Rajbari District Town

 third-level administrative division, town district, riverport

Rajbari District (Dhaka division) with an area of 1118.8 sq km, is bounded by Pabna district on the north, Faridpur and Magura districts on the south, Manikganj district on the east, Kushtia and Jhenaidah districts on the west. The land of the district is mainly alluvial raised from the Padma. Main rivers besides the Padma (Ganges) are Jalangi, Kumar, Gorai-madhumati, Harai and Chandana. Annual average temperature: maximum 35.8°C and minimum 12.6°C; annual rainfall 2105 mm.

The location of the Rajbari town is 23.7578269N 89.6460802E. Rajbari (Town) consists of 9 wards and 31 mahallas. The area of the town is 12.14 sq km. The town has a population of 48014; male 50.54%, female 49.46%. The density of population is 3955 per sq km. The literacy rate among the town people is 54.2%. Rajbari was a railway town. Its expansion and development took place with the growth of rail communication and railway establishments. The Rajbari Municipality was established in 1923. Many sufi saints including Shah Farid (thirteen century), Shah Ali Bogdadi, Shah Pahloan, Shah Sadullah, Pir Jangi and Khan Jahan Ali (15th century) came here to preach Islam. The town has one duckbanglow, one Circuit House and six residential hotels.

Rajbari was made a district in 1984. Records of the time of permanent settlement (1793) show that the whole area was in the jessore district. The area was brought under the district of Faridpur when the latter was established in 1811. Its thanas/upazilas belonged to different districts in the past. Pangsha area was a part of the Pabna district. In 1859, Pangsha and Baliakandi became part of the newly formed Kumarkhali subdivision. When Goalanda subdivision was created in 1871, Pangsha and Rajbari were annexed to it and its headquarters were established at Rajbari. Goalanda ghat was upgraded to a district in March 1984 and was renamed as Rajbari district. The district consists of 4 upazilas, 42 union parishads, 3 municipalities, 796 mouzas, 986 villages, 27 wards and 96 mahllas. The upazilas are Rajbari sadar, Pangsha, Baliakandi and Goalanda ghat.

Archeological relics and monuments: Sawdagar dhibi (mound- marks the memory of Chand Sawdagar, a leading hero of the epic Manasamangal), tomb of Kamal Shah Awlia (darvish)and tomb of the sufi devotee Shah Jui located at Pangsha.

Historical events: Many people of the district were involved in the Fakir-Sannyasi revolts during the end of the eighteenth century.

It has produced famous personalities such as Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan, the speaker of Pakistan's Constituent Assembly, Yakub Ali Chowdhury, scientist Kazi Motahar Hossain, noted writer Mir Mosharraf Hossain lived at Podamdi in Baliakandi upzilla.

As of the 1991 Bangladesh census, Population 940360; male 51.02% and female 48.98%; Muslim 86.73%, Hindu 13.12%, and the Christian and tribal 0.15%.

Religious institutions Mosque 596, temple 270, church 2.

Literacy and educational institutions: Average literacy 26.4%; male 32.7% and female 19.7%. Educational institutions: college 24 madrasa 56, secondary school 93, junior high school 6, and primary school 408, community school 9, satellite school 13, vocational training institution 4. Noted educational institutions: Rajbari Government College (1961), Pangsha College (1969), Baliakandi High School (1917).

Cultural organisations Club 48, library 32, theatre group 17, theatre stage 6, literary society 35, cinema hall 14, women's organisation 8, shilpakala academy 3.

Main occupations: Agriculture 42.82%, fishing 1.25%, agricultural labourer 23.63%, wage labourer 2.94%, business 11.43%, service 6.08%, transport 2.15%, construction 1.03% and others 8.67%

Land use: Cultivable land 112714 hectare; single crop 38%, double crop 53% and treble crop land 9%. Land under irrigation 48%.

Land control: Among the peasants 43% are landless, 34% small, 21% medium and 2% rich; cultivable land per head 0.5 hectare.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries farm Dairy 259, poultry 17, fishery 140, hatchery 29.

Communication facilities Roads: pucca 131 km, semi pucca 51 km and mud road 1689 km; railway 89 km, railstation 15; waterways 146 nautical mile.

Manufactures and cottage industries The Goalanda Textile Mill is located at Khankhanapur. There are 450 small and 4567 Cottage industries in the district.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are CARE, brac, asa, proshika, VORD, Saptagram, Nari Sangstha, KKS and Srijani.

Health centres District hospital 1, upazila health complex 4, health and family centre 20, union health centre 21, maternity and child health care centre 1, satellite clinic 6.