Nabinagar Upazila

Nabinagar Upazila (brahmanbaria district) area 353.66 sq km, located in between 23°45' and 24°00' north latitudes and in between 90°50' and 91°51' east longitudes. It is bounded by brahmanbaria sadar, ashuganj and raipura upazilas on the north, muradnagar upazila on the south, kasba and Brahmanbaria Sadar upazilas on the east, banchharampur and Raipura upazilas on the west.

Population Total 420383; male 208347, female 212036; Muslim 384657, Hindu 35682, Buddhist 30 and others 14.

Water bodies Main rivers: meghna, Pagla, Buri.

Administration Nabinagar Thana was turned into an upazila on 24 March 1983.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
1	20	155	196	40600	379783	1189	44.88	37.10

Municipality
Area (sq km)	Ward	Mahalla	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
14.14	9	18	40600	2871	44.88

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Ibrahimpur 27	3421	5730	5752	47.34
Krishnanagar 45	5064	12523	12637	25.64
Kaitala 40	5225	11665	12302	40.38
Junedpur 36	3366	8167	8550	40.04
Natghar 58	6427	10919	10319	22.03
Paschim Nabinagar 60	2548	7778	7760	22.85
Purba Nabinagar 62	4217	5621	5276	26.89
Barail 81	382	989	1039	29.31
Barikandi 12	3263	7945	8386	36.60
Bitghar (Tiara) 22	3653	11926	12880	43.27
Biddyakut 13	6003	12080	12114	27.68
Birgaon 18	2827	7495	7571	31.02
Ratanpur 72	6295	11669	12400	48.49
Rasullabad 67	3892	8640	8733	50.14
Laur Fatehpur 47	4038	9177	9446	43.37
Shibpur 86	5914	14077	14729	40.55
Shyamgram 88	5669	12168	12527	38.55
Sreerampur 90	5734	7893	8199	38.91
Satmura 83	3458	7529	7598	42.35
Salimganj 75	2298	6696	7100	37.67

Source  Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Shahpur Mosque (1876), Munsef Adalat (1884), Dakshin Para Mosque (Ahammadpur), Satidaha memorial Mandir at Biddyakot, Nabinagar Math, abandoned Zamindar Bari, Kameni Bala Debi Ananda Asrama, Natghar Shiva Statue (seventeenth century), Kosti Pathar Bishnu Statue (seventeenth century, Baghaura), Kosti Pathar Bishnu Statue (seventeenth century, Satmura).

History of the War of Liberation Nabinagar was under Sector 2 during the war of liberation. In 1971 about 2400 freedom fighters of the upazila joined in the War of Liberation of whom 33 were killed. The most notable battlefields of the upazila were Nabinagar sadar and Yogidhara bridge of Ibrahimpur.

Marks of the War of Liberation Mass grave 3 (Kharghar, adjacent to North-West corner of the Nabinagar Pilot High School playground, South side of Thana Compound at Nabinagar).

Newspapers and periodicals Weekly: Titaser Khober (2004).

Religious institutions Mosque 547, temple 26. Noted religious institutions: Dakshin Para Mosque (Ahammadpur), Sahapur Mosuqe, Satidaha memorial Mandir at Biddyakut, Hazrat Karim Shah Mazar, Hazrat Wali Shah Mazar, Hazrat Khalek Shah Chishti Mazar, Hazrat Adu Shah Mazar.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 37.9%; male 40.2%, female 35.6%. Educational institutions: college 5, technical education institute 2, secondary school 43, primary school 299, madrasa 588. Noted educational institutions: Nabinagar Government College (1969), Nabinagar Pilot High School (1896), Shyamgram Mohini Kishore High School (1900), Biddyakut Amar High Schoool (1913), Kaitala Jajneswar High School (1918).

Cultural organisations Library 1, club 22, press club 1, shilpakala academy 1, cinema hall 4, playground 25, children organisation 2,' Shilpigosthi 2.

Main sources of income Agriculture 53.51%, non-agricultural labourer 2.41%, industry 0.96, commerce 16.85%, transport and communication 1.56%, service 7.54%, construction 1.40%, religious service 0.33, rent and remittance 8.94% and others 6.50%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 58.95%, landless 41.05%; agricultural landowner: urban 47.38% and rural 60.21%.

Main crops Paddy, jute, wheat, mustard, coriander, masur, black gram, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Kaun, sesame, linseed, arahar.

Main fruits Mango, jackfruit, papaya, banana, coconut, betel nut.

Communication facilities Pucca road 26 km, semi-pucca road 12 km, mud road 30.50 km; waterway 75 nautical miles.

Noted manufactories Saw mill, ice factory.

Cottage industries Blacksmith, potteries, bamboo work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 51, fairs 10, most noted of which are Nabinagar Bazar, Bungra Bazar, Baishmouza Bazar, Shyamgram Bazar, Shibpur Bazar, Bholachang Bazar, Nabinagar Mela, Bholachang Baishakhi Mela, Baishakhi Mela at Radhanagar, Kali Mela at Shreeghar and Natghar Mela.

Main exports Paddy, jute, coriander, banana, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the wards and unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 30.55% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 94.29%, tap 0.59%, pond 2.02% and others 3.10%. The presence of arsenic has been detected in shallow tube-well water of the upazila.

Sanitation 58.56% (rural 56.15% and urban 80.73%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 32.41% (rural 34.63% and urban 12.04%) of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 9.03% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Hospital 2, upazila health complex 8, health and family welfare centre 14, union family planning centre 5, clinic 20, red cross maternity 1, veterinary hospital 1.

Natural disasters The floods of 1988 and 2004 caused heavy damages to crops and livestock of the upazila. About 2500 people were victims when two passenger motor launches were sunk in the Meghna due to devastating tornado of 1 May 2001.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, proshika, asa. [Md. Abu Baten] ]]

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