Belkuchi Upazila

Belkuchi Upazila (sirajganj district) area 164.31 sq km, located in between 24°13' and 24°22' north latitudes and in between 89°37' and 89°47' east longitudes. It is bounded by sirajganj sadar upazila on the north, shahjadpur and chauhali upazilas on the south, kalihati and tangail sadar upazilas on the east, kamarkhanda and ullahpara upazilas on the west.

Population Total 302678; male 160265, female 142413; Muslim 284129, Hindu 18473, Buddhist 52 and others 24.

Water bodies Main rivers: jamuna and hurasagar; Chandi beel is notable.

Administration Belkuchi Thana was formed in 1921 and it was turned into an upazila in 1983.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
-	6	108	143	20328	282350	1842	53.80	46.53

Upazila Town
Area (sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
6.85	3	20328	2968	53.80

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Daulatpur 54	5525	47397	40484	49.46
Dhukaria Bera 67	6876	25770	23609	44.40
Baradhul 13	7730	10398	9057	38.55
Belkuchi 27	6554	19265	16996	46.56
Bhangabari 40	6282	32843	29263	52.98
Rajapur 81	6947	24592	23004	40.99

Source Bangladesh Population Census- 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

History of the War of Liberation On 7 December 1971 a battle was fought between the freedom fighters and the Pak army on WAPDA dam of Rajapur union in which the Pak army was defeated and one freedom fighter was killed. Another battle was fought between the freedom fighters and the Pak army at the north side of the graveyard of Tamai Paschimpara of Bhangabari union in which three Pak soldiers and two freedom fighters were killed.

Religious institutions Mosque 441, temple 72, church 1. Noted religious institutions: Ajgara Marcaques Jami Mosque, Sohagpur Kalibari Temple.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 47.03%; male 51.46%, female 42.03%. Educational institutions: college 5, secondary school 23, primary school 137, KG school 26, community school 3, madrasa 18. Noted educational institutions: Belkuchi Degree College (1970), Belkuchi Mahila College (1998), Daulatpur Degree College (1999), Baniagati Science and Technical College (2001), Shyam Kishore Pilot High School (1913), Satinath Academy, Sohagpur SK Pilot High School, Sohagpur Pilot Girls' High School (1967), Daulatpur High School (1918), Saidabad High School (1965), Megillah Senior Madrasa (1955).

Cultural organisations Library 2, club 42, cinema hall 6, play ground 13, women's organisation 145.

Main sources of income Agriculture 22.22%, non-agricultural labourer 5.36%, commerce 19.44%, transport and communication 1.92%, industry 24.38%, service 4.82%, construction 1.07%, religious service 0.26%, rent and remittance 1.15% and others 9.38%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 41.92%, landless 58.08%; agricultural landowner: urban 24.55% and rural 43.08%.

Main crops Paddy, wheat, jute, mustard seed, potato, pulses, ground nut, burley, kaun, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Sesame, linseed.

Main fruits Mango, jackfruit, black berry, litchi, papaya, banana, guava.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 31, dairy 7, poultry 193.

Communication facilities Pucca road 84 km, semi-pucca road 32 km, mud road 193 km; waterways 17 nautical miles.

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

Cottage industries Weaving 5032, bamboo work 12, cane work 10, wood work 226.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 37, fairs 3, most noted of which are Sohagpur Hat, Mukandagati Hat, Kandapara Hat and Boat Racing Mela (Sohagpur).

Main exports Paddy, jute, mustard seed, weaving cloths.

Access to electricity All the unions of the upazila are under electricity net-work. However 30.67%' dwellings have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 95.06%, tap 0.34%, pond 0.33% and others 4.27%. The presence of intolerable level of arsenic has been detected in the tube well water of the upazila.

Sanitation 23.70% (rural 23.56% and urban 25.67%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 65.92% (rural 66.16% and urban 62.32%) of dwelling houses use non-sanitary latrines; 10.38% of households do not have latrine facilities.

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

Natural Disasters The floods of 1988 and 1998 and the tornado of 1998 caused heavy damages to settlements, livestock, crops and other properties of the upazila.

NGO activities brac, asa, thengamara mahila sabuj sangha. [Md Rafiqul Islam]

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