Begumganj Upazila


Begumganj is an upazila of the Noakhali District in Bangladesh's Chittagong Division. Begumganj Thana, now an upazila, was established in 1892.
WWW begumganj.noakhali.gov.bd

Geography

Begumganj is located at. It has 101,689 households and total area 238.37 km2. It is considered to be a very poorly-drained area of the Old Meghna Estuarine Floodplain along with Laksam Upazila.

History

During the Mughal period, a mosque was established in Chowdhury Bari, Gopalpur which still stands today. On 7 November 1946, Begumganj was visited by Mohandas Gandhi to suppress the Noakhali riots.
Begumganj suffered from tidal bore on 12 November 1970 as part of the 1970 Bhola cyclone. During the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, the Noakhali Company led by Subedar Lutfur Rahman was based in Begumganj. Bengali freedom fighters brawled with the Pakistan Army at Aminbazar Point on Chaumuhani-Lakshmipur road on 25 April. The freedom fighters launched an attack on a Razakar Camp located in Chandraganj High School on 2 July. On 19 August, 50 civilians were killed at Nayahat Bazar. Begumganj Thana was finally liberated on 6 August, and monuments were established in Chowmuhani and Sonaipur.
In 1982, Begumganj Thana was upgraded to upazila status as part of the President of Bangladesh Hussain Muhammad Ershad's decentralisation programme. The 1988, 1998 and 2004 floods caused a lot of damage to properties, crops and lives.

Demographics

According to the 2022 Bangladeshi census, Begumganj Upazila had 131,517 households and a population of 611,106. 10.55% of the population were under 5 years of age. Begumganj had a literacy rate of 81.46%: 81.99% for males and 81.02% for females, and a sex ratio of 86.69 males for every 100 females. 103,579 lived in urban areas.
According to the 2011 Census of Bangladesh, Begumganj Upazila had 101,689 households and a population of 549,308. 137,673 were under 10 years of age. Begumganj had a literacy rate of 59.25%, compared to the national average of 51.8%, and a sex ratio of 1103 females per 1000 males. 132,948 lived in urban areas.

Administration

Begumganj Upazila is divided into Chowmuhani Municipality and 16 union parishads: Gonipur, Alyearpur, Amanullapur, Begumganj, Chayani, Durgapur, Eklashpur, Gopalpur, Hajipur, Jirtali, Kadirpur, Kutubpur, Mirwarishpur, Narottampur, Rajganj, Rasulpur, and Sharifpur. The union parishads are subdivided into 178 mauzas and 184 villages. Chowmuhani Municipality is subdivided into 9 wards and 23 mahallas.

Education

There are four colleges in Begumganj, including Chowmuhani Government S.A College. Among specialized colleges are Begumgonj Textile Engineering College, Noakhali and Abdul Malek Ukil Medical College, Noakhali.
According to Banglapedia, local secondary schools include Begumganj Government Pilot High School, Babupur Jirtoli Union High School, Ghatla High School, Hazipur Abdul Majid High School, Kadirpur High School, and Kalikapur Babupur Union High School. The madrasa education system includes eight fazil and one kamil madrasas.

Notable people