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The Kopai River (also called Sal River) is a tributary of the Mayurakshi River. It flows past such towns as Santiniketan, Bolpur, Kankalitala, Kirnahar and Labhpur in Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a small river in dry season but overflows its banks during the monsoon.
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Literary association
The area around the river quite often has red soil, which forms ravines on the river bank with weathering and is popular as the khoai. It has inspired literary figures in the area. It is described by Rabindranath Tagore as follows –
boisakh masey taar hantu jal thakeyOur small stream moves forward in bends and curves
In the month of Baisakh it only has knee deep waters
The local name of a sickle-shaped curve in the river inspired the title of the novel Hansuli Banker Upakatha (Story of the Sickle-shaped Curve) by Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay, made into a film by Tapan Sinha.
Archaeology
Microliths of crystalline stone and petrified wood from about 1250–1000 BC are found in many places in the Ajay-Kunur-Kopai river system.
