Burichang Upazila

Burichang Upazila (comilla district) area 163.76 sq km, located in between 23°28' and 23°37 north latitude and in between 91°02' and 91°13' east longitudes. It is bounded by brahmanpara upazila on the north, comilla adarsha sadar upazila on the south, tripura state of India and Comilla Adarsha Sadar upazila on the east, debidwar and chandina upazilas on the west.

Population Total 301825; male 145982, female 155843; Muslim 290941, Hindu 10831, Buddhist 7, Christian 31 and others 15.

Water bodies Main rivers: gumti, Ghungur, noted canals are Chandala, Nagisabila, Uttar Borakhola, Marjora and Habilar are notable.

Administration 'Burichang thana, now an upazila, was formed in 1916.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
-	8	149	172	12776	289049	1843	64.7	56.7

Upazila Town
Area (per sq km)	Mouza	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy (%)
3.73	1	12776	3425	64.7

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy (%)
		Male	Female
Pir Jatrapur 72	2768	10730	12112	57.4
Baksimail 11	6102	15521	16540	57.5
Burichang Sadar 31	3975	18809	19894	59.7
Bharella 12	4918	21587	23146	52.9
Mainamati 63	5070	22646	23449	58.9
Mokam 69	6105	24139	25451	54.6
Rajapur 75	5499	14801	15996	60.0
Sholanal 94	6030	17749	19255	57.0

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Ranir Bungalow of Rani Mainamati (wife of Raja Manik Chandra), Buddha statue, Terracotta, marks of Buddhist religion, Shiva statue.

War of Liberation This upazila was under sector 2 during the war of liberation. There had been many encounters of the freedom fighters against Pak army in the upazila and the most memorable five among them were at Panchra, Burichang Police Station, Ramnagar, Jalalpur and Charanal. 11 Pakistani soldiers were killed and 12 of them were wounded in the encounter at Panchra. 8 Pakistani soldiers were killed in the operation at the Burichang Police Station and the number of Pakistani soldiers killed in operations at Ramnagar and Jalapur were 16 and 35 respectively. In the encounters between the freedom fighters and the Pak army 20 freedom fighters was martyred and 9 were wounded.

For details: see বুড়িচং উপজেলা, বাংলাদেশ মুক্তিযুদ্ধ জ্ঞানকোষ (Encyclopedia of Bangladesh War of Liberation), বাংলাদেশ এশিয়াটিক সোসাইটি, ঢাকা ২০২০, খণ্ড ৭।

Religious institutions Mosque 290, temple 23, place of pilgrimage 1, tomb 9.

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average 57.0%; male 58.4%, female 55.8%. Educational institutions: college 9, secondary school 81, primary school 137, madrasa 40. Noted educational institutions: Burichang' Ananda Pilot High School (1920), Fakir Bazar High School (1941), Mithilapur Government Primary School (1908), Sreepur Senior Fazil Madrasa (1932)

Newspapers and periodicals Brahmanpara Burichang, Kriti' Brahmanpara Burichang.

Cultural organisations Library 1, club 42, press club 1, women's organisation 8, cinema hall 2, playground 18.'

Main sources of income Agriculture 55.56%, non-agricultural labourer 1.79%, industry 0.65%, commerce 14.96%, transport and communication 3.95%, service 10.62%, construction 1.56%, religious service 0.25%, rent and remittance 1.06% and others 9.6%.

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 71.23%, landless 28.77%; agricultural land owner: urban 71.05% and rural 71.24%.'

Main crops Paddy, potato, wheat, mustard, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops kaun, Linseed, sugarcane, jute, sweet potato and tobacco.

Main fruits Jackfruit, mango, papaya, banana.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 171, poultries 410, artificial breeding centre 1,' artificial breeding point 5, nursery 21.

Communication facilities Roads: pucca road 120 km, semi-pucca 45 km, mud road 430 km, railways 7 km, railway station 1, culvert 761, heliport 1.

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

Noted manufactories Spinning mill, Silk industry, oil mill, saw mill, rice mill, paper board factory, boiler mill, welding factory, cold storage etc.

Cattage industries Goldsmith, blacksmith, weaving, potteries, tailoring, woodwork, bamboo and cane work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 29, fairs 1, most noted of which are Kangshanagar Hat, Nanuar Bazar Hat, Saheb Bazar, Fakir Bazar Hat and Mainamati Mela, Baishakhi Mela at Nanuar Bazar.

Main exports Handloom fabrics, potato, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 89.8% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 89.8%, tap 6.1% and others 4.1%. The presence of arsenic has been detected in shallow bube well of this upazila.

Sanitation In this upazila 74.1% of dwelling households of the upazilla use sanitary latrines and 23.2% of dwelling houses use non-sanitary latrines; 2.7% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Upazilla health complex 1, family planning centre 6, EPI centre 192, clinic 2, community clinic 20, veterinary hospital 1, livestock development centre 1.

NGO activities brac, asa. [Mahfuzur Rahman]

References Bangladesh Population Census 2001 and 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics; Cultural survey report of Burichang Upazila 2007.