Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Rangpur

Rangpur city is the divisional headquarters of Rangpur division. It is a district in Northern Bangladesh and it became Bangladesh's seventh division on January 25, 2010. Before that, it had been a district under the Rajshahi division. Rangpur is located on the north-west of the country. Rangpur is bordered on the north by Nilphamari District, on the south by Gaibandha District, on the east by Kurigram, and on the west by Dinajpur district. The Rangpur division consists of eight districts: Rangpur, Dinajpur, Kurigram, Gaibandha, Nilphamari, Panchagarh,
Thakurgaon, and Lalmonirhat. There are 58 Upazillas or sub districts under these eight districts. The major cities of this new division are Rangpur and Dinajpur. Rangpur is the northernmost division of Bangladesh and has a population of 13.8 million.

In 1575, Rangpur was conquered by the army of Raja Man Singh (a commander of the Mughal emperor), but it was only until 1686 that it was fully integrated into the Mughal Empire. Names of places like Mughalbadsa (locally known as Mughals) and Mugalhat (locally known as local market organized by the Mughals) bear testimony to the Mughal Association and past of Rangpur and its hinterland. After that, Rangpur passed under the control of “Sarker” of Ghoraghat. During the period of the British East India Company and the Sannyasi Rebellion took place.

Rangpur has only university in Rangpur district. The name of the university is “Rangpur University”. The Rangpur Medical College, situated in Rangpur is one of the major government medical colleges in Bangladesh. The most renowned educational institution in this region is Cantonment Public School & College, Rangpur (CPSCR) and Rangpur Zilla School. Zilla School is established in 1832, this higher secondary school is known for the quality of education it offers. Carmichael College, established in 1916 by some leading zamindars, is a postgraduate college offering courses in 14 subjects in the faculties of arts, social science, science and commerce. Other prominent educational institutions are Begum Rokeya College, Govt. Commercial Institute and Rangpur Govt. College. Besides this Rangpur has one polytechnic institute, one vocational institute, around 38 junior high schools, 193 NGO (Non Government Organization) operated schools, 722 government primary schools, 284 high schools and almost 379 Madrasahs.

Rangpur has a population of 13.8 million. Most of the people are Muslims (92.62%), and other religious groups include Hindus (6.40%), Buddhists and Christians (0.98%). The rate of literacy is 68.69% and the population growth rate of the city is 1.56%. Rangpur has a very good transportation system. It is connected with rest of country through roads, rail and water. But it is unfortunate that, Rangpur has no air transportation system till the end of the year 2010. Bus, train, cars and auto rickshaws are the main transportation system in the Rangpur. This system is very good. It takes near 6 to 8 hours by road to reach the capital (Dhaka). A number of air conditioned and non-air conditioned buses are available for Rangpur to Dhaka and also available for other major districts. Bangladesh Railway also operates their daily schedules for Rangpur.

Rangpur city would be the fifth largest city of Bangladesh after Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna and Rajshahi. The Rangpur city, covering an area of around 43 square kilometers, lies on the bank of the Ghoraghat River, and was turned into a municipality back in 1869. Establishment of Rangpur City Corporation, as Divisional City is now under way after the establishment of Rangpur Division in January 2010. The area of Rangpur City Corporation is estimated to be around 100 square kilometer accommodating about 6 million populations by next Census of 2011.

The Rangpur is one of the major tourist attractions in Bangladesh. Just south of the city of Rangpur lies the Tajhat, a former "rajbari" (known as “zamindar's palace”). A museum and women's training centre was established in Pairabondh, the birth place of famous Begum Rokeya. It is half an hour drive away from Rangpur city. Apart from the Tajbari museum there is another museum at the heart of the town. There is also a big Zoo at the heart of the city. There is an ancient auditorium named 'Town Hall' at the center of the city, where different cultural programs are held. Near the stadium, there is a very beautiful place called 'Chicli vata' surrounding many big lakes and rice fields. There is a large military cantonment in the town. "Bhinno Jogot" is a big theme park and a popular picnic spot which is situated 15 kilometers from Rangpur Town.

The economy of the Rangpur’s people is weak since there is no major natural resource like minerals and industry. In the rural areas, there are no sources of income for landless poor people. In the great Rangpur region, no economic development took place until the 90s, mainly because of the yearly flooding the region used to see before the making of "Teesta Barrage." The coal is found near this district. The largest numbers of people from Rangpur living abroad is in the United Kingdom. Several people are also working as foreign workers in the Middle East countries.

For many reason, Rangpur is well known all over the world and Bangladesh. It is an excellent city of Bangladesh and also South Asia. So, it is one of the major parts of Bangladesh.

If you want to know more about Rangpur, please visit: Rangpur Government Web Portal.

4 comments:

  1. It is a new district in Bangladesh.

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  2. I love Rangpur District and Rangpur city for its nice natural and beautiful weather.

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  3. The economy of the Rangpur’s people is weak but the people are so ordinary.

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  4. I hope Rangpur City will be the model and ultramodern city in Bangladesh. And also Begum Rokeya University will be the greatest university as like Dhaka University. We also need more gov't School, College, Dental College, Science and Technology University, Cricket stadium, 100khz Radio station, Gas and Electricity for industrialization in this area.

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