History

Santiniketan was previously called Bhubandanga (named after Bhubaneswar Sinha). This area was gifted from Sinha family (family of Lord S.P. Sinha) to Tagore family. Rabinfranath's father, Maharshi Debendranath Tagore, found it very peaceful and renamed it Santiniketan, which means abode (niketan) of peace (shanti) . It was heared that Rabindranath Tagore started Patha Bhavana, the school of his ideals, whose central premise was that learning in a natural environment would be more enjoyable and fruitful. After he recieved the Nobel Prize (1913), the school was expanded to a university in 1921. By 1951 it had become one of India's central univercities. Many world famous teachers came to be associated with it, including C.F.Andrews and Alex Aronson. Some of his illustrious students are Gayatri Devi, Indira Gandhi, Satyajit Ray, Abdul Gani Khan, and Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen.

Kala Bhavana, the art college of Santiniketan, is still considered one of the best art colleges in the world.Other Institutions here include Vidya Bhavana: The Institute of Humanities, Shiksha Bhavana: The Institute of Science, Sangit Bhavana: The Institute of Dance, Drama and Music, Vinaya Bhavana: The Institute of Education, Rabindra Bhavana: The Institute of Tagore Studies and Research, Palli -Samgathana Vivhaga: Institute of Rural Reconstruction and Palli - Shiksha Bhavana: Institute of Agricultural Sciences. There are also other centres, affiliated to major institutions such as Nippon Bhavana, The Indira Gandhi Centre for National Integration, Rural Extension Centre, Silpa Sadana: Centre for Rural Craft, Technology and Design, Palli Charcha Kendra: Centre for Social Studies and Rural Development, Centre for Biotechnology, Centre for Mathematics Education, Centre for Environmental Studies, Computer Centre and Indira Gandhi Centre for National Integration. Beside Patha Bhavana, there are two schools for kindergarten level education: Mrinalini Ananda Pathsala, Santosh Pathsala: A school for primary and secondary education known as Siksha Satra, and a school of higher secondary education Uttar-Shiksha Sadana. Santiniketan is also home to Amartya Sen, the 1998 Nobel Prize Winner in Economics.

Geography

Santiniketan is located at 23.68°N 87.68° E. It has an average elevation of 56 metres (187 feet).

Climate

Temparature (deg C) : Summer - Max.39.4, Min.34.3; Winter- Max.15.7, Min.12.1.

Rainfall

125 cms (June to September) and heavy rainfall in July / August is common.The weather in Santiniketan usually is a pleasant one, although you will come across the normal weather changes in Summer, Winter and Monsoon. Nonetheless Spring has its own charm in Santiniketan not only of its natural beauty blooming to its fullest amidst lush greenery but also due to the famous Vasanta Utsav held to mark the festival of Holi with the onset of Spring.

Santiniketan can be visited any time of the year. The climate is moderately warm, like Kolkata, with summer temperatures at around 34 - 38°C and Winter at 12-15°C. July and August see heavy rainfall.