Rangpur, Bangladesh

Rangpur (, ; bn, রংপুর , Rongpur, City of Colour) is one of the major cities in Bangladesh and Rangpur Division. Rangpur was declared a district headquarters on December 16, 1769, and established as a municipality in 1869, making it one of the oldest municipalities in Bangladesh. The municipal office building was erected in 1892 under the precedence Raja Janaki Ballav, Senior Chairman of the municipality. In 1890, the Shyamasundari canal was excavated for the improvement of the town. Sharfuddin Ahmed Jhantu was first mayor of Rangpur City Corporation. Now Rangpur City Corporation is the 2nd largest city corporation in Bangladesh. it's about 205 square kilometres. Rangpur is famous for Shataranji, Haribhanga (mango), Rangpur (fruit) and tobacco. Rangpur is called Baher Desh.

Rangpur, a city of history and heritage is located in the northwestern part of Bangladesh. Begum Rokeya University and Rangpur Cadet College are situated in the southern part of the city. Previously, Rangpur was the headquarters of the ''Greater Rangpur'' district. Later, the Greater Rangpur district was broken down into the Gaibandha, Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari and Rangpur districts. In the greater Rangpur region, little economic development took place until the 1990s, mainly because of the yearly flooding the region used to see before the building of the Teesta Barrage. Coal is found near this district. There is a large military cantonment in the vicinity of the city, along with a Ghagot park (under military surveillance), in addition to the famous Carmichael College Tajhat Palace, Ciklee water park and Rangpur Zoo in the city. Rangpur is also famous for its handicrafts industry like Shataranji which is recently declared as a GI product of Bangladesh.

History

Etymology

It is said that the present name Rangpur came from the former 'Rongpur'. History has it that English colonial rulers in this region started cultivating Indigo. Due to the fertile soil in this region, Indigo cultivation was very much profitable. The locals knew that Indigo by the name of "Rongo". So thus, this Region was named "Rongopur".And from that, the name of today's Rangpur has originated. It is known from another conventional notion that the name Rangpur comes from the naming of Rangmahal (Palace of Entertainment) of Bhagadatta, son of Narakasura, king of Pragjyotisha Kingdom.

Early History

According to Hindu theology, the eastern kingdom of Kamarupa or Pragjyotisha existed in India, which included the present Rangpur region. During the reign of King Bhagadatta (15th century BC) Rangpur belonged to Pragjyotisha Kingdom. During the reign of King Samudragupta (340 AD) Rangpur was considered a "Tax state" of Kamarupa.

Mughal Period

According to Ain-i-Akbari, the Mughal period Rangpur consisted of three types of administrative areas. Rangpur was conquered by the army of Raja Man Singh, a commander of the Mughal emperor Akbar, in 1575, but it was not until 1686 it was fully integrated into the Mughal Empire. The Mughal Empire was established in the whole of Rangpur in 1611 AD. Place names ''Mughalbasa'' ("a locality of the Mughals"), and ''Mughalhat'' ("local market") organized by the Mughals bear testimony to the Mughal association and past of Rangpur and its hinterland. Later, Rangpur passed into the control of Sarker of Ghoraghat.

British Period

After the East India Company gained "Deoani" in 1765, Rangpur came under British rule. The Fakir-Sannyasi rebellion took place in the Rangpur region, in which leaders like Fakir Majnu Shah played a key Role. The notable anti-colonialist rebel Devi Chaudhurani and Bhabani Pathak were from this region. In the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, the rebellious sepoys spread terror among the British rulers in the region. Later, in 1930, the first Civil disobedience movement was started in different parts of Rangpur on the call of Congress. A meeting of the peasant leaders of North Bengal was held here in October 1946 and the Tebhaga movement began in November.

Pakistani Period and Liberation War

Rangpur was a District of East Pakistan Province during the Pakistani Period. People of Rangpur actively take part in different movements like Bengali language movement, Six point movement and 1969 Mass uprising. The first martyr from Rangpur in the liberation war was Sangku Samajhder, who was martyred on the date of 3 March 1971. Rangpur people started the Liberation War decisively on 28 March 1971, only three days after the Pakistani crackdown by attacking the Rangpur Cantonment. During the liberation war Rangpur was under sector 6 and it was strategically important due to its close proximity to border of India.

Post-Independence Period

The Greater Rangpur district was divided in five districts in 1984. On 28 June 2012 Rangpur Municipality was upgraded to Rangpur City Corporation and on 16 September 2018 Rangpur was granted as 8th Metropolitan city of Bangladesh.

Geography

Rangpur City is the divisional headquarters of Rangpur Division. The soil composition is mainly alluvial soil (80 percent) of the Teesta River basin, and the remaining is barind soil. The elevation of Rangpur is 34 meters. The temperature ranges from 32 degrees Celsius to 11 degrees Celsius, and the annual rainfall averages 2931 mm. Rangpur town, covering an area of around 42 square kilometers, lies on the bank of the Ghaghat river and was turned into a municipality back in 1869.

Climate

Rangpur has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen ''Cwa''), also in Trewartha climate classification (subtropical summer wet ''Cw''). The 4 Seasons of Rangpur generally characterize as a Summer or pre-monsoon season with high Temperature and frequent intense thunderstorms named Nor'westers (March–May), an intense and very wet Monsoon season with substantial flooding in low lying areas (June–September), short and cooler Autumn season (October–November) and lastly, the more pleasant, mild and drier Winter season from (December–February) with warm afternoons and cool mornings, with some cold nights. The average annual temperature in Rangpur is . In Winters, it can be very foggy and nighttime temperature can fall below whereas, day time temperature remains around . About of precipitation falls annually, almost all of them falls in the monsoon season (June to September), although there is very little rain from November to March, but small amount of Precipitation can be seen due to Western Disturbance coming from the Mediterranean Sea. Snow and frost have never been recorded in Rangpur.

Economy

The city is the commercial hub. Its center has several government offices and private banks, insurance companies, residential hotels, and international restaurants, such as Chinese, Thai, Indian, Mexican, convenience food, and gift shops. It is one of the most important economic zones in Bangladesh because of its global positioning. Rangpur is one of the major Tobacco producing region in Bangladesh. The northern suburbs of Rangpur homes to tobacco companies like British American Tobacco, Akij Group, Abul Khair Group.

Demographics

The total population of Rangpur city corporation is 796,556. Among them, 398,282 are male and 398,274 are female. The literacy rate in Rangpur is 65%.

Education

Major educational institutes in the city including:

Universities

* Begum Rokeya University

Medical and dental colleges

* Rangpur Medical College
* Prime Medical College
*Rangpur Community Medical College
* Northern Private Medical College.
* Rangpur Army Medical College
* Kasir Uddin Memorial Medical College
*Rangpur Dental College

Polytechnic institutes

* Rangpur Polytechnic Institute
* Rangpur Technical School and College

Colleges

*Begum Rokeya College
*Rangpur Engineering College
* Carmichael College
* Dr M A Wazed Miah Textile Engineering College
* Pirganj Marine Academy
* Collectorate School and College
* Carmichael Collegiate School and College
* Rangpur Model College
* Police Lines School and College
* Rangpur Cadet College
* Cantonment Public School And College, Rangpur
* BIAM Model School And College, Rangpur
* Rangpur Technical School and College
* Rangpur Government College
* RCCI Public School & College
* Lions School & College
* The Millennium Stars School & College
* Somaj Kolyan Women School & College
* Residential Model School and College
* Mahigong College
* Rangpur Public School and College

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