Zakiganj Upazila HQ

 township, fourth-level administrative division, border crossing, local government

Zakiganj Upazila (Sylhet district) with an area of 287.33 sq km, is bounded by Meghalaya (India) and Kanaighat on the north, Assam state of India on the south and east, Beanibazar on the west. Main rivers are Kushiyara, Surma, Talgang and Birasreegang; Jalmahal 70, Balai and Mailater haors are notable.

Zakiganj (Town) consists of 10 wards and 23 mahallas. The area of the town is 13.32 sq km. It has a population of 10465; male 50.31%, female 49.69%; density of population is 786 per sq km. Literacy rate among the town people is 34.1%.

Zakiganj thana was established on 27 August 1947 and was turned into an upazila in 1983. The upazila consists of one municipality, 9 union parishads, 119 mouzas and 286 villages.

Archaeological heritage Nawabi Mosque at Khilgram, Sajid Raja's Mosque and Barothakuri's Gayibi Dighi (a stone inscription, of 400 years old, now preserved in the National Museum, has been discovered from this dighi).

Religious institutions Mosque 463, temple 73, mazar 9.

As of the 1991 Bangladesh census, Population 174038; male 50.55%, female 49.45%; Muslim 86.48%, Hindu 13.47%, Buddhist, Christian and others 0.05%.

Literacy and educational institutions Average literacy 35.75%; male 42.9%, female 28.6% (1991). Educational institutions: college 3, secondary school 23, primary school 115, community school 8, satellite school 3, KG school 4, madrasa 47. Noted educational institutions: Gurusadoy High School (1857), Fultali Alia Madrasa (1920), Barhal Ahia High School ((1935), Ichamati Alia Madrasa (1947), Ichamati Bohumukhi High School (1957) etc.

Main occupations Agriculture 40.91%, forestry fishing and livestock 4.64%, agricultural labourer 17.39%, wage labourer 7.16%, commerce 8.99%, construction 1.42%, service 4.07%, others 15.42%.

Land use Arable land 20743.47 hectares, fallow land 604.21 hectares, grassland 1097.39 hectares; single crop 25%, double crop 60% and triple crop land 15%.

Land control Among the peasants, 14% are landless, 50% marginal, 28% intermediate and 8% rich; cultivable land per head 0.16 hectare.

Fisheries, dairies, poultries Fishery 200, poultry 58, hatchery 10.

Communication facilities Roads: pucca 124 km and mud road 1005 km; waterways 11 nautical mile.

Cottage industries Handloom 3, goldsmith 10, wood work 30, tailoring 50, welding 15.

NGO activities brac, Simantik, Shatadal.

Health centres Upazila health complex 1, family welfare centre 8, satellite clinic 2, private hospitals 4.