Munshiganj District

Munshiganj মুন্সীগঞ্জ
District
Dhaleshwari River bank, Munshiganj Sadar Upazila in Munsiganj District
Nickname(s): Bikrampur
Location of Munshiganj in Bangladesh
Coordinates: BD 23°28′N 90°32′E / 23.46°N 90.54°ECoordinates: BD 23°28′N 90°32′E / 23.46°N 90.54°E
Country	Bangladesh
Division	Dhaka Division
Area
• Total	1,004.29 km^2 (387.76 sq mi)
Population (2011 census)
• Total	1,445,660
• Density	1,400/km^2 (3,700/sq mi)
Time zone	BST (UTC+6)

Munshiganj (Bengali: মুন্সীগঞ্জ), also historically known as Bikrampur, is a district^[1] in central Bangladesh. It is a part of the Dhaka Division and borders Dhaka District.^[2]

Geography

Total land area is 235974 acres (954 km²), out of which 138472 acres (560 km²) are cultivable and 5609 acres (23 km²) are fallow land. It has no forest area. 40277 acres (163 km²) of land is irrigated while 26242 acres (106 km²) of land is under river. It has 14 rivers of 155 km passing through.^[3]

Administration

The district consists of 6 upazilas:^[2]

1. Lohajang Upazila
2. Sreenagar Upazila
3. Munshiganj Sadar Upazila
4. Sirajdikhan Upazila
5. Tongibari Upazila
6. Gazaria Upazila

History

Bikrampur (Munshiganj) was the political and cultural centre of ancient Bengal. It was officially known as Bikrampur until 1986 and was part of Dhaka District. The remains of the city of Bikrampur, the capital of the ancient kingdoms of southeastern Bengal, are lost and its location can only be guessed on the basis of available data.^[4]

Notable people

Revolutionary Nationalists

• M. Hamidullah Khan, Bangladesh Forces, Sector Commander, Sector 11, Bangladesh War of Independence 1971^[5]
• Jagadish Chandra Bose, Great Bengali physicist^[6]
• Badal Gupta, revolutionary against British India
• Benoy Basu, revolutionary against British India
• Dinesh Gupta, revolutionary against British India
• Sorojini Nydu, Politician
• Desh Bandhu Chittaranjan Das
• Siddarth Sankar Roy

Social & Scientific

• Chashi Nazrul Islam - artist
• Humayun Azad, linguistic scientist, poet and novelist ^[7]
• Durga Mohan Das, Brahmo reformer
• Dwarkanath Ganguly, Brahmo reformer
• Boddhudeb Basu
• Sirshendhu Mukhhopadahy

Art, Culture & Sports

• Brojen Das, the first Bangladeshi and Asian to swim across the English Channel, and the first person to cross it four times
• Emdadul Huq Milon, writer and media personality
• Buddhadeb Bosu‚ writer, poet, playwright, essayist

Public Affairs

• A. N. Hamidullah, First Governor, Bangladesh Bank ^[8]
• Abu Sayeed Hafizullah, first Bengali Accountant General of East Pakistan ^[9]
• Fakhruddin Ahmed, former chief adviser, Non-Party Caretaker Government of Bangladesh, 2007–2008.^[10]
• Iajuddin Ahmed, former President of Bangladesh
• A.Q.M. Badruddoza Chowdhury, former shortest term appointed President of Bangladesh
• Sadeque Hossain Khoka‚ former Mayor of Dhaka
• M. A. Naser, pioneer in Engineering Education, former Vice Chancellor or BUET, Ekushey Padak recipient

See also

• Districts of Bangladesh
• Dhaka Division
• Munshiganj Vihara
• Idrakpur Fort

References

1. "Bangladesh Government 1995 - Flags, Maps, Economy, Geography, Climate, Natural Resources, Current Issues, International Agreements, Population, Social Statistics, Political System". theodora.com. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
2. Ratantanu Ghosh (2012). "Munshiganj District". In Sirajul Islam; Ahmed A. Jamal. Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
3. S.M. Saidur Rahman. "Golden Bangladesh - Login". goldenbangladesh.com. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
4. Taiyab Ahmed Sheikh, [email protected]. ":: Munshigonj District | History Bangla Old ::". munshigonj.com. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
5. "M Hamidullah Khan". bengalrenaissance.com. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
6. Frontline Web page
7. "Bangladeshi Novels Web page". bangladeshinovels.com. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
8. Taiyab A. Sheikh; [email protected]&gt. ":: Munshigonj District | Famous | A. N. Hamidullah ::". munshigonj.com. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
9. Said, H.A. (1989). Dhusar diganta. Samskriti Kendra. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
10. "Interview with Bangladesh's leader Fakhruddin Ahmed - TIME". time.com. 2007-03-22. Retrieved 2015-06-22.