Barisal Division
Encyclopedia
Barisal Division is located in south-central Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

, with an area of 13,644.85 km2, and with a population of 8,147,000 at the 2011 Census (preliminary returns). It is bounded by Dhaka division on the north, the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...

 on the south, Chittagong division on the east and Khulna division on the west. The administrative capital, Barisal city, lies in the Ganges
Ganges River
The Ganges or Ganga, , is a trans-boundary river of India and Bangladesh. The river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and flows south and east through the Gangetic Plain of North India into Bangladesh, where it empties into the Bay of Bengal. By discharge it...

 (Padma) River delta on an offshoot of the Arial Khan River (Kirtonkhola). Barisal division is criss-crossed by plenty of rivers that earned her the nickname 'Dhan-Nodi-Kaal, Ei tine Barisal' (rice, river and canal built Barisal).

Early Middle Ages

In early times Barisal region was composed of an amalgamation of marshlands formed by the merging of islands brought into existence and built up by alluvial soils washed down the great channels of the combined Brahmaputra-Ganges-Meghna river systems.

In the early 13th century, when Muhammad bin Tughluq
Muhammad bin Tughluq
Muhammad bin Tughluq was the Turkic Sultan of Delhi from 1325 to 1351. He was the eldest son of Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq.He was born in Kotla Tolay Khan in Multan. His wife was daughter of the raja of Dipalpur...

 completely conquered eastern Bengal, Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 chieftains from northwest Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...

 were dislodged from power and they dispersed over Barisal region and founded the kingdom of Bakla under The Chandra dwip Raj family (Bakla-Chandra dwip is the name used in their papers). Here Hindu chieftains reestablished themselves along the banks of the great rivers and forest islands, far from the reach of Turkish
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...

 cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...

.

During Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 conquest in Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...

, Hindu society were concentrated to northern and western Barisal, (region was known as Bakarganj
Backergunje
Backergunje, Backergunge, Bakarganj, or Bakerganj was a former district of British India in the Dacca division of Eastern Bengal and Assam, and is now mostly in Bangladesh...

 instead of Barisal). Barisal's southern portion was still covered by forests and laced with lagoons. The northwest was also the only part of Bakarganj where the Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 population exceeded Muslims in early British census.

Mughal period

Barisal saw a second wave of immigration in the late 17th and early 18th centuries . This time, it was Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...

 pioneers who assumed the leading role. Establishing of Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...

 as the provincial Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 capital of the region, in the early 17th century Barisal region (known as Sarkar Bakla to Mughals) was more accessible to businessmen and developers than at any previous time. However, piracy in this region, along the coasts and rivers of southeastern Bengal by Arakanese and renegade Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 seamen inhibited any sustained attempts by Mughal governors to push into the Barisal forests.

After 1666, when Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 naval forces cleared the Meghna estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....

 of such external threats, the Barisal interior lay ripe for colonization. Land developers acquired grants of plots of land, taluq (তালুক), from provincial authorities. Abundant and easily obtainable by purchase from the late 17th century these grants tended to be regarded by their possessors taluqdar
Taluqdar
A taluqdar or talukdar , is a term used for Indian land holders in Mughal and British times, responsible for collecting taxes from a district...

 (তালুকদার) . Taluqdar
Taluqdar
A taluqdar or talukdar , is a term used for Indian land holders in Mughal and British times, responsible for collecting taxes from a district...

s brought their taluqs into agricultural production, these men passed up the land
Land (economics)
In economics, land comprises all naturally occurring resources whose supply is inherently fixed. Examples are any and all particular geographical locations, mineral deposits, and even geostationary orbit locations and portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Natural resources are fundamental to...

 revenue
Revenue
In business, revenue is income that a company receives from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of goods and services to customers. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, revenue is referred to as turnover....

 through a class of non-cultivating intermediaries, or zamindar (জমিদার). Zamindars typically resided in the provincial capital, where they had ready access to the chief provincial revenue officer dewan (দেওয়ান).

In a second pattern of land development, Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...

 pirs
Pir (Sufism)
Pir or Peer is a title for a Sufi master equally used in the nath tradition. They are also referred to as a Hazrat or Shaikh, which is Arabic for Old Man. The title is often translated into English as "saint" and could be interpreted as "Elder". In Sufism a Pir's role is to guide and instruct his...

 or Qazi  went directly into uncultivated regions, organized the local population for clearing the jungles, and only later, after having established themselves as local men of influence, entered into relations with the Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 authorities. relationship between the religious Muslim pirs
Pir (Sufism)
Pir or Peer is a title for a Sufi master equally used in the nath tradition. They are also referred to as a Hazrat or Shaikh, which is Arabic for Old Man. The title is often translated into English as "saint" and could be interpreted as "Elder". In Sufism a Pir's role is to guide and instruct his...

  and Mughal authorities was not always harmonious, since a pir’s natural ties of authority and patronage generally lay with the masses of peasants beneath him and not with the governors and bureaucrats. For example, in remote Jhalakati Thana in the eastern Bakarganj
Backergunje
Backergunje, Backergunge, Bakarganj, or Bakerganj was a former district of British India in the Dacca division of Eastern Bengal and Assam, and is now mostly in Bangladesh...

, an 18th-century pīr named Saiyid Faqir wielded enormous influence with the cultivators of the all-Muslim village of Saiyidpur, named after the pīr. But a difficulty arose, noted a 1906 village survey, because “the people of this part looked upon the Fakir as their guide and did not pay rent to the Nawab
Nawab
A Nawab or Nawaab is an honorific title given to Muslim rulers of princely states in South Asia. It is the Muslim equivalent of the term "maharaja" that was granted to Hindu rulers....

.” In this situation, one Lala Chet Singh, a captain in the employ of the governor, “succeeded in persuading the Fakir to leave the country.”

British rule

In 1797 the area was established as Bakerganj District
Bakerganj District
Bakerganj District was a district in British India. The area is now covered by Barisal Division. The division also contains a Barisal District and a Bakerganj Upazila....

 but later renamed as Barisal District. The district was upgraded into a municipality in 1876.

Bangladesh

The Greater Barisal region (Barisal District along with five other neighbouring districts) was created Barisal Division on 1 January 1993.

Administrative Districts

The Division is subdivided into six districts (zilas) and thence into 39 sub-districts (upazilas
Upazilas of Bangladesh
||The districts of Bangladesh are divided into subdistricts called Upazila Parishad , or Thana . Upazilas are similar to the county subdivisions found in some Western countries....

). Lower level administrative areas are 353 union parishads, 3159 mouzas, 12 municipalities, 25 wards and 4163 villages..
Name Capital Area (km²) Population
1991 Census
Population
2001 Census
Population
2011 Census
(preliminary
results)
Barguna District
Barguna District
Barguna is a district in South-western Bangladesh. It is a part of the Barisal Division.-Geography:The Barguna District has a total area of 1831.31 km². It is bounded on the north by the districts of Jhalkathi, Barisal, Pirojpur and Patuakhali. In the east, it borders the Patuakhali District....

 
Barguna 
Barisal District
Barisal District
Barisal is a district in southern Bangladesh. It is also the headquarters of Barisal Division.-Geography and climate:Latitude: 22.75, Longitude: 90.36, Altitude: 4....

 
Barisal 
Bhola District
Bhola District
Bhola is a district in south-western Bangladesh. It is located in the Barisal Division. It is also the largest offshore island region in Bangladesh, with an area of 3403.48 km²...

 
Bhola 
Jhalokati District  Jhalokati 
Patuakhali District
Patuakhali District
Patuakhali is a district in South-western Bangladesh. It is a part of the Barisal Division.This is the main entrance for the beach of Kuakata. Famous for watching both the sun rise and sun set. It is called "The Daughter of Sea".-Geography:...

 
Patuakhali 
Pirojpur District
Pirojpur District
Pirojpur is a district in South-western Bangladesh. It is a part of the Barisal Division.-Name:Myth exist that, second son of Shah Shuja, Firoz Shah died in this area and in honour of him, the area started to being calld 'Firozpur'....

 
Pirojpur 
Total Division Barisal 

Tourism

Kuakata
Kuakata
Kuakata is a panaromic sea beach on the southernmost tip of Bangladesh. Located in the Patuakhali district, Kuakata has a wide sandy beach from where one can see both the sunrise and sunset. It is about 320 Kilometres south of Dhaka, the capital, and about 70 Kilometres from the district...

 sea beach is the main tourist spot in the division. It is one of the two sea beaches in South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...

 where both sunrise and sunset at sea can be seen.

Durga Sagor is another beautiful Dighi where lot of guest birds comes in every winter season.

Economy

Barisal was once known as "Crop house of Bengal" for her rich rice production. It is still an important rice producing area of the country. Since middle age Barisal acted as a trans-shipment center for rice, hides, and pulses for the Bengal. Bakery, textile, Pharmaceutical products are output of a few industrial installation. There is a medical college (Sher-e Bangla Medical College) affiliated with the National University. It also has a famous Cadet College - Barisal Cadet College (est. 1985) which has a number of record results on both HSC and SSC board exams. The present divisional commissioner of Barisal Division is Mr. Mohammad Haroon Chowdhury.

Education

Barisal division has one of the highest literacy rates of the country just behind Dhaka division. One of the country's oldest educational institutions, Brojomohan College was established in 1889. Sher e Bangla Medical College
Sher e Bangla Medical College
Sher-e-Bangla Medical College , is one of the most reputed government medical college in Bangladesh. SBMC was established in 1969 and is run under the administration of the University of Dhaka. It was named after A. K...

 and one science and technological university were also built. Recently the government has passed a bill approving building of the new Barisal University
Barisal University
Barisal University, approved in the ECNEC meeting on November 29, 2008, will be the only general public university in Barisal division and the country's 33rd public university...

.

Universities

  • Patuakhali Science and Technology University
    Patuakhali Science and Technology University
    Patuakhali Science and Technology University is a government financed public university in Patuakhali, Bangladesh. PSTU has given affiliation to the Barisal Government Veterinary College as its constituent faculty...

    ,
  • Barisal University
    Barisal University
    Barisal University, approved in the ECNEC meeting on November 29, 2008, will be the only general public university in Barisal division and the country's 33rd public university...

     (proposed: to begin enroll students in 2011; Barisal University is renamed as University of Barisal)

Government colleges

Thirteen government colleges: Brojomohun College, Sayed Hatem Ali Government College, Bhandaria GOV College

Private colleges

Eighteen private colleges: Barisal Institute of Information Technology (BIIT), Infra Polytechnic Institute, Dr. Arifur Rahman Commerce College, Ideal Polytechnic Institute

Polytechnic institutes

Four polytechnic institute: Barisal Polytechnic Institute, Patuakhali Polytechnic Institute, Barguna Polytechnic Institute, Bhola Polytechnic Institute, INFRA Ploytechnic Institute

Transportation

Numerous numbers of rivers and canals enforce the inhabitants to use boat as the main medium of transportation. Main rivers are Arial Khan, Bishkhali, Burishwar, Tentulia, Paira, Haringhata, Baleshwar, Kirtankhola, Katcha, Agunmukha.
It is linked by steamer with Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...

 (73 miles [117 km] north) and with Chittagong
Chittagong
Chittagong ) is a city in southeastern Bangladesh and the capital of an eponymous district and division. Built on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, the city is home to Bangladesh's busiest seaport and has a population of over 4.5 million, making it the second largest city in the country.A trading...

 to the southeast. Road communication has improved significantly over last decades with building many bridges. The Barisal Airport has regular flight service to Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...


Cultural Organization

27th Organization

Theater 12th
On of the most theater Shabdabali Group Theater, One of the first bangladseh studio theater is Shabdaboli Studio Theater, barisal
this studio Theater every Friday play stage drama by ticketing
Runnig production such as
Phona
nilmourer joybon
bele obela kalbela
jungle dahan

Noted Barisailese

  • Utpal Dutt
    Utpal Dutt
    Utpal Dutt was an Indian actor, director, and writer-playwright. He was primarily an actor in Bengali Theatre, where he became a pioneering figure in Modern Indian theatre, when he founded the 'Little Theater Group' in 1947, which enacted many English, Shakespearean and Brecht plays, in a period...

     (29 March 1929 – 19 August 1993), was an Indian actor, director and writer-playwright
  • A.K. Fazlul Huq, (Mayor of Kolkata
    Kolkata
    Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

     (1935, first Muslim mayor of kolkata), Prime Minister of undivided Bengal
    Bengal
    Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...

     (1937–1943) and of East Bengal
    East Bengal
    East Bengal was the name used during two periods in the 20th century for a territory that roughly corresponded to the modern state of Bangladesh. Both instances involved a violent partition of Bengal....

     (1954), Home Minister of Pakistan
    Pakistan
    Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

     (1955) and Governor of East Pakistan
    East Pakistan
    East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...

     (1956–1958)
  • Mohiuddin Jahangir
    Mohiuddin Jahangir
    Mohiuddin Jahangir was a Captain in the Bangladesh Army during the 1971 Liberation War. He was born in 1948 in the village of Rahimgonj under Babugonj upazilla of Barisal district. He was an officer in Sector 7 of the Muktibahini. He was killed in an attempt to break through enemy defences on the...

     (Bir Shreshto) was a Captain in the Bangladesh Army during the 1971 Liberation War. The main gate of Dhaka Cantonment- "Shaheed Jahangir Gate" is named in his honour.
  • Tofazzal Hossain Manik Miah
    Tofazzal Hossain Manik Miah
    Tofazzal Hossain Manik Miah was a Bengali journalist and politician. He was the founding editor of The Ittefaq.Manik Miah played a vital role during the rise of Bengali nationalism in 1960s...

     Founder Editor of The Daily Ittefuq.
  • Anil Biswas (composer)
    Anil Biswas (composer)
    Anil Biswas was a famous Indian film music composer from 1935 to 1965, who apart from being one of pioneers of playback singing, is also credited for the first Indian orchestra of twelve pieces and introducing orchestral music and full-blooded choral effects, into Indian cinema...

     noted Hindi and Bengali film song composer
  • Altaf Mahmud
    Altaf Mahmud
    Altaf Mahmud was a musician, cultural activist and martyred freedom fighter of the Bangladesh Liberation War...

     noted Bengali film song composer and one of the martyred intelligentsia in 1971.
  • Jibanananda Das
    Jibanananda Das
    Jibanananda Das was a noted Bengali poet. He is considered one of the precursors who introduced modernist poetry to Bengali Literature, at a period when it was influenced by Rabindranath Tagore's Romantic poetry....

    , famous Bengali poet.
  • Aroj Ali Matubbar
    Aroj Ali Matubbar
    Aroj Ali Matubbar , a self-taught philosopher and apostate, and communist politician of Bangladesh, was born in British India on 17 December 1900 in the village of Lamchari in Charbaria union, about 11 km from Barisal town, currently in Bangladesh. His original name is Aroj Ali. The name...

    , noted Astronomer and Philosopher.
  • Pannalal Ghosh
    Pannalal Ghosh
    Pannalal Ghosh , also known as Amulya Jyoti Ghosh, was a Bengali Indian flute player and composer. He was a disciple of Allauddin Khan, and is credited with giving the flute its status in Hindustani classical music....

      renowned musician and flutist
  • Parul Ghosh
    Parul Ghosh
    Parul Ghosh , born Parul Biswas, was one of the pioneers of playback singing, singing in Hindi and Bengali movies from 1935 to 1951. Originally hailing from Barisal, now in Bangladesh, she was introduced to playback singing by her brother Anil Biswas. Films in which she featured include Jwar Bhata,...

    , Hindi and Bengali film singer
  • Sufia Kamal
    Sufia Kamal
    Sufia Kamal was a poet, writer, organizer, feminist and activist from Bangladesh. She was born to a Muslim family in Barisal, Bangladesh. She is one of the most widely recognized cultural personalities in Bangladesh...

    , poetess
  • Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri
    Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri
    Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri was a leading physicist well known for his contributions to relativistic cosmology, particularly Raychaudhuri's equation, which is a key ingredient in proving the Penrose-Hawking singularity theorems of general relativity...

    , physicist
  • Abala Bose
    Abala Bose
    Abala, Lady Bose was a social worker well-known for her efforts in the field of women’s education and her contribution towards the alleviation of the condition of widows.-Family:...

    , social reformer and wife of Jagadish Chandra Bose
  • Tapan Raychaudhuri
    Tapan Raychaudhuri
    Tapan Raychaudhuri is an Indian historian specialising in British Indian history, Indian economic history and the History of Bengal.-Background:...

    , noted historian.
  • Partha Dasgupta
    Partha Dasgupta
    Professor Sir Partha Sarathi Dasgupta, FRS, FBA , is the Frank Ramsey Professor of Economics at the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom; Fellow of St John's College, Cambridge; Honorary Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge; and Professor of Environmental and Development Economics at the...

    , eminent economist.
  • Mithun Chakraborty
    Mithun Chakraborty
    Mithun Chakraborty is an Indian film actor, social activist, and entrepreneur, who has won three National Film Awards. He made his acting debut with the arthouse drama Mrigaya , for which he won his first National Film Award for Best Actor....

    , famous actor.
  • Sushmita Sen
    Sushmita Sen
    Sushmita Sen is an Indian actress who appears in mainly Bollywood films. A former model, Sen was crowned Miss Universe in 1994. She was the first Indian woman to win the contest.-Personal life:Sen was born on 19 November 1975....

    , famous actress.
  • Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi
    Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi
    Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi was a member of the 14th Lok Sabha of India. He represented the Raiganj of West Bengal and is a member of the Indian National Congress party.-Career:Dasmunsi was President of Youth Congress in West Bengal from 1970 to 1971...

    , Minister of parliamentary affairs and information, India.
  • Kamini Roy
    Kamini Roy
    Kamini Roy was a leading Bengali poet, social worker and feminist from India. She was the first woman honours graduate in India.-Early life:...

    , famous poetess and first woman graduate with honours in the subcontinent .
  • Kusumkumari Das, poetess and mother of Jibanananda Das
    Jibanananda Das
    Jibanananda Das was a noted Bengali poet. He is considered one of the precursors who introduced modernist poetry to Bengali Literature, at a period when it was influenced by Rabindranath Tagore's Romantic poetry....

  • Kadambini Ganguly
    Kadambini Ganguly
    Kadambini Ganguly was one of the first female graduates of the British Empire along with Chandramukhi Basu. She was one of the first female physicians of South Asia to be trained in European medicine.-Early life:...

    , first female graduate and first female physician in the entire British empire
  • Aswini Kumar Dutta, social reformer and philanthropist

Sources

Census figures for 1991, 2001 and 2011 are from Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Population Census Wing. The 2011 Census figures are based on preliminary results.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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