Bangladesh Now Has 503 Upazilas as Government Issues Gazette

The government has officially increased the total number of administrative upazilas in Bangladesh to 503 following the creation of three new upazilas. According to separate gazette notifications, Fatikchhari Upazila in Chittagong has been bifurcated to create "Fatikchhari Uttar", Gafargaon Upazila in Mymensingh has been divided to form "Dakshin Gafargaon", and Muradnagar Upazila in Comilla has been split to establish "Bangra" as the 501st, 502nd, and 503rd upazilas of the country respectively.

The Cabinet Division's NICAR-1 branch issued three separate notifications on Wednesday (July 8) executing the administrative changes.

According to the first notification, in accordance with the decisions taken during the 121st meeting of the National Implementation Committee for Administrative Reorganization (NICAR), the government has formed the "Fatikchhari Uttar" upazila by combining six specific unions from the existing Fatikchhari upazila of Chittagong district. The included unions are: 1. Baganbazar, 2. Datmara, 3. Narayanhat, 4. Bhajpur, 5. Harualchhari, and 6. Suabil. The official administrative organogram and office setups for various government departments in this new upazila have also been approved.

The second notification states that "Dakshin Gafargaon" upazila in Mymensingh district has been established by aggregating eight unions from the original Gafargaon upazila. The unions constituting the new administrative zone are: 1. Mashakhali, 2. Panchbagh, 3. Usthi, 4. Longair, 5. Paithal, 6. Datter Bazar, 7. Niguari, and 8. Tangab. The necessary institutional frameworks and office configurations have received official approval.

Furthermore, the third gazette regarding Comilla's "Bangra" upazila outlines that it has been formed by carving out 10 unions from the existing Muradnagar upazila. The jurisdiction of Bangra upazila will cover: 1. Srikail, 2. Akubpur, 3. Andikot, 4. Purbadhair (East), 5. Purbadhair (West), 6. Bangra (East), 7. Bangra (West), 8. Chapitala, 9. Ramchandrapur (North), and 10. Tonki. The government has simultaneously sanctioned the required departmental office setups to ensure immediate administrative functionality for the newly established upazila.