Mehendiganj Upazila

Mehendiganj Upazila (barisal district) area 435.79 sq km, located in between 22°41' and 23°55' north latitudes and in between 90°23' and 90°38' east longitudes. It is bounded by hizla and muladi upazilas on the north, barisal sadar and bhola sadar upazilas on the south, Bhola Sadar, lakshmipur sadar and raipur upazilas on the east, Muladi and Barisal Sadar upazilas on the west.

Population Total 304364; male 154400, female 149964; Muslim 291679, Hindu 12569, Buddhist 8, Christian 48 and others 60.

Water bodies Main rivers: meghna, Lata, arial khan, tentulia, Dharmaganj, Azimpur, Naya Bhanga, Chilmari and Sultani.

Administration Mehendiganj Thana was turned into an upazila on 15 October 1983.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
1	13	124	155	32952	271412	698	63.8	44.4

Municipality
Area (sq km)	Ward	Mahalla	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
14.96	09	11	29281	1957	62.53

Upazila Town
Area (sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
2.29	-	3671	1603	65.22

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Andhar Manik 15	6106	10750	10448	45.81
Alimabad 13	12913	13605	13173	40.01
Ulania 94	6096	19323	18103	49.48
Gobindapur 40	10580	14995	13961	39.15
Char Gopalpur 55	6593	7450	7104	41.59
Char Ekkaria 47	11548	15179	15405	43.07
Chandpur 39	4212	10965	10998	42.62
Jangalia 71	8845	10282	9705	34.07
Dari Char Khajuria 63	4687	5902	5651	37.65
Bidyanandapur 31	7667	6242	6261	45.26
Bhasan Char 23	4524	7515	7511	54.95
Mehendiganj 87	5777	7489	7479	52.46
Lata 79	7141	9870	9717	54.98

Source  Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Ulania Zamindar Bari and Mosque, statue of Basudeb, Kella (fort) of Sangram Singh (built during the Mughal period).

Marks of the War of Liberation Memorial monument 1 (Patarhat RC College compound).

Religious institutions Mosque 330, temple 28.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 46.5%; male 46.5%, female 46.5%. Educational institutions: college 5, secondary school 30, primary school 70, madrasa 113. Noted educational institutions: Patarhat' RC College, Ekta College, Ulania Mujaffar Khan College, Andhar Manik Secondary School, Amirganj Secondary School, Laskarpur Uttar Jangalia Secondary School, Udaypur Muslim Akandh Secondary School, Ulania Cornation Secondary School, Ulania Girls' Secondary School, Kalikapur Romij Memorial Secondary School, Patarhat Muslim High School (1924), Bhasan Char SM High School (1943), Andhar Manik Azimpur Dakhil Madrasa, Andhar Manik Alimabad Islamia Senior Madrasa, Aslamia Isalamia Dakhil Madrasa, Ulania Ahmadia Girls' Dakhil Madrasa, Patarhat Senior Madrasa, Bhasan Char Nesaria Senior Madarasa, Madartali Islamia Senior Madrasa, Santoshpur Senior Madrasa.

Cultural organisations Library 1, club 42, cinema hall 1, women organisation 5, playground 35, theatre group 1.

Main sources of income Agriculture 59.76%, non-agricultural labourer 4.33%, commerce 13.68%, transport and communication 1.44%, service 7.55%, construction 1.70%, rent and remittance 2.45% and others 9.09%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 58.85%, landless 41.15%; agricultural landowner: urban 52.30% and rural 59.62%.

Main crops Paddy, jute, wheat, pulse, sweet potato, onion, betel leaf, sugarcane, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Sesame, linseed, kaun, mustard.

Main fruits Mango, jackfruit, banana, litchi, blackberry, palm, coconut, custard apple, betel nut.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 51, poultry 174, hatchery10.

Communication facilities Pucca road 60 km, semi-pucca road 5' km, mud road 550 km.

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

Noted manufactories Flour mill 1, ice factory 5, biscuit factory 20, salt factory 1, bidi factory 1.

Cottage industries Blacksmith 50, potteries 86, mat manufacturing 56, bamboo work 20, nakshi kantha 18.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 28, fair 1, most noted of which are Patarhat, Ulania Hat, Court Hat, Banglabazar Kazir Hat and Dafadar Hat.

Main exports Betel leaf, onion, sweet potato, betel nut, pulse.

Access to electricity All the wards and unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 4.96% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 83.40%, tap 0.25%, pond 8.35% and others 8.01%.

Sanitation 40.96% (rural 36.96% and urban 75.10%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 50.84% of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 8.20% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Upazila health complex 1, family planning centre 13, satellite clinic 4.

Natural disasters The floods of 1822 and 1895 and the cyclones of 1864, 1961 and 1965 caused heavy damages to settlements, properties and other crops of the upazila.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, caritas, asa, proshika. [Ahsan Habib]

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