Naogaon District () is a district in northern Bangladesh, part of the Rajshahi Division. It is named after its headquarters, the city of Naogaon in Naogaon Sadar Upazila.
Demographics
According to the 2022 Census of Bangladesh, Naogaon District had 765,459 households and a population of 2,784,598, 14.9% of whom lived in urban areas. The population density was 811 people per km2. The literacy rate (age 7 and over) was 72.1%, compared to the national average of 74.7%.
Muslims make up 86.82% of the population, while Hindus are 11.45% and Christians 0.77% of the population respectively. Other religions were 0.95% of the population. Ethnic minorities were 1,07,292 (3.85%). This was the largest ethnic minority population in Bangladesh outside the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
Economy
Today Naogaon District is considered the bread basket of Bangladesh. It is in the central part of the historical Varendra region of Bengal, with an area of about , about 80% of which is under cultivation. The soil of the area is a fertile inorganic clay called loam.
The total population of the area is about 28 lac, and most of the people of the district are farmers. The literacy rate is 72.14%. Crops grown in the district include paddy, mango, jute, wheat, maize, sugar cane, potatoes, pulses, oil seeds, brinjal, onions, and garlic. The total production of paddy and wheat in 2009-2010 was 13,58,432 metric tons(about 39% in our growth economy), including a surplus of 8,26,835 metric tons. Today it is the top listed district in the side of rice production and has the highest number of rice processing mills of any district.
Naogaon is now the country's prime hub for mango harvest. Statistics from Bangladesh's Department of Agricultural Extension show that Naogaon alone produced over 3.33 lakh tonnes mango in fiscal 2017–18, far more than Chapainawabganj's production of 2.74 lakh tonnes and Rajshahi's 2.13 lakh tonnes.
Points of interest
Paharpur
Paharpur is a small village 5 km west of Jamalganj in the Naogaon district where the remains of the Somapura Mahavihara monastery have been excavated. This 7th-century archaeological find covers an area of approximately of land. The entire establishment, occupying a quadrangular court, measures more than and is from in height. With an elaborate gateway complex on the north, there are 45 cells on the north and 44 on each of the other three sides, for a total number of 177 rooms. The architecture of the pyramidal cruciform temple is influenced by those of South-East Asia, especially Myanmar and Java. It takes its name from a high mound, which looked like a pahar, or hillock.
A site museum built recently houses the representative collection of objects recovered from the area. The excavated findings have also been preserved at the Varendra Research Museum at Rajshahi. The antiquities of the museum include terracotta plaques, images of different gods and goddesses, pottery, coin inscriptions, ornamental bricks, and other minor clay objects.
Nine miles west-southwest of Somapura Mahavihara is the archaeological site of Halud Vihara, which has been tentatively listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Kusumba Mosque
Kusumba Mosque is on the west bank of the Atrai River in Manda Upazila. It was built in 1558-59 during the period of Afgan rule in Bengal by a high-ranking official named Sulaiman. It was constructed in a Bengal style.
Jagaddala Mahavihara
Jagaddala Mahavihara (fl. late 11th century-mid-12th century) was a Buddhist monastery and seat of learning in Varendra, a geographical unit in present north Bengal in Bangladesh. It was founded by the later kings of the Pāla dynasty, probably Ramapala (c. 1077–1120), likely at a site near the present village of Jagddal in Dhamoirhat Upazila in northwest Bangladesh on the border with India. It is tentatively listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Patisar
Patisar village is associated with Rabindranath Tagore. It is situated on the banks of the river Nagor, 12 kilometers south-east of the Atrai railway station and 26 kilometers from the district town. The headquarters of the Tagore family's zamindari in Kaligram Pargana was located at Patisar. Dwarkanath Tagore, the grandfather of Rabindranath Tagore, purchased this zamindari in 1830. Rabindranath Tagore first came to Patisar in January 1891.