KUSHTIA DISTRICT

'Kushtia', 'Kushtia district' or 'Kushtia Zilla' is the name of a district in the Khulna administrative division of western Bangladesh. Kushtia has existed since the inception of Bangladesh.

Contents

History

Geography

Concept of "Greater Kushtia"

Administration

Demographics

Education

Places of interest

Economy

History

Kushtia was once a part of the Nadia district (now in West Bengal) of undivided India. A municipality was established in Kushtia in 1869. ''Hamilton's Gazetteer'' has the mention of Kushtia (Kustee) town and of the fact that the local people called the town Kushtay (Kushte).

King of Bauls, Lalon Fakir, hailed from this district and his shrine, reconstructed in 1963, still attracts many people from home and abroad.
Kushtia, however, is not an ancient township. A river port was developed in the district during the reign of Emperor Shahjahan. Although the British East India Company made extensive use of the port, it was not until indigo planters and traders settled that the township began to grow. A railway connection with Kolkata, capital of British India, made in 1860, made the town an alluring location for mills and factories, including the Jagneshwar Engineering Works (1896), Renwick and Company (1904), and the Mohini Mills (1919).
During the Partition of India, Kushtia was made a separate district, consisting of Kushtia Sôdor, Chuadanga and Meherpur subdivisions, in 1947. The town once again became attractive for development with the establishment of the Ganges-Kobadak Project headquarters and a number of government offices in 1954.

Geography

Kushtia District has an area of 1621.15 square kilometres and is bounded by Rajshahi, Natore, Pabna districts to the North, by Chuadanga, Jhenaidah districts to the South, by Rajbari District to the East, and by West Bengal and Meherpur District to the West.
Ganges, Gôrai, Mathabhanga, Kaligônga, and Kumar are the main rivers flowing through the district. The average high temperature is 37.8°C and the average low is 11.2°C. Annual rainfall averages 1,467 millimetres.

Concept of "Greater Kushtia"

Historically, Kushtia was a larger district consisting of three subdivisions, each of which has now become a district. However, the peoples of these three districts, Chuadanga, Meherpur and Kushtia, share more than just a common past. Most notably, the dwellers of these districts, as the past inhabitants of an undivided Nadia district, speak a dialect remarkably close to what is now considered "standard" Bangla in both West Bengal and Bangladesh. Because of the great commonality between the three districts, they are often referred to as the 'Greater Kushtia District'. Several organisations, such as the "Greater Kushtia Association" and "Greater Kushtia Society", are concerned with the welfare of the entire region.

Administration

Kushtia was created as a district in 1947 with the partitioning of India and the creation of Bangladesh. Initially, Kushtia consisted of the Kushtia Sadar (Kushtia City), Chuadanga and Meherpur subdivisions. Each of these subdivisions was later converted to a separate district for ease of management. Kushtia district consists of six upazilas, four municipalities, 39 wards, 70 mahallas, 61 union parishads, 710 mouzas, and 978 villages. The upazilas are Kushtia Sadar, Kumarkhali, Daulatpur, Mirpur, Bheramara and Khoksa.

Demographics

Kushtia District has a population of 1,713,224, of which 50.86% are male and 49.14% female. In terms of religion, 95.72% dwellers of Kushtia are Muslims, 4.22% follow Hinduism and others religions make up 0.06%.

Education

The average literacy rate of the district is 25.8%, with 30.9% of males and 48.35% of females considered literate.
Kushtia is home to the Islamic University; it also has the following educational institutions:


★ Medical college: 1

★ Government colleges: 3

★ Private colleges: 30

★ Government high schools: 10

★ Private high schools: 173

★ Private junior schools: 38

★ Government primary schools: 330

★ Private primary schools: 275

★ Kindergartens: 39

★ Madrasas: 37

★ Vocational training institutes: 2

★ Law college: 1

★ School for handicapped students: 1

★ Teachers training institutes: 2
Other noted educational institutions include Mission Primary School (est. 1898), Kushtia Government University College (est. 1947), Kushtia Islamia College (est. 1968), Kushtia High School and Kushtia Zilla School (est. 1960), Bagoan Khirad Chanda Bidya Niketan.

Places of interest

One of Rabindranath Tagore's dwellings, the Kuthibari, is located at Shilaidah in Kumarkhali Upazila of the Kushtia district. He lived here for part of his life, and wrote many memorable poems there. Tagore built the Kuthibari as his office/residence, to collect revenue as a Zaminder, from local peasants. The Kuthibari is now a museum, and is cared for by the Archaeological Department of Bangladesh.
The shrine of Lalon Fakir, the founder of the Baoul faith is located at Cheouria, about 2km from the Kustia railway station.

Economy

Kushtia has become the country's centre for tobacco manufacturing, as the local weather allows the production of Virginia Tobacco.