Jessore Sadar Upazila

Jessore Sadar Upazila (jessore district) area 435.41 sq km, located in between 23°04' and 23°20' north latitudes and in between 89°06' and 84°06' east longitudes. It is bounded by kaliganj (Jhenaidah) and bagherpara upazilas on the north, abhaynagar and manirampur upazilas on the south, Bagherpara and narail sadar upazilas on the east, jhikargachha and chaugachha upazilas on the west.

Population Total 643659; male 340051, female 303608; Muslim 582550, Hindu 58720, Buddhist 2041, Christian 39 and others 309.

Water bodies Main rivers: bhairab, chitra; Laukhali Beel, Padma Beel, Madhya Beel are notable.

Administration Jessore Sadar upazila was formed in 1984.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
1	16	248	252	214846	428813	1478	70.23	52.53

Municipality
Area (sq km)	Ward	Mahalla	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
14.72	9	73	176655	12001	67.96

Upazila Town
Area (sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
5.14	5	38191	7430	80.49

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Arabpur 10	5932	17378	16093	57.23
Ichhali 53	7756	10528	10093	47.63
Upasahar 95	1369	7421	6884	75.41
Kachua 71	6147	11516	10717	48.05
Kashimpur 65	7540	18047	16696	50.66
Chanchra 23	6577	18796	17011	51.63
Churamankati 29	8045	17084	15886	47.76
Diara 35	8187	16641	15828	48.42
Noapara 89	5902	23061	21228	57.36
Narendrapur 83	6145	14898	13921	54.60
Fathehpur 41	7214	20129	18701	52.61
Basundia 11	7686	16221	14925	56.84
Jessore Cantonment 98	-	12377	4433	92.29
Ramnagar 92	7185	16629	15400	57.39
Lebutala 77	5509	9525	8923	50.39
Haibatpur 47	9291	15497	14417	51.26

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Mandir of Bhubeneswari Devi built by Laksman Sen at Sheikhati, remnants of the palace of Raja Patal Bhedi, ruins of ancient Kali Mandir, Imam Bari built by Haji Muhammad Mohsin at Murli, tomb of Hazrat Gharib Shah (R).

History of the War of Liberation On the night of 26 March 1971 the Pak army arrested Advocate Moshiur Rahman (former minister and noted politician) and later on brutally killed him. The Bangali soldiers posted at Jessore cantonment revolted against the Pak army on 29 March 1971 led by Captain Hafiz Uddin and Lt Anwar in which about 300 soldiers were killed. The freedom fighters killed 50 Pak soldiers by machine gun shot at Chanchra. Jessore sadar upazila was liberated on 5 December.

Marks of the War of Liberation Memorial sculpture 2, war of liberation memorial collection 1.

Religious institutions Mosque 713, temple 50, church 6, tomb 5. Noted religious institutions: Markas Mosque (Newmarket), Fathehpur Jami Mosque, Lebutala Mosque, tomb of Hazrat Garib Shah (R), Marua Mandir, Ramkrishna Ashrama Mandir, Kalibari Mandir, Catholic Church.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 58.56%; male 63.15%, female 53.39%. Educational institutions: homeopathic medical college 1, law college 1, primary teachers training instituate (PTI) 1, college 20, secondary school 99, primary school 210, community school 33, kindergarten 12, madrasa 45. Noted educational institutions: Jessore Science and Technology University, Government Michael Madhusudan College (1941), Jessore Government Women's College (1965), Government City College (1967), Sammilani Instituttion (1889), Munshi Mehrullah Academy (1901), Muslim Academy (1946), Jessore Polytechnic Institute (1963), Jessore Zilla School (1838), Jangal Badhal Secondary School (1919), Basundia Multilateral Secondary School (1919), Shabajpur Secondary School (1927),' Madhusudan' Tara Prosonno Secondary Girls' School (1932), Hasimpur Secondary School (1941), Khajura MN Mitra Secondary School (1943), Jessore Government Secondary Girls' School (1962), Aminia Alia Madrasa (1952).

Newspapers and periodicals Daily: Runner, Lok Samaj, Desh Hitoishi, Purabi.

Cultural organisations Library 6, club 37, cinema hall 6, playground 92, theatre group 5, theatre stage 4, women's organisation 12, cultural organisation 3.

Main sources of income Agriculture 35.09%, non-agricultural labourer 4.73%, industry 2.14%, commerce 21.17%, transport and communication 6.23%, service 17.31%, construction 2.57%, religious service 0.16%, rent and remittance 0.84% and others 9.76%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 49.68%, landless 50.32%; agricultural landowner: urban 36.14% and rural 55.91%.

'Main crops Paddy, potato, wheat, cotton, mustard, sugarcane, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Tobacco, local varietieties of paddy such as Balam paddy, Chandrahar paddy, Bhuro paddy.

Main fruits Date, jackfruit, papaya, litchi, coconut, banana, safeda.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 51, dairy 16, poultry 180, hatchery 100.

Communication facilities Pucca road 278.22 km, semi-pucca road 37 km, mud road 852.79 km; railway 35 km; waterway 5 nautical miles; railstation 1, airport 1.

Extinct or nearly extinct traditional transport Palanquin, bullock cart.'

Noted manufactories Rice mill, flour mill, oil mill, biscuit factory, soap factory, comb factory, bidi factory, leather mill, steel mill, plastic factory, welding factory.

Cottage industries Goldsmith, blacksmith, weaving, potteries, wood work, cane work, bamboo work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 56, most noted of which are Hasimpur bazar, Rajar hat, Puler hat, Lebutala hat, Shabajpur bazar, Monohorpur bazar, Churamankati bazar and cattle market at the suburban area.

Main exports Date molasses, leather, cotton, jackfruit, banana, comb, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the wards and unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 54.96% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 91.84%, tap 3.81%, pond 0.20% and others 4.16%.

Sanitation 55.21% (rural 41.95% and urban 84.08%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 30.98% (rural 38.67% and urban 14.23%) of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 13.81% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Hospital 1, government TB hospital 1, maternity and child welfare centre 1, clinic 15, diagnostic centre 7, eye hospital 1.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, asa, proshika, Jagarani Chakra, Samaj Kalyan Sangstha. [Firoj Ansari]

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