Siliguri  Siliguri () is a metropolitan city which spans areas of the Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts in the Indian state of West Bengal. Known as the "Gateway to Northeast India", Siliguri is popular for three T's -tea, timber and tourism. It is located on the banks of the Mahananda River at the foothills of the Himalayas. Siliguri is the third largest urban agglomeration in West Bengal, after Kolkata and Asansol. It lies 35 kilometres away from its twin city, Jalpaiguri. The merging of the two cities make them the largest metropolis of the region. Siliguri has great strategic importance in West Bengal. It is located conveniently, connecting four international borders i.e. China, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. It also connects the North-East with the Indian mainland and is connected with all other districts of West Bengal. Located at the foothills of Eastern Himalaya, Siliguri is a trading and transportation hub. Over time, Siliguri has grown from a village into a commercially progressive city. Siliguri and its countless strategic offerings were realised after independence. According to Sailen Debnath, "Siliguri" means a stack of pebbles or stones. Till the 19th century this region was called as "Shilchaguri" when there was dense Dolka forest covering the area. Because of its appeal as an agricultural village, the Kingdom of Sikkim captured Siliguri making it the southernmost part of their kingdom until the Kingdom of Nepal interfered. Because of it Kirati and Nepalis came to settle in this region. At that time a river (Mahananda) port, South of Siliguri in Phansidewa had an important role in having trade bond with Malda, Bengal and Bihar. This riverine trade line was thus used by the Bhutanese and Sikkimese to bring goods into their mainland. Siliguri started as a small area i.e. now Saktigarh, southern part of city, on the bank of Mahananda River. Treaty of Sugauli in 1815 signed between Britain-Nepal, changed the prospect of Siliguri. As it became a point of transit with Darjeeling hills and Nepal mainland. 1815 onwards, Siliguri started growing rapidly as a small city due to its strategic convenience of trade. In 1865, the British captured Darjeeling & the entire Dooars region to build tea plantations and export the produce to England.