Gumla town serves as the administrative center of Gumla district, one of the twenty-four districts in the Indian state of Jharkhand.

Meaning and Origin
The area was known as Gaw-Mela and served as a gathering point for people from the hinterland for generations. They came here to trade items under the barter system. It is thought that the name Gumla comes from the Hindi words Gaw-Mela, which are also used in a number of local dialects, meaning “cows” or cattle, and Mela, which means “fair.” Gaw-mela was the name given to the location; later, the word evolved into Gumla.