Thakurgaon

About Thakurgaon

Thakurgaon lies in the north-west corner of Bangladesh. India's West Bengal borders it on the west and south, Panchagarh lies to the north, and Dinajpur and Panchagarh to the east. The district covers roughly 1,800 square kilometres. The 2022 census counted a little over 1.5 million people, more than four in five of them in villages. Administratively it now has seven upazilas, after the government approved Ruhia and Bhully as new upazilas in May 2026.

The land is high, flat and well drained, cut by small rivers such as the Tangon, the Kulik, the Nagar and the Tirnai, which flow south towards Dinajpur. Its loamy, slightly sandy soil is ideal for wheat, and Thakurgaon has topped the national wheat harvest in recent years, which is why people call it the bread basket of Bangladesh. Mango orchards, sugarcane fields and, more recently, tea gardens fill the rest of the countryside. The winters are cold and foggy, and spring brings fierce hailstorms.

History

One story says a family of Brahmin "thakurs" settled on the bank of the Tangon, and the village became known as Thakurgaon after them. Old maps suggest the town grew out of a settlement once called Nishchintapur. A police station was set up here in the 1790s, and in 1860 the British made Thakurgaon a subdivision of Dinajpur. After Partition, thanas taken from Jalpaiguri, including today's Panchagarh, were added to it. Panchagarh was separated in 1980, and Thakurgaon became a district on 1 February 1984.

Before Partition local zamindars ruled the area from estates at Haripur, Ranisankail and Jamalpur, and their palaces, mosques and temples survive in various states of repair. Ranisankail is linked with Raja Tonkonath, whose palace at Malduar still stands. After 1971, relief organisations such as RDRS set up projects here, including a silk factory that later passed to the government silk board.

Economy and livelihoods

Wheat is the signature crop, and in recent agricultural statistics Thakurgaon has produced more wheat than any other district. Rice, maize, potatoes, sugarcane and jute follow, and the Thakurgaon sugar mill, established in 1958, processes local cane. Mangoes are a major cash crop, above all the Suryapuri variety of Baliadangi and Haripur, which ripens late and has a sweet, aromatic flesh. Flatland tea has spread into Baliadangi from neighbouring Panchagarh. The BSCIC estate in the town has flour mills, biscuit and soap factories, and feed mills operate in the surrounding unions.

Food, culture and festivals

People here speak a northern dialect close to Rangpuri, with influences from the Santal, Oraon, Munda and Rajbanshi communities who live in the district. The Nekmarad fair, held around the shrine of the saint Pir Nekmarad in Ranisankail, is one of the oldest and largest rural fairs in North Bengal and draws traders and visitors from across the region. Winter brings pithas, date-palm juice and village fairs, and June is mango season.

Places to visit in Thakurgaon

1. The great mango tree of Harinmari, Baliadangi

   A Suryapuri mango tree said to be around 200 years old. Its branches have rooted along the ground and now spread over an area the size of a small field. Local people call it the largest mango tree in Asia, and visitors come to walk beneath its canopy.

2. Haripur Rajbari

   The crumbling two-storey palace of the Haripur zamindars, near the Nagar river, with arched verandas and decorated plasterwork. It is an atmospheric reminder of the estates that once ruled the border country.

3. Jamalpur Zamindar Bari Mosque

   A richly ornamented old mosque in Thakurgaon Sadar, listed by the Department of Archaeology. Its domes and plaster decoration are among the finest in the district.

4. Raja Tonkonath's palace and Ramrai Dighi, Ranisankail

   The palace of the Malduar raja and a large tank nearby make a good half-day trip from the town, combined with the Nekmarad shrine.

5. Baliadangi tea gardens

   Young flatland tea estates shaded by tall trees, part of the northern tea belt that spreads into the district from Panchagarh. They look best in the early-morning light.

What Thakurgaon is famous for

• Suryapuri mango
• Thakurgaon whole-wheat atta

How to get to Thakurgaon

Thakurgaon is roughly 450 km from Dhaka. Buses from Gabtoli, Kallyanpur and Mohakhali take about 9–11 hours via the Jamuna Bridge, Rangpur and Dinajpur. Intercity trains to Panchagarh, such as the Ekota Express, Drutojan Express and Panchagarh Express, stop at Thakurgaon Road station after about 10 hours. Flying to Saidpur takes about an hour, and the road from there to Thakurgaon takes about two hours.

Markets and haats

Nekmarad haat

A long-established market in Ranisankail next to the Pir Nekmarad shrine. Cattle, farm produce and household goods are traded here, and the area hosts the famous Nekmarad fair.

Ruhia Ramnath haat

The big weekly market of the new Ruhia upazila, busy with rice, wheat, potatoes and livestock from the surrounding unions.

Kalibari bazar, Thakurgaon town

The central market of the district town, with grocers, cloth shops and seasonal mango and lychee stalls.

Thakurgaon at a glance

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More districts in Rangpur Division

• Dinajpur Terracotta temples, Kataribhog rice and the litchi capital of Bangladesh
• Gaibandha Char country on the Brahmaputra, home of rasmanjari and winter knitwear
• Kurigram Where the Brahmaputra enters Bangladesh, a land of rivers, chars and Bhawaiya
• Lalmonirhat Railway town, Teesta Barrage and the Tin Bigha Corridor on the northern border
• Nilphamari Old indigo country, Saidpur's railway workshop and the north's industrial edge
• Panchagarh Bangladesh's northern tip, with flatland tea gardens and Kanchenjunga on the horizon
• Rangpur Capital of the north, home of shataranji rugs, Haribhanga mangoes and Begum Rokeya