Bhedarganj ( bn, ভেদরগঞ্জ, Bhedorgonj) 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 ...

(sub-district) of

Shariatpur District Shariatpur ( bn, শরিয়তপুর জেলা, ''Shariatpur Jela'' also ''Shariatpur Zila'') is a district in the Dhaka Division of central Bangladesh. It is bounded by Munshiganj district on the north, Barisal district on the south, Ch ...

in central

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 ...

, located in the

Dhaka Division Dhaka Division ( bn, ঢাকা বিভাগ, ''Ḑhaka Bibhag'') is an administrative division within Bangladesh. Dhaka serves as the capital city of the Dhaka Division, the Dhaka District and Bangladesh. The division remains a populati ...

. It is a part of the

Greater Faridpur Padma Division ( bn, পদ্মা বিভাগ) is a proposed administrative division within Bangladesh for the southern parts of the existing Dhaka Division, comprising Faridpur, Gopalganj, Madaripur, Rajbari, and Shariatpur District ...

region and is named after its administrative centre, the town of Bhedarganj.

Geography

Bhedarganj Upazila has a total area of . About seven-tenths is land and three-tenths is water, chiefly the

Padma River The Padma ( bn, পদ্মা ''Pôdma'') is a major river in Bangladesh. It is the main distributary of the Ganges, flowing generally southeast for to its confluence with the Meghna River near the Bay of Bengal. The city of Rajshahi is sit ...

, which cuts through the northern part of the upazila. It borders

Naria Upazila Naria ( bn, নড়িয়া) is an upazila of Shariatpur District of the Dhaka Division of Bangladesh. It is named after its administrative centre, the town of Naria. History Naria was historically a part of the Idilpur division of the Chand ...

to the west and north,

Munshiganj District Munshiganj ( bn, মুন্সীগঞ্জ), also historically known as Bikrampur, is a district in central Bangladesh. It is a part of the Dhaka Division and borders Dhaka District. Geography Total land area is 235974 acres (954 km2), ...

to the north,

Chandpur District Chandpur District () is a district located in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh. It was a part of the Cumilla District until 15 February 1984.Musa, Muhammad. Brahmanbariar Itibrittyo, Shetu Prokashoni, Brahmanbaria,1998. History During the ru ...

to the north and east, Gosairhat and Damudya upazilas to the south, and

Shariatpur Sadar Upazila Shariatpur Sadar ( bn, শরিয়তপুর সদর) is an upazila of Shariatpur District in the Division of Dhaka, Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is ...

to the west. The

Meghna River The Meghna River ( bn, মেঘনা নদী) is one of the major rivers in Bangladesh, one of the three that form the Ganges Delta, the largest delta on earth, which fans out to the Bay of Bengal. A part of the Surma-Meghna River System, ...

also flows through this upazila as well as the Banglabazar Canal.

History

In 1924, the

Zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as a ...

Bikrampur Bikrampur ("City of Courage") was a pargana situated south of Dhaka, the modern capital city of Bangladesh. In the present day, it is known as Munshiganj District of Bangladesh. It is a historic region in Bengal and was a part of the Bhawal Est ...

Syed Bhedar Uddin Shah established the Bhedarganj Thana in his name. During the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...

of 1971, two brawls and a battle took place in Bhedarganj resulting in the deaths of many Bengali freedom fighters. The thana was converted into an upazila on 14 September 1983 and inaugurated by Sultan Mahmud.

Demographics

According to the

2011 Bangladesh census In 2011, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, conducted a national census in Bangladesh, which provided a provisional estimate of the total population of the country as 142,319,000. The previous decennial census was the 2001 census. Data were reco ...

, Bhedarganj Upazila had 53,305 households and a population of 253,234, 3.6% of whom lived in urban areas. 12.0% of the population was under the age of 5. The literacy rate (age 7 and over) was 42.7%, compared to the national average of 51.8%.

Administration

Bhedarganj Upazila is divided into Bhedarganj Municipality and 13 union parishads: Arshi Nagar, Char Bhaga, Char Census, Char Kumaria, Chhaygaon, Dhakhin Tarabunia, D m khali , Kachikata, Mahisar, Naryanpur, Rambhadrapur, Sakhipur, and Tarabunia. The union parishads are subdivided into 87 mauzas and 372 villages. Vice Chairman : Mannan bepary Woman Vice Chairman : Lipi sorder

Upazila Nirbahi Officer An Upazila Nirbahi Officer ( Abbreviation: UNO; bn, উপজেলা নির্বাহী অফিসার) is the chief executive officer of an upazila (subdistrict) and a mid-level officer of the Bangladesh Civil Service (administratio ...

(UNO) : Abdullah Al Mamun Bhedarganj Municipality was established in 1997. It is subdivided into 9 wards and 12 mahallas.

Upazila Chairmen

Economy and tourism

Bhedarganj mainly exports

jute Jute is a long, soft, shiny bast fiber that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', which is in the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is ''Corchorus olit ...

. Notable places of interest in Bhedarganj include the Upazila Jame Mosque and the Kartikpur Zarina Trust Mosque, among the total 450 mosques in the upazila. The

zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as a ...

palace of Chhaygaon and the Anandabazar Embankment are also popular sites.

Education

There are four colleges & a university in the upazila. They include Hazi Shariat Ullah College and M. A Reza Degree College. The only university of the district named Z.H. Sikder University of Science and Technology is situated here in this upazila. The madrasa education system includes one fazil madrasa.

Notable people

AKM Enamul Haque Shamim AKM Enamul Hoque Shameem (born 29 March 1965) is a Bangladesh Awami League politician and the incumbent deputy minister of the ministry of Water Resources. He is also the member of Parliament from Shariatpur-2. Career Shameem was elected to Par ...

, Deputy Minister of Water Resources *

Parveen Haque Sikder Parveen Haque Sikder, known as Sikder (born 3 January 1963) is a Bangladesh Awami League politician and a Jatiya Sangsad member from the Women's Reserved Seat 39. Background Sikder was born on 3 January 1963 in the village of Kartikpur, Bhedar ...

, director of

National Bank Limited The National Bank Limited ( bn, ন্যাশনাল ব্যাংক লিমিটেড) is a private limited bank in Bangladesh. Md Mehmood Husain is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank. Currently NBL has ca ...

Shamim Sikder Shamim Sikder (born 1953) is a Bangladeshi sculptor. She was awarded Ekushey Padak in 2000 by the Government of Bangladesh. Education and career Sikder enrolled at the Bulbul Academy of Fine Arts at the age of 15. In 1976, she moved to Sir John ...

, sculptor *

Siraj Sikder Siraj Sikder (27 October 1944 – 2 January 1975) was a Bangladeshi revolutionary politician. Early life Sikder was born on 27 October 1944 in Bhedarganj, Shariatpur District, East Bengal. His father was Abdur Razzaq Sikder, and belonged to ...

, revolutionary

References

{{Upazilas of Dhaka Division Bhedarganj Upazila Upazilas of Shariatpur District