Jamalpur ( bn, জামালপুর জেলা, ''Jamalpur Jela'' also ''Jamalpur Zila'') is a district in

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 ...

, part of the

Mymensingh Division Mymensingh Division ( bn, ময়মনসিংহ বিভাগ) is one of the eight administrative divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of and a population of 11,370,000 as of the 2011 census. It was created in 2015 from districts prev ...

. It was established in 1978.

Geography

Jamalpur occupies 2031.98 km². It is located between 24°34' and 25°26' North and between 89°40' and 90°12' East. It shares an international border with the Indian state of

Meghalaya Meghalaya (, or , meaning "abode of clouds"; from Sanskrit , "cloud" + , "abode") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the state of As ...

in the North East. It is surrounded by Kurigram and Sherpur districts in the North,

Tangail district Tangail ( bn, টাঙ্গাইল জেলা) formerly a small Mohokuma of Greater Mymensingh district is a district (''zila'') in the central region of Bangladesh. In 1969, Tangail district was created by Tangail Mohokuma from its 237 ...

in the South,

Mymensingh Mymensingh ( bn, ময়মনসিংহ) is the capital of Mymensingh Division, Bangladesh. Located on the bank of Brahmaputra River, about north of the national capital Dhaka, it is a major financial center and educational hub of north ...

and Sherpur districts in the East,

Jamuna River The Jamuna River ( bn, যমুনা ''Jomuna'') is one of the three main rivers of Bangladesh. It is the lower stream of the Brahmaputra River, which originates in Tibet as Yarlung Tsangpo, before flowing into India and then southwest into ...

Bogra Bogra ( bn, বগুড়া), officially known as Bogura, is a major city located in Bogra District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. The city is a major commercial hub in Northern Bangladesh. It is the second largest city in Rajshahi Divi ...

Sirajganj Sirajganj ( bn, সিরাজগঞ্জ) is a city in north-western Bangladesh on the right bank of the Jamuna River. It is the administrative headquarters of Sirajganj District, and with a population of 167,200 is the fourteenth most popul ...

and

Gaibandha Gaibandha ( bn, গাইবান্ধা) is a town and district headquarters of Gaibandha District in northern Bangladesh. It is a centre of commerce and trade of the Gaibandha District and is located under the Rangpur Division. The area of ...

districts in the West. The main town is situated on the bank of the

river Brahmaputra The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. It ...

, north of

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

, the national capital. Main rivers include Bangali,

Old Brahmaputra The Old Brahmaputra River ( bn, পুরাতন ব্রহ্মপুত্র নদী) is a distributary of the Brahmaputra River in north-central Bangladesh. Historically the main stem of the Brahmaputra, the larger river's primary out ...

, Banal, Hinayana, Hark Eel, Kaiser Reel, Karaganda Lake.

History

The most notable historical events include the Fakir-Sannyasi Resistance (1772-1790), the Indigo Resistance Movement (1829),

Famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, Demographic trap, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. Th ...

(1874), the advent of rail (1899), and the

War of Liberation Wars of national liberation or national liberation revolutions are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) to establish separat ...

in 1971.

War of Liberation

On June 21, 1971, the

Pakistani army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the Partition of British India, which occurred as a result ...

, in collaboration with the local

Razakars Razakar (رضا کار) is etymologically an Arabic word which literally means volunteer. The word is also common in Urdu language as a loanword. On the other hand, in Bangladesh, razakar is a pejorative word meaning a traitor or Judas. In Pakista ...

, killed 9 people at the Shashan Ghat (cremation center) at Jamalpur Sadar Upazila on the bank of the Brahmaputra. Bengali fighters and the Pakistani army on July 31 fought at Kamalpur Pakistani Army Base of Bakshiganj Upazila, with heavy losses to the occupation army. In this battle, 35 freedom fighters including Capt. Salauddin Mumtaz, Ahaduzzaman, Abul Kalam Azad were killed. A battle was fought between Bengali troops under Sector Commander Colonel Abu Taher and the Pakistani army on November 13 at Kamalpur of Bakshiganj Upazila. Taher was seriously wounded. The small Pakistani military base at Kamalpur fell on December 4, following a heavy attack by rebels lasting 21 days. In this battle, 220 Pakistani soldiers under the command of Captain Ahsan Malik surrendered. The Jamalpur garrison was commanded by Sultan Ahmed and lasted about a week. Sultan earned renown among the Pakistanis when he refused to surrender to the Indian commander, Hardev Kler, telling him to use a sten not a pen. This front, together with the Rangpur-Bogra front further west, was the only front where Pakistani troops held out during the war. However, on December 10, 1971, they were ordered to withdraw to

. During this retreat their commander Abdul-Qadir Niazi fell into enemy custody, giving the Bangladeshis and Indians a morale boost.

Economy

Jamalpur is a market center for local

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with ...

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 ...

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

and

mustard Mustard may refer to: Food and plants * Mustard (condiment), a paste or sauce made from mustard seeds used as a condiment * Mustard plant, one of several plants, having seeds that are used for the condiment ** Mustard seed, seeds of the mustard p ...

. The town's main exports are jute, tobacco, mustard seed, peanut, leather, egg, pulse, betel leaf, and handicrafts. Making

nakshi kantha Nakshi kantha, a type of embroidered quilt, is a centuries-old Bengali art tradition of the Bengal region, notable in Bangladesh and Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and part of Assam. The basic material used is thread and old cloth. Na ...

(embroidered quilts) is a traditional occupation. An economic zone is establishing in Jamalpur by

BEZA Theodore Beza ( la, Theodorus Beza; french: Théodore de Bèze or ''de Besze''; June 24, 1519 – October 13, 1605) was a French Calvinist Protestant theologian, reformer and scholar who played an important role in the Protestant Reformatio ...

. The objective of this project is to attract foreign and local investment to industrialize the country for export promotion and to meet the requirements of local areas that lead to employment generation and economic development of the country.

Transport

The district is connected by road, rail, and river with

and the rest of the country. It has a railway station and three Dak bungalows.

Demographics

According to the 2011 Bangladesh census, Jamalpur District had a population of 2,292,674, of which 1,128,724 were males and 1,163,950 females. Rural population was 1,904,805 (83.08%) while the urban population was 387,869 (16.92%). Jamalpur District had a literacy rate of 38.4% for the population 7 years and above: 41.1% for males and 35.9% for females. Muslims were the predominant religion with 98.25% of the population while Hindus were 1.69% of the population. Jamalpur district has the highest percentage of Muslims relative to the total population of any district in Bangladesh.

Subdistricts

The district is divided into seven

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 ...

s & one police I.C

Culture

Folk music is popular in the district. Popular songs include "Gunaibibir Gan", "Jari Gan of Khairun", "Palagan of Rupvan", "Panchali", "Ghetu Gan" and "Meyeli geet" (songs sung by women on the occasion of marriage and Gaye Holud festivals). In the rural areas, various games and sports practice. These competitions include bullfights, horse racing, Moi (ladder) race, and

Lathi Khela Lathi khela ( bn, লাঠি খেলা) is a traditional Bengali martial art – a kind of stick fighting practised India and Bangladesh. A practitioner is known as a ''lathial''. Etymology The word ''lathi'' is the Bengali word meaning s ...

(stick game). During the rainy season, boat races are arranged in the

Jamuna river The Jamuna River ( bn, যমুনা ''Jomuna'') is one of the three main rivers of Bangladesh. It is the lower stream of the Brahmaputra River, which originates in Tibet as Yarlung Tsangpo, before flowing into India and then southwest into ...

. The

Garo Garo may refer to: People and languages * Garo people, a tribal people in India ** Garo language, the language spoken by the Garo tribe Places * Kingdom of Garo, a former kingdom in southern Ethiopia * Garo, Colorado * Garo Hills, part of the Ga ...

community perform dances at the 'Bigan Gala' festival.

Notable people

* Nazrul Islam Babu, lyricist. *

Khaled Mosharraf Khaled Mosharraf, Bir Uttom ( bn, খালেদ মোশাররফ; 9 November 1937 – 7 November 1975) was a Bangladeshi military officer known for his role in the Bangladesh Liberation War. Khaled was the Sector Commander of Bangladesh ...

, freedom fighter and sector commander of Bangladesh Liberation War. *

Amjad Hossain Amjad Hossain (14 August 1942 – 14 December 2018) was a Bangladeshi film director, actor, scriptwriter and lyricist. He won the Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Director twice, for the films ''Golapi Ekhon Traine'' (1978) and ''Bhat De ...

, filmmaker, actor, and writer. * Abdullah al Mamun, actor and producer. *

Anwar Hossain (actor) Anwar Hossain (6 December 1931 – 13 September 2013) was a Bangladeshi actor, best known for playing the role of Siraj ud-Daulah in the Bengali film Nawab Sirajuddaula (1967). He appeared in nearly 500 movies in his 50-year career. He receive ...

,film actor. * Abdus Salam Talukder, founder general secretary of Bangladesh Nationalist Party and former LGRD Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. *

Rashed Mosharraf Rashed Mosharraf (died 10 November 2011) was a Bangladesh Awami League politician and a Jatiya Sangsad member representing the Jamalpur-2 constituency. He served as the Ministry of Land, state minister of land during 1996–2001. He was also the ...

, former central president of Bangladesh Krishak League and state minister for Land of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. *

Abul Kalam Azad Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin Ahmed bin Khairuddin Al-Husseini, Hussaini Azad (; 11 November 1888 – 22 February 1958) was an Indian Indian independence movement, independence activist, Islamic theologian, writer and a senior leader of the ...

, former Information Minister *

Monwar Hossain Nannu Monwar Hossain Nannu (27 August 1948 – 16 February 2008) was a Bangladeshi professional football player during the 1970s and early 1980s. Initially, He played as an attacking midfielder for Abahani Limited Dhaka in Dhaka League. Following an i ...

, footballer * Mirza Azam, MP and former central general secretary of Bangladesh Awami Jubo-league and state minister for Jute and Textile of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. * Anwarul Kabir Talukdar, former MP and state minister for LGRD of the People's republic of Bangladesh. *

Sirajul Islam Sirajul Islam is Bangladeshi historian, writer, columnist, professor and academician. He is the chairman of the Board of Editors of Banglapedia, the national encyclopedia of Bangladesh, and the editor of the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Ba ...

, former MP and deputy health minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. * ABM Abdullah, physician and academic. *

Hasan Hafizur Rahman Hasan Hafizur Rahman (;1932–1983) became the editor of the ''Daily Bangla'' right after the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. He also worked for the government as a high official and edited an account of the independence struggle called ''The Lib ...

, poet of the 50s. *

Atiur Rahman Atiur Rahman ( bn, আতিউর রহমান; born 3 August 1951) is a Bangladeshi development economist, writer and banker. He served as the 10th Governor of Bangladesh Bank, which is the central bank of Bangladesh. He has also been cal ...

, economist and former Governor of Bangladesh Bank.

Notes

References

{{Authority control Districts of Bangladesh Districts of Mymensingh Division