Aerial view of Rooppur Nuclear Powerplant

Headquarters of Bangladesh Sugarcrop Research Institute in Ishwardi

Ishwardi ( bn, ঈশ্বরদী,

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Pabna District in Rajshahi Division. It is the westernmost upazila of Pabna district. Containing railway divisional headquarters, this city is a very important communication hub for Bangladesh Railway. Bangladesh's first nuclear power plant Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant is also being built here.

Etymology

While many theories have been proposed about Ishwardi's etymology, no consensus has emerged. According to Banglapedia, the name 'Ishwardi' means God's place. Community Report on Pabna District (2013) says-

Geography

The upazila occupies an area of 250.89 sq. km. It is located between 24º03′ and 24º15′ north latitudes and between 89º00′ and 89º11′ east longitudes. The upazila is bounded on the north by Baraigram upazila and Lalpur upazila of Natore district, on the east by

Atgharia Atgharia is a village and a gram panchayat in Kalna I CD block in Kalna subdivision of Purba Bardhaman district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Geography Location Atgharia is located at . Urbanisation 87.00% of the population of Kalna sub ...

upazila and Pabna Sadar upazila, on the south by Kumarkhali upazila and Mirpur upazila of Kushtia district and on the west by Bheramara upazila of

Kushtia Kushtia ( bn, কুষ্টিয়া) is a city in the Khulna Division of southwestern Bangladesh. Kushtia is the second largest municipality in Bangladesh and the eleventh largest city in the country. The second largest city in Khulna div ...

district. The river Padma flows beside Ishwardi and detaches this upazila from

district.

Climate

A weather observatory was established in Ishwardi in 1963. Since then, the observatory is recording weather data. Its International Station Number is 41907. Highest maximum temperature ever recorded in Ishwardi is 44 °C and lowest minimum temperature ever recorded is 3.5 °C; which were recorded on May 13, 1970 and January 27, 1964 respectively. Highest 24 hour rainfall of 351 mm was recorded on July 11, 1976 in Ishwardi.

Demographics

As of 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 ...

, Ishwardi has a population of 3,13,932, among whom 66,255 live in the urban areas and 2,47,677 live in the rural areas. The male population is 1,57,897 and female population is 1,56,035. This Upazila has a household of 73,373. Among them, urban household number is 15,332 and rural household number is 58,041. Ishwardi has an average literacy rate of 54.96% (7+ years), which is highest in Pabna district and also higher than the national average of 51.77% literate. Among the total population of Ishwardi, 305033 confirmed to be Muslim, 8024 confirmed to be Hindu, 507 confirmed to be Christian, 11 confirmed to be Buddhist and 357 did not state in the 2011 Population and Housing census. Majority of Ishwardi's inhabitants are ethnic Bengali who speak Bangla. Along with them, some Urdu speaking Bihari people also live here.

Administration

Local government

The smallest rural local government unit in Bangladesh is Union council and the next upper level of this is

Upazila Parishad 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 ...

. On the other hand,

Municipal Corporation A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally owne ...

is the smallest unit for urban local government.

Upazila parishad

Ishwardi thana was transformed into a upazila (sub-district) in 1982 by a government ordinance. As of 2022, the chairman of Ishwardi Upazila Parishad is Md. Nayeb Ali Biswas. Additionally, the current Vice Chairman is Md. Abdus Salam and Female Vice Chairman is Mst. Atia Ferdous.

Union council

Ishwardi Upazila has seven Union councils: Dashuria, Luxmikunda, Muladuli,

Paksey Paksey ( bn, পাকশী, Pakshee) is a town situated on the banks of the Padma River in Ishwardi Upazila–the westernmost Upazila of Pabna District in Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. Paksey is home to the Hardinge Bridge–a steel railway ...

, Sahapur, Sara, and Solimpur. The union councils are subdivided into 128 mauzas and 126 villages.

Municipality

Ishwardi Municipality is subdivided into 9 wards and 27 mahallas. The current Mayor is Isaac Ali Malitha. Lalon shah bridge side view

Executive Department

The current

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 ...

of Ishwardi Upazila is P.M. Emrul Kayes.

Agriculture

Ishwardi is a vast fertile plain which is suitable for agriculture. Paddy, wheat, sugarcane, betel leaf and vegetables are the main crops of this region. In addition, Litchi orchards are common in Ishwardi's households. People harvest Litchi commercially in their large orchards. This summer fruit is also considered the 'cash crop' of Ishwardi. Ishwardi is a hub for agricultural research institutes. The headquarter of Bangladesh Sugarcrop Research Institute (BSRI) is located here. This institutes conducts research on crops like sugarcane, palm, date, stevia, sugar beet, nipa palm etc. Many varieties of these crops are developed and released from here. Bangladesh’s only Pulses Research Center (PRC) is also situated here. In this institute, scientists research on different species of pulses. Along with these, Ishwardi contains regional research center of Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute and Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture. Moreover, Horticultural Center and Sericulture Development Board conduct their activity here.

Transport

Ishwardi is well connected to the country's major cities by highways, railways and rivers.

Lalon Shah Bridge Lalon Shah Bridge ( bn, লালন শাহ সেতু), locally known as Pakshey Bridge is a road bridge in Bangladesh over the river Padma, situated between Ishwardi Upazila of Pabna on the east, and Bheramara Upazila of Kushtia on the we ...

and Hardinge Bridge connects Ishwardi Upazila to the south-western part of Bangladesh by highway and railway respectively. Ishwardi Railway Junctionone of the largest railway junctions in Bangladesh. A port was also established in on the banks of Padma River to facilitate construction and future operation of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant. The port became fully operational in 2020.

Ishwardi Airport Ishwardi Airport is a domestic airport located at Ishwardi Upazila in Pabna District. Biman Bangladesh Airlines had regular flights to Dhaka until 1996. On 18 November 2013, United Airways resumed flights to Dhaka, thus commercial services re ...

is an airport located in Ishwardi which is currently not functional.

Industry

Ishwardi EPZ

There is an Export Processing Zone in Ishwardi which is known as Ishwardi EPZ. It was established in 2001 on 308.97 acres of land as a special economic zone for producing export-oriented products. Investors from South Korea, India, Japan, China and Hong Kong have invested in Ishwardi EPZ. The EPZ mainly produces footwear & leather goods, wig, tent, industrial gloves, RMG, garment accessories, yarn, plastic goods, chemical & fertilizer, denim products etc.

Rooppur Nuclear Powerplant

The Rooppur Nuclear Powerplant (

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 ...

: রূপপুর পারমাণবিক বিদ্যুৎকেন্দ্র) will be a 2.4

GWe The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James W ...

nuclear power plant 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 ...

. The nuclear power plant is being constructed at Rooppur of

Ishwardi Ishwardi ( bn, ঈশ্বরদী, Urdu: ایشوردی, ''Ish-shordi)'' is an upazila of Pabna District in Rajshahi Division. It is the westernmost upazila of Pabna district. Containing railway divisional headquarters, this city is a very i ...

upazila in Pabna District, on the bank of the river Padma, 87 miles (140 km) west 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 ...

. It will be the country's first

nuclear power plant A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a electric generator, generato ...

, and the first of the two units is expected to go into operation in 2024. The VVER-1200/523

Nuclear reactor A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction or nuclear fusion reactions. Nuclear reactors are used at nuclear power plants for electricity generation and in nuclear marine propulsion. Heat from nu ...

and critical infrastructures are being built by the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation. In the main construction period, the total number of employees will reach 12,500, including 2,500 specialists from

. It is expected to generate around 15% of the country's electricity when completed.

Banarasi Palli

After the partition of India in 1947, many

Banarasi A Banarasi sari is a sari made in Varanasi, an ancient city which is also called Benares (Banaras). The saris are among the finest saris in India and are known for their gold and silver brocade or zari, fine silk and opulent embroidery. The sa ...

craftsmen migrated to Ishwardi from North Indian regions and started living Ishwardi's Fateh Mohammadpur locality. They started weaving aristocratic sarees like

and Katan. Many of their descendants have preserved their ancestors' heritage till now. To expand the manufacturing and marketing of Banarasi products,

Bangladesh Handloom Board The Bangladesh Handloom Board is a government owned and operated statutory public sector organisation in Dhaka, Bangladesh. As of 2021, Mohd Rezaul Karim is the chairman of the board. History The Bangladesh Handloom Board was established in Janu ...

country's second-largest Banarasi Palli in 2004 at Ishwardi's Fateh Mohammadpur. But the Banarasi Palli was reported not to be fully functional. Many craftsmen are seen producing Banarasi sarees individually. The Banarasi Palli region remains very active during festivals like Eid.

Education

Ishwardi Upazila has a handful of educational institutions. Some of the well-known secondary schools in Ishwardi ar
Ikkshu Gabeshawana High School

Bangladesh Railway Government Chandraprabha Vidyapitha Bangladesh Railway Government Chandraprabha Vidyapitha ( bn, বাংলাদেশ রেলওয়ে চন্দ্রপ্রভা বিদ্যপীঠ, পাকশী) is a boy's secondary school at Paksey, a railway divisional c ...

, Govt. Sara Marwari Model High School and North Bengal Paper Mills High School. Among the higher secondary schools (or colleges, as they are termed in Bangladesh), Ishwardi Govt. College and Ishwardi Women’s College are reputed. In addition, Bangladesh Open University operates their branch in Ishwardi. Besides, a Vocational Training Institute is also situated here. Apart from these, there are some madrasahs in Ishwardi namely Mazdia Babul Ulum Islamia Fazil Madrasah, Ishwardi Alia Madrasah, Autapara A B Senior Alim Madrasah and so on.

Literary Works

Celebrated Indian novelist Amiya Bhushan Majumdar's novel ''Garh Shrikhanda'' is based on the socio-economic condition of the Padma riparian areas of Ishwardi. This novel dates back to the 1940s. It was published in 1957 by Dey's Publishing at Kolkata.

Notable residents

Shankha Ghosh Sankha Ghosh (born Chittapriya Ghosh; 5 February 1932 – 21 April 2021) was an Indian poet and literary critic. He was born in Chandpur District of the then Bengal Presidency, present day Bangladesh. His ancestral home was at Banaripara Upazila ...

, Indian poet and literary critic, passed matriculation from Chandraprabha Vidyapitha, Ishwardi. *

Amiya Bhushan Majumdar Amiya Bhushan Majumdar (Bengali: অমিয় ভূষণ মজুমদার) (22 March 1918 – 8 July 2001) was an Indian novelist, short-story writer, essayist and playwright. In a writing career spanning over four decades, Majumdar ...

, celebrated Indian novelist. *

Mozid Mahmud Mozid Mahmud ( bn, মজিদ মাহমুদ; born 16 April 1966) is a Bangladeshi poet and essayist. He is recognized as a major poet of the 1980s, with more than thirty books to his credit. Biography Mozid Mahmud is the pen name of Moh ...

, poet, was born at Char Gargari village in 1966. *

Shamsur Rahman Sherif Shamsur Rahman Sherif (12 March 1941 – 2 April 2020) was a Bangladesh Awami League politician who served as Ministry of Land. He was a 5-term Jatiya Sangsad member representing the Pabna-4 constituency. Early life Sherif was born on 12 Mar ...

, MP, ex-minister of Ministry of Land, has been the Member of Parliament for constituency

Pabna-4 Pabna-4 is a constituency represented in the Jatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) of Bangladesh since 2020 by Nuruzzaman Biswas of the Awami League. Boundaries The constituency encompasses Atgharia and Ishwardi Ishwardi ( bn, ঈশ্� ...

since 1996. *

Nuruzzaman Biswas Nuruzzaman Biswas is a Bangladeshi politician and a Jatiya Sangsad member-elect of Pabna-4 constituency. Career In 2020, Nuruzzaman Biswas elected as a member of parliament by election in Pabna-4 constituency. He wins by 2,39,924 votes of this e ...

- Bangladeshi politician & MP. Ishwardi Airport, an airport located at Ishwardi Upazila in Pabna district

References

External links

{{Upazilas of Rajshahi Division Upazilas of Pabna District