Balaganj ( bn, বালাগঞ্জ) is an
upazila
An ''upazila'' ( bn, উপজেলা, upôzela, lit=sub-district pronounced: ), formerly called ''thana'', is an administrative region in Bangladesh, functioning as a sub-unit of a district. It can be seen as an analogous to a county or a ...
of
Sylhet District in
Sylhet Division
Sylhet Division ( bn, সিলেট বিভাগ) is the northeastern division of Bangladesh. It is bordered by the Indian states of Meghalaya, Assam and Tripura to the north, east and south respectively, and by the Bangladeshi divisions ...
,
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
.
Etymology
The name Balaganj is derived from the
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
word ''bala'' meaning 'strength' and the Persian/Bengali word ''ganj'' that means 'marketplace' or 'neighbourhood'. Its older name was Kushiyarakul named after the abundance of sugar-cane (''kushiyar'' in Sylheti) in the area. The town also lies on the banks of the
Kushiyara River
The Kushiyara River is a distributary river in Bangladesh and Assam, India. It forms on the India-Bangladesh border as a branch of the Barak River, when the Barak separates into the Kushiyara and Surma. The waters that eventually form the Kushiy ...
, which also takes its name from
sugarcane. An
ashram was opened in its central
bazaar known as the Madan Mohan Jiu Ashram, which renamed the area to Madanganj. The female worshippers at the temple were known for wearing many bangles on both of their hands. The popularity of bangles in the area increased so much that the town eventually became known as Balaganj Bazaar.
History
After the
Conquest of Gour
The Conquest of Sylhet ( bn, শ্রীহট্টের বিজয়, Srīhôtter Bijôy, Conquest of Srihatta) predominantly refers to an Islamic conquest of Srihatta (present-day Sylhet, Bangladesh) led by Sikandar Khan Ghazi, the mil ...
in 1303, many disciples of
Shah Jalal
Jalāl Mujarrad Kunyāʾī (), popularly known as Shah Jalal, was a celebrated Sufi figure of Bengal. His name is often associated with the Conquest of Sylhet and the spread of Islam into the region, part of a long history of interactions betw ...
migrated to modern-day Balaganj (Gauharpur Pargana) where they preached Islam to the local people such as
Aziz Chishti. Shah Alauddin went to Alapur, Shah Kala Miah Irani went to Shiyorkhal and Shah Sultan went to what is now Sultanpur.
Balaganj thana was established in 1882 and included present-day
Osmani Nagar,
Fenchuganj and
Rajnagar. It separated from Fenchuganj and Rajnagar by 10 January 1922. Balaganj was the scene of the battles at Sherpur and Sadipur during the
Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. The
Adityapur massacre
Adityapur massacre ( bn, আদিত্যপুর গণহত্যা) refers to the massacre of 63 Bengali Hindus
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bā ...
on 6 May 1971 and
Galimpur massacre against
Bengali Hindus
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bāṅgālī Hindu/Bāṅāli Hindu) are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Beng ...
took place in this upazila. The war dead are buried in mass graves at Adityapur and Bhatpara Salimpur.
[
It is the third largest upazila of Sylhet district by population. It was turned into an upazila on 7 November 1982. It consists of 14 union parishads, 241 mouzas and 467 villages.
]
Geography
Balaganj stands on the Kushiyara River
The Kushiyara River is a distributary river in Bangladesh and Assam, India. It forms on the India-Bangladesh border as a branch of the Barak River, when the Barak separates into the Kushiyara and Surma. The waters that eventually form the Kushiy ...
and is on the southwest periphery of Sylhet district. To the north is Sylhet Sadar Upazila
Sylhet Sadar ( bn, সিলেট সদর) is an upazila of Sylhet District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh.
Geography
Sylhet Sadar is located at . It has 86,074 households and a total area of 323.17 km2. The city of Sylhet is loca ...
, to the south are Rajnagar Upazila
Rajnagar ( bn, রাজনগর) is an upazila of the Moulvibazar District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh. The district has roughly 29,300 houses and an area of approximately 340 km2. There are three well-known rivers which flow acro ...
and Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila
Moulvibazar Sadar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার সদর) is an upazila of Moulvibazar District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh.
History
In ancient times, the region was known as Chandrapur or Chandrarajya. After the Conquest of Go ...
in Moulvibazar District
Moulvibazar ( bn, মৌলভীবাজার) also spelled Maulvibazar, Moulavibazar, and Maulavibazar, (former South Sylhet) is the southeastern district of Sylhet Division in northeastern Bangladesh, named after the town of Moulvibazar. It ...
, Fenchuganj Upazila
Fenchuganj ( bn, ফেঞ্চুগঞ্জ) is an upazila of Sylhet District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh.
Etymology
There are many theories behind the naming of the upazila. Some say that Fenchuganj is named after Penchu (or Fench ...
of this district is on the east and on the west is Bishwanath Upazila
Bishwanath ( bn, বিশ্বনাথ) is an upazila of Sylhet District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh.
History
One of the palaces of Gour Govinda, the last Hindu ruler of Sylhet, was situated in present-day Bishwanath. Its ruins are ...
of this district and Jagannathpur Upazila
Jagannathpur ( bn, জগন্নাথপুর) is an upazila located in the southeast of the district of Sunamganj and in the middle of the division of Sylhet, Bangladesh. It is bordered by Chhatak and Dakshin Sunamganj to the north, Bish ...
of Sunamganj District
Sunamganj ( bn, সুনামগঞ্জ) is a district located in north-eastern Bangladesh within the Sylhet Division.
History
In the ancient period, Sunamganj was part of the Laur Kingdom. After the conquest of Sylhet (Kingdom of Gauiurh) ...
. Geographically Balaganj Upazila is situated at about 24.36* and 24.47* longitude and 91.38* and 91.56* east latitude. The distance of the Upazila headquarter(HQ) from the district HQ is nearly 37 km. The land area is approximately 375.92 km2
Balaganj is located at . It has 36,919 household units and occupies an area of 389.51 km2. The upazila is bordered on the north by Sylhet Sadar and Bishwanath Upazilas, on the east by Fenchuganj Upazila, on the South by Maulvibazar Sadar Upazila and Rajnagar Upazila of Maulvibazar district, and on the west by Jagannathpur Upazila of Sunamganj district and Nabiganj Upazila of Habiganj district.
Demographics
As of the 1991 Bangladesh census, Balaganj has a population of 230,865. Males constitute 50.67% of the population, and females 49.33%. Muslim 90.04%, Hindu 9.89%, Buddhist, Christian and others 0.07%. This Upazila's eighteen and over population is 115,624. Balaganj has an average literacy rate of 57.4% (7+ years), with the national average being 32.4%. The population is 3,20,227. (Census-2001).
Economy
Main hats, bazars and fairs Balaganj, Moyna Bazar, Goala Bazar, Tajpur Bazar, Doyamir Bazar, Pirer Bazar, Bualjur Bazar, Ilashpur Bazar, Azizpur Bazar, Goherpur Bazar/Murar Bazar, Madrasa Bazar, Bangla Bazar, Khaler Mukh Hats and Shior Khal Mela are notable.
Main occupations Agriculture 26.04%, service 24.51%, commerce 18.22%, agricultural labourer 11.31%, wage labourer 7.25%, fishing 4.29%, transport 1.97%, others 6.41%
Administration
Balaganj Upazila is divided into 14 union parishad
Union council ( bn, ইউনিয়ন পরিষদ, translit=iūniyan pariṣad, translit-std=IAST), also known as union parishad, rural council, rural union and simply union, is the smallest rural administrative and local government unit ...
s: Balaganj, Boaljur Bazar, Burunga, Dayamir, Dewan Bazar, Goula Bazar, Omarpur, Osmanpur, Paschim Gauripur, Paschim Pailanpur, Purba Gauripur, Purba Pailanpur, Saidpur, and Tajpur. The union parishads are subdivided into 239 mauzas and 473 villages.
Education
Educational institutions: 11 colleges, 57 secondary schools, 278 primary schools, 44 madrasas.
* Islamia Mohammadiya Alim Madrasha
* Balaganj Degree College
* Islamia Mohammadiya Alim Madrasha
* Balaganj D.N. High School, D.N. High School
Notable residents
* Aziz Chishti
* Enamul Haque Chowdhury
* Islah Abdur-Rahman
* Iqbal Ahmed
* Lutfur Rahman
*Nur Uddin Gohorpuri
Nur Uddin Ahmed Gohorpuri ( bn, নূর উদ্দিন আহমদ গহরপুরী; 1924 – 26 April 2005) was a Bengali Muslim religious scholar and teacher. He was notable for his association with Qawmi Madrasahs in Bangladesh ...
See also
* Upazilas of Bangladesh
An ''upazila'' ( bn, উপজেলা, upôzela, lit=sub-district pronounced: ), formerly called ''thana'', is an administrative region in Bangladesh, functioning as a sub-unit of a district. It can be seen as an analogous to a county or a ...
* Districts of Bangladesh
* Divisions of Bangladesh
References
{{Upazilas of Sylhet Division
Balaganj Upazila,