurangabad in Bihar. Bus services from Anuppur to Ambikapur operate via Manendragarh and Surajpur. The bus journeys from Bilaspur and Anuppur take between five and six hours.

Air
Ambikapur Airport now Maa Mahamaya Airport Ambikapur is located at Darima, 12 km (7.5 mi) south of Ambikapur. The airport up-gradation work was finished in May 2023 at a cost of Rs. 48 crore from category 2C to 3C, to enable operations of 70-72 seater aircraft under UDAN Scheme. Making this the Fourth Public Serving Airport in Chattisgarh after Raipur, Jagdalpur and Bilaspur.

Education

 * Sarguja University Sant Gahira Guru Vishwavidyalaya Ambikapur
 * Govt. Rajeev Gandhi (Auto.) PG College
 * Rajmata shrimati Devendra Kumari Singhdeo Govt Medical College
 * University Engineering College
 * Govt. Polytechnic college & ITI
 * Govt Rajmohani Agriculture College. * Holly cross college of Nursing
 * Holly cross Women's College
 * Sai Baba Aadarsh College
 * K R Technical College
 * Oriental Public School
 * Carmel School
 * Sunrise Public School

Media and communications
State-owned All India Radio has a local station in Ambikapur.
 * Sigma media limited

Notable people

 * T. S. Singh Deo
 * Sunil Kumar Sinha

Royal Palace
Surguja palace also known as Raghunath Palace is a prime palace in Ambikapur. It is a white, two-storey palace. Surguja Palace is one of the most eye-catching tourist places for both urban and rural crowds. This palace is open for public only on the day of Dussehra every year. Its an old tradition that the heir of royal family of Surguja meets and greets the visitors on Dussehra and the festival is celebrated in a pompous manner.