Darbhanga’s Last Queen Kamsundari Devi, Who Gifted 600 Kg Gold To Army During 1962 War, Passes Away

Maharani Kamsundari Devi, the last queen of Darbhanga Raj, passed away recently at age 93 after months of illness. She was the third wife of Maharaj Kameshwar Singh, the final ruler of the Darbhanga estate in Bihar.​

She died at her residence, Kalyani Niwas, in Darbhanga, with last rites performed at Madhmeshwar Temple by grandnephew Ratneshwar Singh. Bihar Minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal attended, praising the family’s national contributions.​

During the India-China war, the Darbhanga royal family donated 600 kg (15 maunds) of gold, three private aircraft, and a 90-acre airstrip that became Darbhanga Airport.​

Post-1962, after her husband’s death, she founded the Kalyani Foundation in 1989 to preserve Mithila’s heritage, including a library with over 15,000 books. The family supported universities like BHU and India’s freedom struggle.