Pirganj Upazila (Rangpur District)

Pirganj Upazila (rangpur district) area 411.34 sq km, located in between 25°18' and 25°31' north latitudes and in between 89°08' and 89°25' east longitudes. It is bounded by mithapukur upazila on the north, palashbari, ghoraghat and nawabganj sadar (dinajpur) upazilas on the south, sadullapur upazila on the east, Mithapukur, Nawabganj Sadar (Dinajpur) and Ghoraghat upazilas on the west.

Population Total 385499; male 192025, female 193474; Muslim 354869, Hindu 24980, Buddhist 194, Christian 2252 and others 3204.

Water bodies Main river: karatoya, Jamuneshwari, Akhira;' Pirganj is called the upazila of beel.

Administration Pirganj Thana, now an upazila, was formed in 1910.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
-	15	308	332	14993	370506	937	65.1	44.5

Upazila Town
Area (sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
6.25	6	14993	2399	65.1

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Kabilpur 47	7508	15535	15552	44.0
Kumedpur 54	5797	10772	11182	48.1
Chatra 41	8543	13684	13748	48.1
Chaitrakul 35	7470	11130	11212	55.7
Tukuria 95	6665	9939	9986	53.5
Panchgachha 63	6220	11795	12582	40.7
Pirganj 69	5894	17684	17508	51.2
Bara Alampur 16	7961	10419	10283	38.9
Bara Dargah 22	5676	13483	13467	49.9
Bhendabari 28	5995	9907	10335	47.7
Madankhali 56	6596	11783	11514	41.4
Mithapur 58	6785	14673	14743	39.4
Ramnathpur 82	8346	17778	17823	40.9
Roypur 75	5730	11449	11212	42.9
Shanerhat 88	6460	11994	12327	39.7

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Remnants of the palace of Raja Nilambar at Patgram, Tomb of Shah Ismail Ghazi, seven fort at Satgara (fort of Birat Raja, cattle house of Birat Raja, fort of Kuru Pandava, palace of Nora Raja, etc.), house and tomb of Poet Hayat Mahmud (medieval period) at village Jhar Bishla, Khalashpur Hat Jami Mosque, three domed Mosque at Dariapur, Hatibanda Mosque, Zamindar Bari and Mandir at Roypur, Khalisha Church.

Historical events On 22 February 1952 hartal was observed demanding Bangla as the state language. On the same day, in a meeting organized by the students and general public declared to continue the language movement until the demand is fulfilled.

War of Liberation The peoples’ resistance groups destroyed the Bridge at Angra on the Dhaka-Rangpur Highway to disrupt the communication, the furious Pakistani soldiers entered the villages Jelepara, Uzirpur and Madarganj Hat where they looted many houses and set them on fire. From November the freedom fighters started launching guerrilla operation in the upazila. Besides, encounters between the freedom fighters and the Pak army were held in different areas from Laldighi to Bara Dargah. There are mass graves at Angrar Bridge and Madarganj Hat of the upazila.

For details: see পীরগঞ্জ উপজেলা, বাংলাদেশ মুক্তিযুদ্ধ জ্ঞানকোষ (Encyclopedia of Bangladesh War of Liberation), বাংলাদেশ এশিয়াটিক সোসাইটি, ঢাকা ২০২০, খণ্ড ৬।

Religious institutions Mosque 520, temple 130, tomb 8, church 6. Noted religious institutions: Khalashpur Hat Jami Mosque, Hatibandha Mosque, Roypur Zamindar Bari Mandir.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 45.4%; male 47.7%, female 43.1%. Noted educational institutions: Kadirabad High School (1916), Roypur High School (1931), Madankhali Primary School (1910), Chawk Karim Primary School (1926).

Newspapers and periodicals Weekly: Bajrakantha.

Cultural organisations Library 1, club 70, theatre group 2, branch office of Biswa Sahitya Kendra 1, cinema hall 3.

Main sources of income Agriculture 74.87%, non-agricultural labourer 2.7%, industry 0.57%, commerce 9.17%, transport and communication 3.62%, service 3.65%, construction 0.76%, religious service 0.16%, rent and remittance 0.8% and others 3.7%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 57.94%, landless 42.06%; agricultural landowner: urban 55.85% and rural 58.01%.

Main crops Paddy, wheat, maize, sugarcane, mustard, potato, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Jute, arahar, aus paddy.

Main fruits Mango, jackfruit, blackberry, litchi, papaya, banana.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 35, dairy 35, poultry 30.

Communication facilities Pucca road 181 km, semi-pucca road 41 km, mud road 597 km.

Extinct or nearly extinct traditional transport Palanquin, bullock cart.

Noted manufactories Rice mill, saw mill, oil mill, welding factory.

Cottage industries Blacksmith, potteries, husking mill, jute work, wood work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 27, fairs 10, most noted of which are Khalashpur Hat, Bhendabari Hat, Motherganj Hat, Chatra Hat, Shanerhat, Tukuria Hat, Colony Bazar Hat, Kadirabad Bazar, Balua Bazar, Pirganj Bazar, Baurani Mela at Zaffarpur, Baruni Mela at Bara Beel, Baruni Mela at Harin Singer Dighi, Bhendabari Mela, Phulbari Mela and Muharram Mela at Bara Dargah.

Main exports Paddy, wheat, potato, banana, sugarcane molasses, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 30.8% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Natural resources Khalishpur coal mine at Magura have been found in this upazila. Sources of drinking water Tube-well 97.9%, tap 0.4% and others 1.7%.

Sanitation 39.5% of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 33.4% of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 27.1% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Upazila health centre 1, family planning centre 12, union health centre 15, charitable hospital 7.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, asa, HEED Bangladesh. [Abu Md. Iqbal Rumi Shah]

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