Jharkhand

Capital

Ranchi

Official Language

Hindi

Area

79,716 km²

Districts

24

Largest City

Ranchi

Geography & Nature

The Chota Nagpur plateau, forested hills and Damodar and Subarnarekha river systems shape Jharkhand's landscape.

• Reported area: 79,716 km². Survey of India — Administrative Boundary Data.
• Forest and tree cover: 27,403.33 km²; India State of Forest Report 2023.

Districts & Cities

24 districts listed by the NIC directory on 2026-10-14.

• Major urban centres: Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Bokaro.
• Largest city/town: Ranchi. Ranchi is largest by 2011 municipal-city population. Jamshedpur is larger when its urban agglomeration is counted.

State Administration

Jharkhand has a Governor and an elected government led by a Chief Minister. Its legislature has a Legislative Assembly. The capital is Ranchi.

• Administrative capital: Ranchi.
• Principal official language(s): Hindi. Urdu and a range of regional languages have additional official recognition; Hindi is the principal official language shown here.

Government Institutions

Government institutions in Jharkhand include executive departments, district administration, public agencies and local bodies. The official directory provides routes to their published websites.

• The Legislative Assembly provides the elected legislative institution.
• District administrations and municipal or village institutions provide local public services.

People & Demographics

The official MoEFCC profile reports approximately 3.30 crore people on a Census 2011 basis. This is a historical, rounded population figure rather than a current population estimate.

• Principal official language(s): Hindi.
• Urdu and a range of regional languages have additional official recognition; Hindi is the principal official language shown here.
• Census tables provide the detailed rural/urban, literacy, age and mother-tongue breakdowns.

Economy & Industries

Coal, iron and steel, mineral processing, manufacturing, agriculture and forest-linked livelihoods are significant.

• Economic centres include Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad.
• Use the government's economic surveys and departmental publications for dated output, employment and investment figures.

Infrastructure

Rail freight, mining and industrial corridors, power infrastructure and Ranchi's airport connect the state's urban centres.

• Transport, electricity, water and digital networks support public services and economic activity.
• Project status and operational details are published by the responsible government departments and operators.

Education & Healthcare

IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, NIT Jamshedpur and Ranchi University are prominent institutions; RIMS Ranchi provides public medical education and care.

• Schools, universities, government hospitals and primary care facilities serve different parts of the region.
• Check the relevant institution or department for current programmes, admissions and services.

Culture & History

Sohrai and Khovar art, Sarhul, community festivals and the heritage of Birsa Munda reflect the state's cultural history.

• Heritage sites, languages, crafts and community traditions vary across districts.
• The official tourism and culture portal provides place-specific information.

Schemes & Public Services

The Jharkhand government and citizen-service portal provide access to applications, certificates, departmental services and scheme information.

• Common service areas include revenue certificates, welfare applications, education, transport and local-government services; availability varies by portal.
• Open the official service listing for the current application process and requirements.