Rowangchhari Upazila

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Rowangchhari
রোয়াংছড়ি
Upazila
Rowangchhari is located in Bangladesh
Rowangchhari
Rowangchhari
Location in Bangladesh
Coordinates: 22°10′N 92°20′E / 22.167°N 92.333°E / 22.167; 92.333Coordinates: 22°10′N 92°20′E / 22.167°N 92.333°E / 22.167; 92.333
Country Bangladesh
DivisionChittagong Division
DistrictBandarban District
Government
 • Upazila ChairmanChohaimong Marma
 • MP (Bandarban)Ushwe Sing
Area
 • Total442.89 km2 (171.00 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)
 • Total27,264
 • Density62/km2 (160/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+6 (BST)
Websiterowangchhari.bandarban.gov.bd

Rowangchhari (Bengali: রোয়াংছড়ি) is an upazila (sub-district) of Bandarban District in southeastern Bangladesh, part of the Chittagong Division.[1]

History[]

A house in Rowangchhari.

In the 16th century, the Marma people emigrated here from the Kingdom of Mrauk U in Arakan. Where the Rakhaing stream (known as a chhara in Bengali) meets the Tarachha canal, the Marmas established a settlement known as Rakhaing Wah, meaning the "Rakhaing river mouth". Bengalis from the nearby Chittagong District later arrived in the area for trade and commercial purposes. Over time, Rakhaing Wah grew into a haat bazaar and became known to Bengalis as Rowangchhari (Rowang is the Chittagonian word for Arakan and chhari refers to a small stream).[2]

During the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, a brawl took place in Nowapatang Union leading to the death of T. N. Ali, a Bengali freedom fighter. Shamsul Islam ibn Amir Hamzah of Main Road and Dr S. A. Mahiuddin ibn Muhammad Abdur Rashid of Rowangchhari Bazar also fought in the war. There are also seven other individuals from Rowangchhari not mentioned in the official gazette that are said to have taken part. These are: Tarachha's Muhammad Ibrahim ibn Jalal Ahmad, Foraq Ahmad ibn Kala Mia, Qazi Muhammad Thanaullah ibn Qazi Ahmad Safa, Liaqat Ali ibn Faiz Ahmad and Muhammad Abdul Wadud ibn Siraj Ahmad, Rowangchhari Bazar's Abul Hasan Mir ibn Habibullah Mir, Abdul Aziz Chowdhury ibn Ashab Mia Chowdhury and Ejahan Mia ibn Dudu Mia.[3]

In 1976, Rowangchhari was established as a thana. Its status was upgraded to upazila (sub-district) in 1983 as part of the President of Bangladesh Hussain Muhammad Ershad's decentralisation programme.[2]

A minority of Tripuris in Rowangchhari have adopted Islam as their religion and have been subject to violence by some Tripuri Christians. On 18 June 2021,[4] a Tripuri imam and farmer called Omar Faruq Tripura (formerly known as Bennichand Tripura) of Tulajhiri Aga Tripurapara was shot whilst heading home from Isha prayers at a makeshift mosque.[5][6] Five out of the 38 families in this Tripurapara are Muslims and the rest are Christians.[7]

Geography[]

Debotakhum is a natural tourist attraction where clear water flows in the middle of high mountains on both sides.

Rowangchhari is located at

 WikiMiniAtlas
22°10′00″N 92°20′00″E / 22.1667°N 92.3333°E / 22.1667; 92.3333. It has a total area of 442.89 km2.

Demographics[]

Historical population
YearPop. (000) ±%
1981 16—    
1991 17+6.2%
2001 23+35.3%
2011 27+17.4%
Source:
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics[8]

According to the 2011 Bangladesh census, Rowangchhari Upazila had 6,292 households and a population of 27,264, 18.5% of whom lived in urban areas. 11.3% of the population was under the age of 5. The literacy rate (age 7 and over) was 31.0%, compared to the national average of 51.8%.[9][10]

Rowangchhari is an ethnically diverse sub-district of Bangladesh. It is home to the Marma people who speak Arakanese, the Bawm who speak Banjogi, the Tanchangya who speak Tanchangya, the Mru who speak Mrung, the Khumi who speak Khumi Chin, the Khyang who speak Shö and the Bengalis who speak the Chittagonian dialect of Bengali.[11]

Administration[]

Rowangchhari Upazila is divided into four union parishads: Alikhong, Nowapatang, Rowangchhari, and Tarachha. The union parishads are subdivided into 13 mauzas and 178 villages.[8]

List of chairmen
Name Date Notes
Kya Shai Aung 25/5/1985
Hla Thowai Hri Marma 23/2/2009-16/4/2014
Kyaba Maung Marma 17/4/2014
Mausang Marma 30/3/2017-24/4/2019 Panel chairman, first female
Chohaimong Marma 9/5/2019-present

Facilities[]

There are 43 churches, 41 Buddhist temples, 5 Hindu temples and 12 mosques in Rowangchhari. There are two madrasas in Rowangchhari; the North Chhaingya Nurani Madrasa and the West Chhaingya Nurani Madrasa. The mosques are:[12]

  1. Rowangchhari Jame Mosque, Rowangchhari Bazar
  2. Rowangchhari Wagaipar Jame Mosque
  3. North Chhaingya Jame Mosque
  4. South Chhaingya Jame Mosque
  5. Middle Chhaingya Jame Mosque
  6. East Chhaingya Jame Mosque
  7. Gherau Bazar Jame Mosque
  8. Betchhara Bazar Jame Mosque
  9. Tarachha Mukh Jame Mosque
  10. Muramnango Police Camp Jame Mosque
  11. Banchhaya Jame Mosque, Alekkhang Union
  12. Kachhaptali Para Army Camp Jame Mosque, Alekkhang Union

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Atikur Rahman (2012). "Rowangchhari Upazila". In Islam, Sirajul; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b রোয়াংছড়ি উপজেলার প��ভূমি [Background of Rowangchhari Subdistrict]. Rowangchhari Upazila (in Bengali).
  3. ^ মুক্তিযুদ্ধে রোয়াংছড়ি [Rohangsari in the Liberation War]. Rowangchhari Upazile (in Bengali).
  4. ^ "Man called out of home, shot dead in Bandarban". The Daily Star. Bandarban Hill District, Bangladesh. 20 June 2021.
  5. ^ "মসজিদ থেকে বের হতেই নওমুসলিমকে গুলি করে হত্যা!" [New Muslim shot dead after exiting mosque]. 24 Live Newspaper (in Bengali). 19 June 2021.
  6. ^ "নওমুসলিম ইমামকে মসজিদের সামনে গুলি করে হত্যা" [New Muslim imam shot dead in front of mosque]. Daily Inqilab (in Bengali). 19 June 2021.
  7. ^ "বান্দরবানের রোয়াংছ���়িতে গুলি করে একজনকে হত্যা" [Someone shot to death in Rowangchhari, Bandarban]. Prothom Alo (in Bengali). 19 June 2021.
  8. ^ a b "District Statistics 2011: Bandarban" (PDF). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  9. ^ "Community Report: Bandarban" (PDF). Population & Housing Census 2011. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  10. ^ "Population and Housing Census 2011: Bangladesh at a Glance" (PDF). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 July 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  11. ^ ভাষা ও সংস্কৃতি [Language and culture]. rowangchhari Upazila (in Bengali).
  12. ^ মসজিদ [Mosque]. Rowangchhari Upazila (in Bengali).
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