Siliguri has a humid subtropical climate, with three distinct seasons observed, summer, winter and monsoon. The summer starts in late March, with the monsoon season starting in late May. The monsoons subside by early October. Winters in Siliguri start in November and last until early March, with very mild temperatures in the day, although with chilly nights. July is the hottest month with an average maximum temperature of 35 °C, whereas January is the coldest month with an average minimum temperature of 3 °C. The months of October-November, and February-March are the best time to visit Siliguri.
Naxalbari railway station is situated west of Bagdogra in the heart of Naxalbari. The railway station has strategic importance as it facilitates not only the people of Naxalbari and Panitanki to connect with the other parts of the country but it also facilitates the people of Nepal (of places like Kakarvita, Dhulabari, Bittamore, etc.) to utilize the railway station as the means of communication with rest of India. The Siliguri-Bagdogra-Naxalbari-Thakurganj (Bihar)-Aluabari Road (Islampur, Uttar Dinajpur) railway line was metre gauge until it was converted to broad gauge in 2011.
Bagdogra airport market is one of the shopping hubs in Siliguri. Another important market is at Matigara hut where people from Hills and plains come for shopping. In recent times, the city has seen the establishment of a number of shopping malls and multiplexes to cater to the growing needs of the populace. The organised retail sector has created a large number of jobs in the region. The presence of Indian army, Border Security Force (BSF), CRPF, SSB and the Assam Rifles around the city have contributed to the growth of the local economy.
Siliguri has seen waves of massive immigration over the years, most prominent being the migrants from the erstwhile East Bengal during the Partition of India, Nepal and Bihar. In addition, people from Jharkhand and other parts of India have also come to the city in search of livelihood. In recent times, due to the economic boom in the city, a lot of the hill population (Gorkhas) from neighboring towns of Darjeeling, Kurseong, Mirik and Kalimpong have started migrating to Siliguri in search of work and to enjoy city life
The Tenzing Norgay Central Bus Terminus situated next to the Siliguri Junction Railway Station is a major stop for most private and state-owned buses in the region. The Royal Government of Bhutan also operates buses from Siliguri to its border town Phuentsholing. Air conditioned sleeper coach bus service is available from Siliguri to Kolkata, Patna and Assam. Jeeps also link Siliguri to neighbouring hill towns of Darjeeling, Gangtok, Kurseong, Kalimpong, Mirik, Jorethang, Namchi, etc.
1.Siliguri Town – This is the oldest station in the area. Opened on 23 August 1880 during the British Raj, this station used to be the terminus for the trains coming from Calcutta (now spelt as Kolkata) and the starting point for the world-famous Darjeeling Himalayan Railway for journey to Darjeeling. It is this station where such world-renowned personalities as Rabindranath Tagore, Chittaranjan Das and Subhas Chandra Bose set their feet on their way to Darjeeling and other places.
Public transport includes cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws, local buses and tempos. There is no metered vehicular transport. While 6-seater city autos ply between two fixed destinations of about 10–15 km, one can hire petrol-driven auto rickshaws from auto stands at a rate fixed by the municipal authorities. A total of 16,000 rickshaws licensed by the municipal corporation and an additional 55,000 illegal ones ply in this increasingly congested city.
Siliguri has public (state government) and private schools. Bengali and English are the primary languages of instruction; Nepali and Hindi are also used. Schools in Siliguri follow the “10+2” plan and affiliated with West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education, CBSE or ICSE. Vocational courses are also available. Siliguri Boys High School (SBHS) is the oldest school of the city founded in 1918. Other schools include Isabella School.
English-language newspapers in Siliguri include the Times of India (Kolkata editions), The Economic Times, The Asian Age, The Statesman and The Telegraph are widely circulated. Several Bengali newspapers, including Uttarbanga Sambad, Bartaman, Ganashakti, Aajkaal and Pratidin are also available. Leading Hindi daily Prabhat Khabar is also being published from here. International news agencies like Reuters, AFP and AP also have correspondents here.
2.Siliguri Junction – This station was opened in 1949 and used to be the point of departure of all trains to the north-eastern states until the broad gauge was extended to New Bongaigaon. Siliguri Junction was the only station in India with tracks of all the three gauges used in India. Now metre gauge track does not exist as all the long-distance tracks from Siliguri have been converted to broad gauge under Project Unigauge.
Siliguri has two engineering colleges, viz., Siliguri Institute of Technology and Surendra Institute of Engineering & Management. Siliguri College established in 1950 is the oldest higher educational institution in the city. Other colleges are Suryasen Mahavidyalaya, St. Xaviers College, Salesian College, Acharya Prafulla Chandra Roy Science College,Bagdogra College, Naxalbari College, Gyan Jyoti College.
Siliguri is one of the three satellite IT hubs and townships that the Government of West Bengal is developing. Some leading IT companies have shown interest and some of them have already started operating. Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority has taken an initiative to develop Siliguri into an IT/ITES hub. A software technology park is under construction which will be completed by December 2012.
The North Bengal Medical College, located in Sushrutanagar, is the sole medical college in the region and is connected to the main city through the 3rd Mahananda Bridge. University of North Bengal was established in 1962, 10 km away from the main Siliguri city in Raja Rammohanpur. Approximately 80 colleges are affiliated to this university.
Major festivals observed at Siliguri include Durga puja Dasain, Ganesh puja, Laxmi puja, Saraswati puja, Dipawali, Bhai tika etc. Baishaki mela is one of the oldest mela in Siliguri. The fashion week during winters is celebrated for entertainment. Various concerts that continue from mid-October to mid-December are organised by local clubs.
The Sikkim Government buses run to various destinations of Sikkim from the Sikkim Nationalised Transport (SNT) bus station near the Tenzing Norgay Bus Terminus. There is another bus terminus named P.C. Mittal Bus Stand on Sevoke Road. All buses heading for the Dooars region via the Sevoke Coronation Bridge start from here.
The bus service from Siliguri Court Mor interconnects the different parts of the city such as Sivmandir, Bagdogra, Naxalbari, Panitanki, Medical, and Chatterhut. The Bus service from Howrah Petrol pump and Jalpaimore connects the city with lower parts of Jalpaiguri district and Cooch Behar district.
With the extension of broad gauge railway track to the Siliguri Junction station, people can now travel directly to the heart of the city without having to alight at New Jalpaiguri. This new broad gauge track extends to the old Dooars metre gauge track up to Alipurduar and beyond.
Siliguri has always been the hub of education in the Terai as well as the Dooars region. Apart from the residents of West Bengal, students from neighbouring states of Sikkim, Bihar and Assam and neighbouring countries of Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh come here to pursue education.
In order to develop the city in a planned manner and to make arrangement for the exploding population of the city, new townships of Uttarayon. The Kanchanjunga Integrated park and Shushruta Nagar-Kawakhali township have been proposed to be built around the fringes of Siliguri.
Being a tourist destination, the hospitality sector and tourism sector constitutes an important part of Siliguri’s economy. Siliguri has a number of hotels and guest houses and the hospitality sector has seen good growth. Siliguri also has branches of almost all banks.
Siliguri has a majority Bengali population. Other communities include Gorkhas, Marwaris and Biharis. Most of the languages spoken in Siliguri are Hindi, Bengali, Nepali(Gorkhali), English, Assamese, Marwari, Bihari, Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Gujarati and Tibeten languages.
Bagdogra International Airport (IATA code IXB) situated about 15 km away from Siliguri city, is the only airport in the region. The airport is connected to Bangalore, Chandigarh, New Delhi, Kolkata, Guwahati, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangkok, Thailand and Paro, Bhutan.
The latest development is the development of malls like COSMOS and ORBIT. The city recently also witnessed the arrival of its first set of multiplexes, CINEMAX in early Dec’09 and INOX at ORBIT on Christmas of 2009 and City Centre Mall in 2011.
The road network of Siliguri is used for commerce with neighbouring hill state of Sikkim and with Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh. The trade route between India and Tibet through Nathu La and Jelep La passes through Siliguri.
A lot of fairs and carnivals take place in Siliguri. The famous fairs in Siliguri are Baishakhi Mela, Hast Shilp Mela, Book Fair, Lexpo Fair. Most of the fairs happens in Kanchenjunga Stadium.
In addition to All India Radio, Siliguri has four private FM radio stations in Nine FM 91.9 MHz, Radio High 92.7 MHz, Red FM 93.5 MHz and Radio Misty 94.3 MHz.
Siliguri Urban Agglomeration also has another railway station Bagdogra situated at Bagdogra, 15 km from the city, adjacent to Bagdogra airport.
While Siliguri’s population in 2011 was 509,709 in municipal corporation jurisdiction, it was 701,489 in Siliguri urban agglomerate.
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