Abstract :
Malda district of West Bengal is divided into three physiographic units' viz. Tal, Diara and Barind. Of
these, Tal is the marshy tract, mostly composed of bog lands formed in many pockets around shrinking
inland drainage lines. The Diara region, on the other hand, is a well-drained flatland formed by fluvial
deposition of new and fertile alluvium that provides ideal sites for livelihood practices giving rise to
very high population density. Floods and riverbank erosion are common in these regions that certainly
influence the demographic attributes of the area. Location wise, some part of Diara is adjacent to Indo-
Bangladesh border and Jharkhand and Tal region borders Bihar. As a result, movement of the
population both at national and international level is common, which also results in the demographic
changes. The present article highlights on the changing demographic attributes viz. the size, growth,
density, and distribution of the population in these two regions from 1971-2011 census, based on the
secondary data where decadal growth rates (geometric and exponential) and population concentration
index of Tal and Diara have been computed.
Keyword :
Tal Diara Physiographic Units Population Concentration Index