Bihar is lying approximately between 21o58'10'' and 27o31'15''N latitudes and 82o 19'50'' and 88o17'40''E longitudes in the lower and middle Gangetic region extending 483 Km from west to east. Bihar is located in the eastern part of the country and is an entirely land-locked state, although the outlet to the sea through the port of Kolkata is not far away. Bihar lies mid-way between the humid West Bengal in the east and the sub humid Uttar Pradesh in the west which provides it with a transitional position in respect of climate, economy and culture. Bihar is bounded on the north by Nepal, on the south by Jharkhand, on the east by West Bengal and on the west by Uttar Pradesh.

Climate

As bihar extends from 22-degree north to 27-degree latitude. Hence its location is tropical to sub tropical, the Himalayan Mountains in the north have a significant bearing on the distribution of monsoon rainfall in Bihar and Bihar joins the Ganga delta and Assam ; so the climate of Bihar is a part of the climatic pattern of the Indian subcontinent. Bihar gets the worst of the cold and the worst of the heat and plenty of floods. Northern portion of Bihar is almost entirely a level tract, while the south is wooded and hilly.

Seasons

Cold weather season (December to February.)

Hot weather season ( March to May.)

Southwest monsoon ( June to September.)

Retreating southwest monsoon - October to November.

The best time to visit is from October to March. Temperature varies from 43 C- 21 C in summer and 20 C - 6 C in winter.

Soil

There are three major types of soil in Bihar:

Piedmont Swamp Soil - found in northwestern part of west Champaran district.

Terai Soil - found in northern part of the state along the border of Nepal.

The Gangetic Alluvium - the plain of Bihar is covered by gangetic alluvium (both new as well as old).

Rivers

Bihar has a number of rivers, the most important of which is the Ganga. The river Ganga flows right across it from west to east. North Bihar is extremely fertile, the land being watered by the rivers Sarayu, Gandak and Ganga. The other rivers are the Sone, Poonpoon, Falgu, Karmanasa, Durgawati, Kosi, Ghaghara etc.

Forests

The sub Himalayan foothill of Someshwar and Dun ranges in Champaran constitute another belt of moist deciduous forests. These also consists of scrub, grass and reeds. Here the rainfall is above 1,600 mm and thus promotes luxuriant Sal forests in the favoured areas. The hot and dry summer gives the deduous forests. The most important trees are Shorea Robusta (Sal), Shisham, Cedrela Toona, Khair, and Semal. This type of forests also occurs in Saharasa and Purnia districts.

Fertile Land

The topography of Bihar can be easily described as a fertile alluvial plain occupying the Gangetic Valley. The plain extends from the foothills of the Himalayas in the north to a few miles south of the river Ganges as it flows through the State from the west to the east. Rich farmland and lush orchards extend throughout the state. Following are the major crops: paddy, wheat, lentils, sugarcane, jute (hemp, related to the marijuana plant, but a source of tough fibers and "gunny bags"). Also, cane grows wild in the marshes of West Champaran. The principal fruits are: mangoes, banana, jack fruit and litchis. This is one the very few areas outside China which produces litchi.

Industry

Bihar has a number of major public sector projects like the Oil refinery of Indian Oil Corporation and Fertilizer manufacturing plant of Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Ltd (HPCL) at Barauni, Pyrites, Phosphates and Chemicals Ltd (PPCL) at Amjhor; Cotton spinning mills at Siwan, Pandaul, Bhagalpur, Mokamah and Gaya; 13 sugar mills in private sector and 15 in public section located in South and North Bihar. In addition distilleries at Gopalganj, West Champaran, Bhagalpur and Riga (Sitamarhi District); finish leather industry in West Champaran, Muzaffarpur and Barauni; Jute mills at Katihar and Samastipur; Medicine manufacturing unit at Hajipur; Food processing units and Vanaspati manufacturing units at Aurangabad and Patna; Kalyanpur Cement Ltd at Banjari are some of the notable industries in Bihar. Bihar has tremendous resources and their utilisation in the interest of its growing population has to be the supreme responsibility of both the state administration and the national planners.

Agriculture

The principal agricultural crops are rice, paddy, wheat, jute, maize and oil seeds. Cauliflower, cabbage, tomato, radish, carrot, beat etc. are some of the vegetables grown in the state. Sugarcane, potato and barley are some of the non-cereal crops grown. The entire agricultural operations is divided into two crop seasons Kharif and Rabi. The Kharif season starts from the third week of May and lasts till the end of October followed by the Rabi season

Uneconomic Holdings

Agriculture has been the sole source of wealth in Bihar. This fact is perhaps one of the chief causes of the state's poverty, as no land can be rich which depends mainly on agriculture. The problem of uneconomic holdings has been compounded by fragmentation i.e. by splitting and separation of the holdings of most cultivators into many tiny plots, adding to the labour of the cultivators and decreasing the efficiency of their operations. Improved methods and machinery are being gradually introduced, but much passive resistance and many conservative prejudices have still to be overcome before the rural classes can be induced to take them. Within recent years some progress is noticeable.

Educational Institutions

Universities

Patna University, Patna.

Chanakya National Law University, Patna.

Magadh University, Bodh Gaya.

Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur.

Tilka Manjhi, Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur.

Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Darbhanga.

Kameshwar Singh Darbhanga Sanskrit University, Darbhanga.

Jaiprakash University, Chapra.

Bhupendra Narayan Mandal University, Madhepura.

Vir Kunwar Singh University, Arrah.

Nalanda Open University, Patna.

Mazrul Haque Arabi-Farsi University, Patna.

Rajendra Agriculture University, Pusa.

Engineering Colleges

Bihar College of Engineering (Approved by AICTE, New Delhi), Patna University, Patna - 800 005.

Bhagalpur College of Engineering (Affiliated to Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University), Sabour, Bhagalpur - 813 210.

Bihar Institute of Silk and Textile, Bhagalpur, Bihar.

College of Agricultural Engineering, Rajendra Agriculture University, Pusa, Samastipur - 848 125.

Maulana Azad College of Engineering & Technology (Affiliated to Magadh University and approved by AICTE, New Delhi), Anisabad, Patna - 800 002.

Muzaffarpur Institute of Technology, Muzaffarpur - 842 003.

Sanjay Gandhi Institute of Dairy Technology, Rajendra Agriculture University, P.O. - Dhelwan, Lohiyanagar, Patna - 800 020.

R. P. Sharma Institute of Technology (Affiliated to Magadh University and approved by AICTE, New Delhi), West of Canal Bailey Road, Patna - 800 024.

Management Institutions

L.N.Mishra Institute of Economic Development and Social Changes, Patna.

Gaya College (Affiliated to Magadh University), Gaya, Bihar.

Indian Institute of Business Management (Recognised by AICTE, New Delhi), Buddh Marg, Patna - 800 001.

Patna Women's College (Affiliated to Patna University), Bailey Road, Patna.

Shanti Sewa Samiti's Indian Institute of Hotel Management, 11 IAS Colony, Kidwaipuri, Patna - 800 001.

Medical Colleges

Darbhanga Medical College, Laheriasarai.

Shree Krishna Medical College, Muzaffarpur.

Patna Medical College, Patna.

Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Bhagalpur.

A. N. Magadh Medical College, Gaya.

Nalanda Medical College, Patna.

Katihar Medical College, Katihar.

Mata Gujri Medical College, Kishanganj.

Research Institutions

Central Fuel Research Institute, Jalgorda.

Rajendra Memorial Research Institute, Agamkuan, Patna.

Bihar Research Institute, Patna.

K. P. Jaiswal Research Institute, Patna.

Dr. A. N. Sinha Research Institute, Patna.

Darbhanga Research Institute, Darbhanga.

Law Colleges

T.N.B. Law College, Bhagalpur.

S.K.J. Law College, Muzaffarpur.

A.M. Collge, Gaya.

Maharaja College, Arrah, Bojpur.

Patna Law College, Patna.

Bidheh Law College, Madhubani.

Law College, Samastipur.

Shivanand Mandal Law College, Madhepura.

M.S. College, Motihari.

Ayurvedic Colleges

Tibbi College, Patna.

Astang Ayurvedic College, Bhagalpur.

Shiv Kumari Ayurvedic College, Begusarai.

Ayurvedic College, Patna.

Maharani Rameshwari Mahavidyalay, Darbhanga.

Veterinary Colleges

Bihar Veterinary College, Patna.

Faculty of Veterinary Science & Animal Husbandry, Samastipur.

Agriculture/Forestry Colleges and Universities

Bihar Agriculture College, Bhagalpur.

Tirhut College of Agriculture, Muzaffarpur.

Rajendra Agriculture University, Pusa, Samastipur.

Faculty of Forestry Science, Samastipur.

Fine Arts Colleges

Faculty of Fine Arts and Crafts, Bhagalpur University.

Govt. College of Arts and Crafts, Patna.

Laboratory and Research Centres

T.B. Demonstration and Training Centre, Patna.

T.B. Demonstration and Training Centre, Darbhanga.

Central Fuel Research Institute, Jalgorda.

Nav Nalanda Mahavihar, Patna.

Other Institutions

Bihar College of Pharmacy, New Bailey Road, Patna - 801 503.

Bihar Flying Institute, Civil Aerodrome, Patna.

Kishanganj Pharmacy College, Kishanganj - 855 107.

National Institute of Physiotherapy and Communication Disorders, PMP Bhawan, Kashi Nath Lane, East Lohanipur, Patna - 800 003.

Patliputra College of Pharmacy, PO - Bihar Veterinary College Campus, New Bailey Road, Patna - 800 014.

R.L.S.Yadav College of Pharmacy, Reshmi Complex, Kidwaipuri, Patna - 800 002.

Netraheen Chatra Vidyalay, Bhagalpur.

Balika Mahavidyalay, Lakhisarai.

Bihar Rashtrabhasha Parishad, Patna.

Prakrit Jain Shastra Aur Ahinsa Sansthan, Vaishali.

A.N.Sinha Samaj Adhyayan Sansthan, Patna.

Madersa Ajeejeeya, Bihar Sharif, Nalanda.

Science College, Patna.

Muk Badhir Vidyalay, Patna.

How to reach

By Air

Bihar has two airports at Patna connected to Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Calcutta, and Katmandu. Indian Airlines and Sahara Airways have direct flights to Patna from Delhi.

By Train

Bihar has well developed railway network with almost all the major and minor places connected by good trains. Major railway stations like Patna, Muzaffarpur, and Gaya are connected to all the major cities of India by regular trains.

By Road

There is good network of roads connecting all the major parts of the state with Patna, the state capital. National highways like 2, 31, 28, 23, 30, and 33 connect the state from places all over India. Distance of some of the major places in the state from Patna are Sonepur (25 km), Vaishali (55 km), Nalanda (90 km), Gaya (97 km), Bodhgaya (117 km) and Rajgir (102 km).

Tourist Information Centers

Bhagalpur

Tourist Information Center, D.N.Singh Road.

Bodhgaya

Tourist Information Center.

0631-2200672

Calcutta

Tourist Information Center, Neelkanth Bhawan, 6-B Camac Street.

033-22803304

Deoghar

Tourist Information Center.

06432-222422

Dhanbad

Tourist Information Center.

0326-2200090

Gaya

Tourist Information Center, Railway Station.

0631-2420155

Hazaribagh

Tourist Information Center.

06546-224337

Jamshedpur

Tourist Information Center, Bistupur.

0657-2432892

Munger

Tourist Information Center, Fort Area.

06344-222392

Muzaffarpur

Tourist Information Center, Railway Station.

0621-268512

New Delhi

Tourist Information Center, 216-217, Kanishka Shopping Plaza, Ashok Road.

011-23368371

Patna

Director of Tourism, 9D, Hutments, Main Secretariat.

0612-2224531

Patna

Tourist Information Center, Fraser Road.

0612-2225295

Patna

Tourist Information Center, Patna Junction.

0612-2221093

Patna

Tourist Information Center, Patna Airport.

0612-2220146

Rajgir

Tourist Information Center, Kund Area.

06119-25273

Ranchi

Tourist Information Center, Main Road.

0651-2300646

Ranchi

Tourist Information Center, Railway Station.

Ranchi

Tourist Information Center, Ranchi Airport.

Raxaul

Tourist Information Center, Railway Station.

06255-262393

Vaishali

Tourist Information Center.

06225-285425

Varanasi

Tourist Information Center.

0542-2343821