Saturia Upazila

Saturia Upazila (manikganj district) area 140.18 sq km, located in between 23°51' and 24°03' north latitudes and in between 89°55' and 90°08' east longitudes. It is bounded by nagarpur and dhamrai upazilas on the north, manikganj sadar upazila on the south, Dhamrai upazila on the east, daulatpur (Manikganj) and ghior upazilas on the west.

Population Total 171494; male 83653, female 87841; Muslim 156732, Hindu 14727, Christian 25, Buddhist 4 and others 6.

Water bodies Main rivers: dhaleshwari, bangshi, Gazikhali.

Administration Saturia Thana was formed in 1919 and it was turned into an upazila in 1984.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
-	9	159	224	8718	162776	1223	58.9	46.6

Upazila Town
Area (sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
2.04	2	8718	4274	58.9

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Tilli 95	5105	10747	11346	38.7
Daragram 38	3971	8912	9592	45.4
Dighalia 47	3227	6680	7061	47.0
Dhankora 57	5051	15114	15168	55.9
Fukurhati 66	3341	8492	9017	45.7
Baraid 28	4641	9750	10498	42.5
Baliati 19	2683	7093	7491	48.6
Saturia 85	3312	10535	10865	49.5
Hargaz 76	2828	6330	6803	48.9

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Baliati Zamindar Bari, Dhankora Zamindar Bari, Ramakrishna Sebasrama (1910), Tomb of Kalu Shah.

War of Liberation During the war of liberation in 1971 the Pak army, in collaboration with their local agents, conducted mass killing and plundering in the upazila. Freedom fighters of the upazila had encounters with Pak army at a number of places including Saturia Police Station, Tilli and Banamalipur. There is a mass grave at a place besides the pond in the Police Station complex and a mass killing site at the premises of Saturia High School.

For details: see সাটুরিয়া উপজেলা, বাংলাদেশ মুক্তিযুদ্ধ জ্ঞানকোষ (Encyclopedia of Bangladesh War of Liberation), বাংলাদেশ এশিয়াটিক সোসাইটি, ঢাকা ২০২০, খণ্ড ৯।

Religious institutions Mosque 172, temple 41, tomb 2. Noted religious institutions: Saturia Central Jami Mosque, adjacent to Iswarchandra High School Mosque, Tomb of Kalu Shah, Gauranga Math (1332 BS), Ramakrishna Sebaashrama (1910).

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 47.3%; male 52.1%, female 42.7%. Educational institutions: college 5, secondary school 15, primary school 77, madrasa 3. Noted educational institutions: Bhiku Memorial College (1966), Said Kalu Shah College (1998), Saturia Pilot High School (1958), Dhankora Girish Institute (1917), Baliati Iswarchandra High School (1919), Dhulla BM High School (1920), Saturia Ideal Pilot High School (1958), Dhankora Girish Chandra High School, Hargaz Nayapara Primary School (1875), Kaonnara Government Primary School (1909).

Cultural organisations Library 3, club 58, theatre group 1, theatre stage 1, cinema hall 2, playground 22.

Main sources of income Agriculture 59.45%, non-agricultural labourer 4.50%, industry 1.72%, commerce 12.86%, transport and communication 3.26%, service 7.48%, construction 1.58%, religious service 0.15%, rent and remittance 1.38% and others 7.62%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 64.15%, landless 35.85%; agricultural landowner: urban 43.17% and rural 65.34%.'

Main crops Paddy, jute, wheat, mustard, sugarcane, potato.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Kaun, linseed, sesame, pea, barley.

Main fruits Mango, jackfruit, banana, guava.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 5, dairy 112, poultry 168, hatchery 1.

Communication facilities Pucca road 95 km, semi-pucca road 15 km, mud road 350 km.

Extinct or nearly extinct traditional transport Palanquin, horse carriage.

Noted manufactories Rice mill, flour mill, saw mill, metal industry, ice factory, ice cream factory, biscuit factory, welding factory.

Cottage industries Goldsmith, blacksmith, weaving, embroidery, wood work, bamboo work, cane work, nakshi pakha.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 30, fairs 4, most noted of which are Saturia Hat, Hargaz Hat, Daragram Hat, Baliati Bazar, Khanirtek Bazar, Dhankora Bazar, Gopalpur Bazar, Char Tilli Bazar, Dhulla Shiva Mela, Tilli Baishakhi Mela and Kalu Shah Mela.

Main exports Paddy, jute, potato, sugarcane molasses, egg, milk, chicken, metal pan, toys.

Access to electricity All the unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 56.4% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 96.6%, tap 2.0% and others 1.4%.

Sanitation 76.9% of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 21.9% of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 1.2% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Upazila health complex 1, union health centre 6, family planning centre 3.

Natural disasters Many people of Saturia, Hargaz, Tilli and Fukurhati unions were victims of the devastating tornado of 1989. Besides, it also caused heavy damages to settlements, livestock, crops and other properties of the upazila.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, proshika, asa, NBCL. [Md. Shahiduzzaman Raj]

References Bangladesh Population Census 2001 and 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics; Cultural survey report of Saturia Upazila 2007.