Pabna Sadar Upazila

Pabna Sadar Upazila (pabna district) area 443.90 sq km, located in between 23°53' and 24°05' north latitudes and in between 89°09' and 89°25' east longitudes. It is bounded by atgharia and ishwardi upazilas on the north, kumarkhali and pangsha upazilas on the south, santhia and sujanagar upazilas on the east, Ishwardi upazila on the west. The only mental hospital (established in 1957) of Bangladesh is located in the town.

Population Total 476932; male 247601, female 229331; Muslim 466050, Hindu 10577, Buddhist 204, Christian 67 and others 34.

Water bodies Main rivers: padma, ichamati.

Administration Pabna Thana was formed in 1872 and it was turned into an upazila in 1984.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
1	10	259	284	159977	316955	476932	67.1	38.2

Municipality
Area (sq km)	Ward	Mahalla	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
27.23	15	42	116305	4271	73.4

Upazila Town
Area (sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
18.46	12	43672	2367	50.0

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Ataikola 16	8458	18501	16709	46.00
Gayeshpur 51	7725	17577	15578	37.72
Char Tarapur 25	7456	12896	12038	31.94
Dapunia 34	7869	14745	14047	42.01
Dogachhi 43	14229	33382	31427	42.49
Bharara 17	20182	23643	21613	28.87
Malanchi 69	5836	12886	12006	41.96
Maligachha 77	7097	18153	17296	44.20
Sadullahpur 94	7756	14270	13204	29.87
Hemayetpur 60	16732	20882	19774	46.94

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Three domed mosque at Bharara (1176 AH), 'Jor Bangla' Mandir at Raghabpur (eighteenth century), Tarash Bhaban (revenue office of Zamindar Roy Bahadur Banamali), Shitlai Bhaban (homestead of Zamindar Yogendranath Maitra), Zamindar Bari at Dhulai, District Judge Court Building (1884).

History of the War of Liberation On 29 March 1971 an encounter was held between the freedom fighters and the Pak army at the Telephone Exchange Compound in which 22 Pak soldiers were killed.

Marks of the War of Liberation Mass grave 1 (Central Shaheed Minar at Gopalpur); memorial monument 1' (Durjoy Pabna).

Religious institutions Mosque 609, temple 120, church 1, sacred place 1. Noted religious institutions: Bharara Mosque, Jor Bangla' Mandir at Raghabpur, Satsangha Ashrama at Hemayetpur.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 48.2%; male 49.8%, female 46.6%. Educational institutions: college 15, secondary school 60, primary school 214, madrasa 37, orphanage 8. Noted educational institutions: Pabna Edward College (1898), Govt. Shaheed Bulbul College, Government Mohila College, Pabna Zila School (1853), Krishnapur Government Girls' High School (1903), GC Institution (1894), RM Academy (1899), Government Girl's High School (1925), Pabna Polytechnic Institute (1891), Radhanagar Majumdar Academy (1899), Central Girls' High School (1926), Jubilee High School (1936), Town Girls' High School (1903), Selim Nazir High School (1924), Pabna Aliya Madrasa (1925).

Newspapers and periodicals Daily: Uddag Bidhayani (1863); weekly: Pabna Darpan (1864), Bartabaha (1882), Bramar (1882-83), Usha (1882), Jostna (1900), Pabna-Bagura Hitoishi (1902), Suraj (1919), Rawshan Hedayet (1924), Shahshata Sangbad, Tarjamanul Hadith (1949), Manasi (1950), Pak Hitoishi, Amader Desh (1958), Pabna (1967), Prabaha (1968), Mehanati Kantha (1972); monthly: Arati (1924).

Cultural organisations Library 6, club 81, literary organisation 32, cinema hall 5, theatre stage 1, theatre group 13, community centre 1, shilpakala academy 1, women society 84.

Main sources of income Agriculture 38.77%, non-agricultural labourer 6.04%, industry 5.49%, commerce 17.17%, transport and communication 6.96%, service 10.61%, construction 3%, religious service 0.15%, rent and remittance 1.09% and others 10.72%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 44.68%, landless 55.32%; agricultural landowner: urban 32.27% and rural 50.74%.'

Main crops Paddy, jute, wheat, sugarcane, mustard, pulse, mulberry tree, chilli, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Barley, china, kaun, bhura.

Main fruits Mango, banana, litchi, papaya, lemon.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 76, dairy 107, poultry 289, nursery 270, hatchery 1.

Communication facilities Pucca road 270' km, semi-pucca road 30 km, mud road 240 km; waterway 65 nautical miles.

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

Noted manufactories Oil mill, flour mill, rubber mill, cotton mill, textile mill, hosiery mill, pharmaceutical factory, biscuit factory, homeopath laboratory, weaving factory,

Cottage industries Weaving, cane work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 21, fairs 3, most noted of which are Ataikola Bazar, Dogachhi Bazar, Hemayetpur Bazar, Sadullahpur Bazar, Hajirhat Bazar, Tebunia Bazar, Kashipur Bazar, Dubalia Bazar and Shree Shree Thakur Anukul Chandra Jannmouttosab (birth anniversary) Mela at Hemayetpur.

Main exports Hosiery goods, cotton, cotton fabrics, paddy, pulse, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the wards and unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 37.33% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Natural resources Sand, Coal have been found in this upazila.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 93.03%, tap 2.07%, pond 0.19% and others 4.71%.

Sanitation 38.47% (rural 25.46% and urban 65.13%) of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 49.36% (rural 58.45% and urban 30.75%) of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 12.17% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Mental hospital 1, hospital 5, upazila health complex 1, health and family planning centre 10, TB hospital 1, diabetic hospital 1, eye hospital 1, community hospital 1, maternity and child welfare centre 1, clinic 28, community clinic 24, school health centre 1, municipal health centre 1, family planning centre 1, satellite clinic 11.

Natural disasters Many people were victims of the famines of 1897, 1898, 1943' and 1974. Besides, the earthquakes of 1885 and 1897 caused heavy damages to settlements and other properties of the upazila. '

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, asa, thengamara mahila sabuj sangha. [Md. Habibullah]

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