Jenkins School of Cooch Behar, West Bengal - The School' s Heritage structure is still being maintained

Navrangindia.blogspot.com September 16, 2026

Jenkins School, Cooch Behar W. Bengal. en.wikipedia.org

Set  in the heart of town, the government-run institution had been declared a heritage property. Among the most beautiful edifices in the town renowned for its architectural grandeur  This school already gone past 150 years several years ago long ago  and was built during the reign of Maharaja Shivendra Narayan during his reign from 1839 to 1847. The early two buildings were damaged severely due to fire mishap  and natural calamity  and finally the present structure came up in 1905.


Jenkins School, a boys school is located on Silver Jubilee Avenue, Cooch Behar in the Indian state of West Bengal. Established in 1861 in the town of Cooch Behar, it is one among the oldest schools in India as well as Bengal (undivided). Now, it is a government school and it was founded by the then Maharajah of Cooch Behar His Highness  Narendra Narayan,

Jenkins School, Cooch Behar W. Bengal.

Jenkins School, Cooch Behar facebook.com

Jenkins School, Cooch Behar facebook.com

The Maharajah was a man of foresight and  vision, keenly interested in the welfare of his kingdom and he wanted his subjects to be in  tune with modem developments in science and technology so that the future of the state will be in good hands. Realizing the value of education, he wanted to have a modem educational system in Cooch Behar. He established Jenkins School with the main purpose of imparting English education and other studies relevant to India to the children.

He thought it was quite appropriate to name the school after   Major Gen. Francis Jenkins, an alumnus of Oxford University and the Commissioner of Assam and official Agent of the Governor General of Bengal for Assam frontier (now North-East India). Jenkins not only loved the people of Cooch Behar, Assam and other regions, but never wished to get back to England and lead a happy, peaceful retirement life. Instead he settled down at Gauhati and lived there till his death. During that time, in that place there was no school to impart education to the children. In the scholl There are classes from lower standard  up to 12th standard.
Cooch Behar.gov.in


Jenkins School. Cooch Behar, WB Cooch Behar.gov.in

Soon after  the independence of India in August 1947, the princely state of Cooch Behar became  merged with India in 1950 as Cooch Behar district within the state of West Bengal. Jenkins School became a  state government school. In the early stages, many teachers were appointed  on recommendation of king of Cooch Behar, Maharaja Jagaddipendra Narayan and the government of West Bengal. Between the late 1940s and the early 1960s, the school did well. Thanks to  Kalipada Mukherjee HM who worked hard and  made it a popular a popular school in this region.  In the domain of sports, the Maharajah also  sought the help of  Sailen Datta, a veteran cricketer of the Bengal cricket team for the improvement  of sports education in the school.

The school's 100-year anniversary  was celebrated in January 1961 and 150 anniversary  in  January 2011. This school consistently produced excellent students who excelled in various tough govt. competitive entrance exams and made a mark in their lives. In order to maintain the relationship with the old boys, an Alumni Association was formed  not only to maintain a cordial relationship with the school, but also to preserve and promote school's tradition, and future development. Further, the students can take the inspiration from older students who achieved success in their lives.
In this school, cricket is a popular game 

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