Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila

Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila (jhenaidah district) area 467.75 sq km, located in between 23°26´ and 23°36´ north latitudes and in between 88°57´ and 89°20´ east longitudes. It is bounded by harinakunda and shailkupa upazilas on the north, kaliganj (jhenaidah) and salikha upazilas on the south, magura sadar upazila on the east, kotchandpur and chuadanga sadar upazilas on the west.

Population Total 394152; male 204256, female 189896; Muslim 349705, Hindu 44323, Buddhist 85, Christian 8 and others 31.

Water bodies Main rivers: Begabati, nabaganga.

Administration Jhenaidah Thana was formed in 1793 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 1 17 268 283 88687 305465 843 63.8 42.5 Municipality Area (sq km) Ward Mahalla Population Density (per sq km) Literacy rate (%) 39.62 09 34 86919 2193 64.3 Upazila Town Area (sq km) Mouza Population Density (per sq km) Literacy rate (%) 29.75 1 1768 59 43.0 Union Name of union and GO code Area (acre) Population Literacy rate (%) Male Female Kalicharanpur 42 4180 7084 6593 44.67 Kumrabaria 47 6079 9203 8564 41.24 Ganna 15 8659 13036 12556 39.26 Ghorshal 21 6685 8859 8090 42.38 Dogachhi 11 4502 6117 5878 47.02 Naldanga 63 8398 10985 10266 49.92 Padmakar 68 4308 8241 7860 42.42 Paglakanai 73 2980 7116 6673 44.50 Porahati 79 8174 11495 10680 42.82 Fursandi 13 7016 8076 7625 39.22 Madhuhati 52 9127 11577 11190 35.28 Moharajpur 58 8763 12171 11547 45.16 Saganna 84 4881 9485 8873 39.49 Sadhuhati 89 6218 9992 9587 42.28 Surat 94 4144 6529 6000 44.76 Harishankarpur 31 6666 9036 8575 44.11 Halidhani 26 5014 8966 8708 42.16 Source Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics House of Naldangar Raja, house of Salim Chowdhury (1822), Pancha Ratna Temple, tomb of Pagla Kanai at Berbari, house of KP Basu, Madhupur Neelkuthi, Dhol Samudra.

History of the War of Liberation On 16 April 1971 an encounter between the freedom fighters and the Pak army was held on the bank of the Begabati of Bishkhali in which 7 freedom fighters were killed and many were wounded.

Religious institutions Mosque 435, temple 3, church 1.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 47.4%; male 52.3%, female 42.1%. Educational institutions: college 15, polytechnic institute 1, secondary school 63, primary school 186, madrasa 40. Noted educational institutions: Government KC College (1960), Jhenaidah Cadet College (1963), Government Nurunnahar Mohila College (1985), Jhenaidah Government High School (1877), Wazir Ali High School (1903), Jhenaidah Government Girls'; High School (1954), Kanchan Nagar Model High School, Harishankarpur JC Biddapith (1918), Jhenaidah Siddikia Alim Madrasa (1967).

Newspapers and periodicals Present: Daily Jhenaidah, Daily Adhibeshan, Daily Jhenaidah Bani; weekly: Aunirvan, Bir Darpan.

Cultural organisations Library 2, club 30, cinema hall 5, theatre stage 1, theatre group 7, women society 41.

Main sources of income Agriculture 60.12%, non-agricultural labourer 3.28%, industry 1.16%, commerce 15.36%, transport and communication 5.21%, service 7.45%, construction 1.91%, religious service 0.18%, rent and remittance 0.81% and others 4.52%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 61.47%, landless 38.53%; agricultural landowner: urban 47.48% and rural 65.35%.

Main crops Paddy, jute, sugarcane, wheat, barley, betel leaf, potato, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Sesame, linseed, sweet potato, arahar.

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

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Dairy 13, poultry 281.

Communication facilities Pucca road 63 km, semi-pucca road 58 km, mud road 646 km.

Extinct or nearly extinct traditional transport Palanquin, bullock cart, horse carriage.

Noted manufactories Pulse mill, flour mill, oil mill, rice mill, ice factory.'

Cottage industries Weaving, blacksmith. '

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 38, most noted of which are Jhenaidah Sadar, Gopalpur, Bhatai, Tentultala, Bishaykhali, Narikelbaria and Madhupur hats.

Main exports Paddy, jute, betel leaf, banana, date molasses, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the wards and unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 31.57% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 91.68%, pond 0.17%, tap 5.57% and others 2.58%.

Sanitation 25.27% (rural 16.45% and urban 57.08%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 41.04% (rural 44.23% and urban 29.50%) of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 33.70% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Hospital 1, upazila health complex 1, Shishu Hospital 1, eye hospital 1, diabetic hospital 1, maternity and child welfare centre 1, family welfare centre 1, maternity 1, satellite clinic 1.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, asa, Dipshikha, Srijani. [Md Moshiur Rahman]

References Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics; Cultural survey report of Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila 2007. [Rahman, Md Moshiur Department of Accounting, Nurunnahar Government Mohila College, Jhenaidaha]