History of Jharkhand

Status and concept of Jharkhand is over 2 millennia old and some historians have traced a distinct geo-political, cultural position of Jharkhand even before the period of Magadha Empire. In recent times, according to a legend, Raja Jai Singh Deo of Odisha was accepted as the ruler of Jharkhand by its people in the 13th century.The Singh Deo's of Odisha have been very instrumental in the early history of Jharkhand. Tribal rulers known as the Munda Raja held this region under their control until the Mughal empire period. At this period, the Jharkhand area was known as Kukara area. After year 1765, the area came under the control of British Empire and was known as "Jharkhand"

In modern times, the demand for a separate Jharkhand state can be traced to early 1900s, when Jaipal Singh, the Oxford educated Captain of 1928 Olympics put forth an idea for a separate state consisting of southern districts of Bihar. Over decades, the idea remained alive in some form or the other. On 2nd August, 2000, the Parliament of India passed the Bihar Reorganization Bill to create the state of Jharkhand, and 18 districts of Bihar were carved out to form Jharkhand state on 15th November, 2000.