Sarlahi District

Sarlahi ( ne, सर्लाही ; Maithili: सर्लाही), a part of Madhesh Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. According to new laws, a combination of more than two or four villages makes a municipality, which covers an area of and had a population of 635,701 in 2001 and 769,729 in 2011.

It is bordered to the west by the Bagmati River, to the east by Mahottari District, to the north by the Sivalik Hills, and to the south by Bihar State of India.

Etymology

Generally, the people of Sarlahi believe that the name ''Sarlahi'' comes from the name of the Sarla Devi temple. The Sarla Devi temple is situated in Hempur village in the Sarlahi district. There is a belief that if someone goes to the temple at night with a light, then that person will die. For that reason, people still do not go at night to that temple with light. There are no residences around this temple.

Famous for

The district is known for a couple of things. One of them is tomato production and supply. Lalbandi is the place of this district which is known for supplying the tomato demand of the whole country. Scientific tomato farming was practiced in Sarlahi district at Bagwani Kendra Nawalpur, Netragunj. Lalbandi is the most famous for growing tomatoes in the country. It is also known as the tomato capital of Nepal. Farhadwa is the village which is famous for fish production and export. The production of sugarcane is also seems to be significant in the district. The Indushankr Chini Udhog Ltd. (Indushankr Sugar Mills) is a notable factory in the district.

The Annapurna Sugars and General Industries Pvt Ltd. is probably one of the largest sugar mills in the country, located in Dhankaul VDC of Sarlahi. The plant commenced trial operations on January 17, 2014, with a successful crushing of over 16 lakh () quintals of cane. The mill will substantially help in meeting sugar requirements of the local Nepal market by producing around 300,000 quintals of white sugar. The mill is equipped with modern machinery to produce high-quality sugar. It helps to support the livelihood of thousands of people including farmers, employees and laborers.

The historical Nunthar Pahad is famous among different religious groups because of its typical geographical location. It is located in a strategic place bordering four districts: Makawanpur, Sarlahi, Rautahat and Sindhuli. World Heritage the Mukteshwar Nath historical temple is the best known religious place here which was located in Murtiya village of Sarlahi district. The Nadiman lake, an important Puranic place, is located nearby Malangawa which is believed to be the ''yaksha'' pool (''kunda''), the mystic lake owned by the ''yaksha'' himself. The Pattharkot temple is also the best known religious place here. The Sitlamai temple, Bajrangbali temple, Durga temple, Gadhimai temple and Laxmipur Pokhari in Balara Municipality. The Sagaranatha temple in Iswarpur, the Gopalkuti Mahadev temple in Karmaiya, among many others, are equally significant places in Sarlahi. The famous Barahathawa Bazaar is also located here, which is growing as a commercial hub of the district.

Geography and climate

Geographical division

According to geographical texture Sarlahi district is divided into three parts.
* Chure mountain of north
* Bhanwar region of middle
* Terai region of south

Chure mountain

On the north side of the district from east to west is the mountain range known as the Sivalik Hills. They have an average height of , reaching in places. This range separates the Terai from the inner Terai and harbours the fossilised remains of many mammals no longer typical of Eurasia.

Bhanwar region

This region is between what is north of the Sivalik hills and the southern Terai region. In the local language, it is also known as ''char koshe jhadi and thethi''. The height of the region is from . The Mahendra Highway touches this area, so settlement is increasing. In the region, the water source level is always very low; even the following water disappears because of sandiness. It is very difficult to obtain water by digging. Irrigation is problematic in the area.

Terai region

The Terai region begins in the middle of the district to the south and goes to India's Bihar. Since ancient times, the region has had large public density and is a good place for farming, so it is called Treasurer of grain.

Rivers

There are four major rivers in this district that flow into India: the Bagmati, the Hardi (Banke), the Lakhandei and the Jhim. However, there are around a dozen other small rivulets that originate from the Chure hills and flow down the plain. They are actually the tributaries of the three major river systems of the district. These small rivulets are the Hariwan khola, the Dhungre khola, the Soti khola, the Sotraha khola, the Chapini khola, the Pathlaiya khola, he Kalinjor khola, the Phooljor khola and the Banke Khola. The Banke Khola is the eastern demarcation of the district separating it from Mahottari district, whereas the Bagmati river flows between Sarlahi and Rautahat districts.
*Bagmati river system: it is the largest river, flowing in the western side of district separating Rautahat district from Sarlahi.
* Lakhandei river system: this river is the largest river inside the district; it is about 25 kilometers long. It originates from the Chure Mountain range, the lowest foothills of the Great Himalayan ranges. It flows into India by touching Simara village development committee (VDC) of this district.
* Jhim river system: originating from the northeast side of the Chure mountains of this district into the Phuljor and Kalinjor rivers, it joins at the Vairawpur village of Jabdi VDC, then it becomes Jhim river. It is long and by flowing into districts passes into India, and in India this river is known as Adhwara river. Adhwara river was the east border of Makwanpur region.
Banke (Hardi Nadi) river. Banke river was the east border of Sarlhi district. There are also many rivers in this district including the Adhwara River of the east which empties into the Jhim River, Manushmara river (which is formed by mixing Harion, Sotara and Pathlaiya rivers), and in middle of the district Dhangra and Bhumi rivers.

* Bhatauliya river system: this river is the largest river inside the district; it is about 25 kilometers long. It originates from the Soram range, the lowest foothills of the Great Himalayan ranges. It flows into India by touching Bhatauliya VDC of this district.

Demography

According to the 2011 census, the total population of the district is 769,729; among them the male population is 389,756 and the female population is 379,973. The total Hindu population is 658,611 (85.56%), while the total Muslim population is 60,679 (7.88%). The total Buddhist population is 44,011 (5.71%) of the total population, while the total Christian population is 1,752 (0.22%) of the total population. The most populous communities are Yadavs, Kushwahas and Muslims.

49.0% speak Bajjika, 21.2% Maithili, 11.8% Nepali, 6.3% Urdu

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