Gobindaganj Upazila

Gobindaganj Upazila (gaibandha district) area 481.66 sq km, located in between 25°15' and 25°20' north latitudes and in between 89°11' and 89°32' east longitudes. It is bounded by ghoraghat and palashbari upazilas on the north, sonatala and shibganj (Nawabganj) upazilas on the south, saghatta and Palashbari upazilas on the east, panchbibi and kalia upazilas on the west. One fourth of the total area of the upazila has included in the barind tract.

Population Total 461428; male 235622, female 225806; Muslim 427756, Hindu 29553, Buddhist 2074, Christian 148 and others 1897. Indigenous communities such as santal, Marandi belong to this upazila.

Water bodies Main rivers: karatoya, bangali, Nalua; Saat Beel is notable.

Administration On 15 April 1821 Gobindaganj was included into Bogra district and 15 August it was included in the Bhabaniganj Sub Division. Gobindaganj Thana was formed in 1912 and it was turned into an upazila in 1984. Bhabaniganj Municipality was formed in 1998.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
1	17	339	375	31242	430186	958	48.2	37.0

Municipality
Area (sq km)	Ward	Mahalla	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
14.77	9	22	31242	2115	48.22

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Katabari 39	7433	12230	11746	34.15
Kamdia 33	9393	11195	10743	36.21
Kamardaha 27	5966	14688	13811	39.69
Kochasahar 44	5030	14326	13636	41.51
Gumaniganj 16	7219	12049	11381	38.46
Taluk Kanupur 94	7081	16755	16500	31.59
Darbasta 10	8679	19063	18409	28.69
Nakai 55	6174	13706	13267	33.40
Fulbari 11	6702	8563	8464	35.82
Mahimaganj 50	5912	17837	16625	42.84
Rakhal Buruz 67	11178	12332	11829	35.15
Rajahar 61	6328	8044	8178	34.92
Shakhahar 83	8462	11767	11341	47.76
Shalmara 72	5318	11922	11241	38.04
Shibpur 89	4016	10598	10041	37.37
Sapmara 78	7062	8647	8299	45.19
Harirampur 22	7071	15804	15149	33.51

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Remnants of the Bardhan Kuthi Zamindar Bari, Pradyut Kumar Kuthibari, Masta Mosque, Sundail Mosque, Phulahar Mosque, Basudeva Mandir (1249 BS), Birat city at Kamdia, remnants of the main palace of Raja Birat.

History of the War of Liberation Seven persons including Abdul Mannan (Sports Secretary of SM Hall, Rajshahi University), Bablu Mahanta and Babu Datta were killed by the Pak army' on 27 March 1971 when the students and general public attempted to destroy the Katakhali Bridge on the river Karatoya. Afterwards, the Pak army set many houses of the nearby villages on fire.

Marks of the War of Liberation Mass grave 1 (village Pakhia of Harirampur Union).

Religious institutions Mosque 730, tomb 10, temple 150, church 1, sacred place 5.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 37.8%; male 42.9%, female 32.5%. Educational institutions: college 8, technical college 1, law college 1, teachers training college 1, secondary school 72, primary school 239, madrasa 153. Noted educational institutions: Gobindaganj Degree College (1965), Kamdia Nurul Haque Degree College (1972), Mahimaganj Degree College (1972), Gobindaganj Mahila College (1991), Gobindaganj Multilateral High School (1912), Kamdia Bilateral High School (1921), Gobindaganj BM Girls' High School (1940), Rangpur Sugar Mills High School (1962), Birat High School (1964), Shahargachhi Girls' High School (1971), Mahimaganj Alia Madrasa (1937).

Newspapers and periodicals Daily: Bangalee, Katakhali; Weekly: Raja Birat, Katakhali (irregular), Khola Hawa (irregular), Motijheel (defunct).

Cultural organisations Club 20, library 1, theatre group 3, cinema hall 6, women organisation 22, jatra party 10, literary organisation 7.

Tourist spots Bardhan Kuthi Zamindar Bari, Birat city at Kamdia.

Main sources of income Agriculture 66.92%, non-agricultural labourer 2.11%, commerce 11.83%, transport and communication 5.28%, service 0.15%, construction 0.93%, religious service 0.15%, rent and remittance 0.14% and others 12.49%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 59.43%, landless 40.57%; agricultural landowner: urban 46.32% and rural 60.38%.

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

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Aus paddy, tobacco, sweet potato, keshor (stamen).'

Main fruits Mango, jackfruit, litchi, banana, coconut, papaya, bangi (melon), water-melon.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Dairy 70, poultry 50.

Communication facilities Pucca road 185 km, semi-pucca road 37 km, mud road 984 km; railway 8 km.

Extinct or nearly extinct traditional transport Palanquin, soari, horse carriage.

Noted manufactories Sugar mill, flour mill, ice factory, printing press, hosiery mill.

Cottage industries Goldsmith, blacksmith, potteries, weaving, bamboo and cane work, shika, mat and pati making work, wood work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 27, fairs 5, most noted of which are Golapbagh, Bairagi, Phasitala, Chandpara, Sahebganj, Bagda, Birat, Char Katla, Haritala, Nakai, Rather Bazar, Krorgachha and Mahimaganj hats; Gobindaganj Baishakhi Mela, Kuthibari Baruni Mela, Phulnar Baruni Mela and Mahimaganj Mela.

Main exports Paddy, rice, potato, banana, sugar.

Access to electricity All the wards and unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 12.04% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 91.93%, tap 0.46%, pond 0.23% and others 7.38%.

Sanitation 10.40% (rural 9.17% and urban 27.43%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 29.37% (rural 29.05% and urban 33.78%) of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 60.23% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Upazila health complex 1, family planning centre 17, satellite clinic 5, eye hospital 1.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, asa, Swanirvar, thengamara mahila sabuj sangha, Ankur, Source and Bridge. [Bishnu Nandi]

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