Rupandehi District

Rupandehi District (Nepali: रुपन्देही जिल्ला; pronounced [ɾu.pʌn.de.i; -e.ɦi] (listen)), a part of Lumbini Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal and covers an area of 1,360 km² (530 sq mi). The district headquarter is Bhairahawa. As per the national census 2011, the population of Rupandehi was 880,196.^[2]

Rupandehi District रुपन्देही जिल्ला
District
Birthplace of Siddhārtha Gautama, the Buddha
Location of Rupandehi
Country	Nepal
Province	Lumbini Province
Admin HQ.	Siddharthanagar
Municipality	List Urban Butwal Devdaha Lumbini Sanskritik Sainamaina Siddharthanagar Tilottama Rural Gaidahawa Kanchan Kotahimai Mayadevi Omsatiya Rohini Sammarimai Siyari Suddodhan
Government
• Type	Coordination committee
• Body	DCC, Rupandehi
• Parliamentary constituencies	5
• Provincial constituencies	10
Area
• Total	1,360 km^2 (530 sq mi)
Population  (2016)^[1]
• Total	982,851
• Density	720/km^2 (1,900/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+05:45 (NPT)
Telephone Code	071
Main Language(s)	Nepali, Bhojpuri, Awadhi, Tharu
Website	ddcrupandehi.gov.np

Etymology

Rupandehi is named after Rupadevi, the queen of King Suddhodana.^[2]

History

Lumbini, birthplace of Buddha, lies in Rupandehi district. Devdaha, the birthplace of Mayadevi (mother of Buddha), also lies in Rupandehi district.

Demographics

At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Rupandehi District had a population of 880,196. Of these, 36.9% spoke Nepali, 36.6% Bhojpuri, 6.4% Awadhi, 6.3% Tharu, 4.2% Magar, 3.5% Maithili, 2.6% Sanskrit, 1.3% Newari, 1.2% Gurung and 0.5% Hindi as their first language.^[3]

At the time of 2011 A.D National population and Housing census 2011 was reported that total population of Rupandehi district was 880,196 . and Male=432,193 and Female=448,003 and total household was 163,916 . Data Source: Central bureau of statistics Kathmandu, government of Nepal.

Historical population

Census year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1981	379,096	—
1991	522,150	+3.25%
2001	708,419	+3.10%
2011	880,196	+2.19%
2021	1,118,975	+2.43%
Source: Citypopulation^[4]

Administrative divisions

Rupandehi is divided into 16 local level units, in which 6 are urban municipality and 10 are Rural Municipality. Butwal is considered as a Sub-Metropolitan municipality.

Urban and rural municipalities of Rupandehi^[5]

Sr. No.	Name	Division	Area (KM^2)	Population (2011)	Website
1	Butwal	Sub-Metropolitan Municipality	101.61	138,742	butwalmun.gov.np
2	Devdaha	Municipality	136.95	53,523	devdahamun.gov.np
3	Lumbini Sanskritik	Municipality	112.21	72,497	lumbinisanskritikmun.gov.np
4	Sainamaina	Municipality	162.18	55,822	sainamainamun.gov.np
5	Siddharthanagar	Municipality	36.03	63,483	siddharthanagarmun.gov.np
6	Tilottama	Municipality	126.19	100,149	tilottamamun.gov.np
7	Gaidahawa	Rural Municipality	96.79	47,565	gaidahawamun.gov.np
8	Kanchan	Rural Municipality	58.51	33,072	kanchanmun.gov.np
9	Kotahimai	Rural Municipality	58.26	41,006	kotahimaimun.gov.np
10	Marchawari	Rural Municipality	48.55	38,776	marchawarimun.gov.np
11	Mayadevi	Rural Municipality	72.44	47,196	mayadevimunrupandehi.gov.np
12	Omsatiya	Rural Municipality	48.58	34,191	omsatiyamun.gov.np
13	Rohini	Rural Municipality	64.62	37,175	rohinimun.gov.np
14	Sammarimai	Rural Municipality	50.78	38,305	sammarimaimun.gov.np
15	Siyari	Rural Municipality	66.17	38,466	siyarimun.gov.np
16	Suddodhan	Rural Municipality	57.66	34,638	suddhodhanmunrupandehi.gov.np

Constituencies

Rupandehi is divided into 5 Parliamentary constituencies and 10 Provincial constituencies.

Constituency	Type	MP/MLA	Party
Rupandehi 1	Parliamentary	Rajeev Bista	NC
Rupandehi 2	Parliamentary	Bishnu Poudel	NC
Rupandehi 3	Parliamentary	Ghanashyam Bhusal	NC
Rupandehi 4	Parliamentary	Pramod Kumar Yadav	NC
Rupandehi 5	Parliamentary	Bharat Kumar Shah	NC
Rupandehi 1(A)	Provincial	Krishna Prasad Neupane	NC
Rupandehi 2(A)	Provincial	Lila Giri	NC
Rupandehi 3(A)	Provincial	Santosh Kumar Pandey	NC
Rupandehi 4(A)	Provincial	Ashtha Bhuja Pathak	NC
Rupandehi 5(A)	Provincial	Bhumishwor Dhakal	NC
Rupandehi 1(B)	Provincial	Dadhi Ram Neupane	NC
Rupandehi 2(B)	Provincial	Bhoj Prasad Shrestha	NC
Rupandehi 3(B)	Provincial	Tulshi Prasad Chaudhary	NC
Rupandehi 4(B)	Provincial	Wasiuddin Khan	NC
Rupandehi 5(B)	Provincial	Fakharuddin Khan	NC

NGOs in Rupandehi Rupandehi is divided into 5 Parliamentary constituencies and 10 Provincial constituencies.

Constituency	Type	MP/MLA	Party
Rupandehi 1	Parliamentary	Rajeev Bista	NC
Rupandehi 2	Parliamentary	Bishnu Poudel	NC
Rupandehi 3	Parliamentary	Ghanashyam Bhusal	NC
Rupandehi 4	Parliamentary	Pramod Kumar Yadav	NC
Rupandehi 5	Parliamentary	Bharat Kumar Shah	NC
Rupandehi 1(A)	Provincial	Krishna Prasad Neupane	NC
Rupandehi 2(A)	Provincial	Lila Giri	NC
Rupandehi 3(A)	Provincial	Santosh Kumar Pandey	NC
Rupandehi 4(A)	Provincial	Ashtha Bhuja Pathak	NC
Rupandehi 5(A)	Provincial	Bhumishwor Dhakal	NC
Rupandehi 1(B)	Provincial	Dadhi Ram Neupane	NC
Rupandehi 2(B)	Provincial	Bhoj Prasad Shrestha	NC
Rupandehi 3(B)	Provincial	Tulshi Prasad Chaudhary	NC
Rupandehi 4(B)	Provincial	Wasiuddin Khan	NC
Rupandehi 5(B)	Provincial	Fakharuddin Khan	NC

Constituencies

Rupandehi is divided into 5 Parliamentary constituencies and 10 Provincial constituencies.

Constituency	Type	MP/MLA	Party
Rupandehi 1	Parliamentary	Rajeev Bista	NC
Rupandehi 2	Parliamentary	Bishnu Poudel	NC
Rupandehi 3	Parliamentary	Ghanashyam Bhusal	NC
Rupandehi 4	Parliamentary	Pramod Kumar Yadav	NC
Rupandehi 5	Parliamentary	Bharat Kumar Shah	NC
Rupandehi 1(A)	Provincial	Krishna Prasad Neupane	NC
Rupandehi 2(A)	Provincial	Lila Giri	NC

Geography

The district lies on the southern and western part of Nepal. On the East it shares border with Nawalparasi District, on West with Kapilvastu District, on North with Palpa District and on South with India. The elevation of the district lies between 100m to 1229m from sea level. The total area of the district is 1,360 km² with 16.1% in Churia Range and rest in the Terai region.

Major rivers

Rupandehi has many rivers all of which flow from Northern mountains towards south into India.

• Tinau River
• Kothi River
• Sukhaira River
• Bagela River
• Rohini River
• Kanchan River
• Kacharar River
• Koili River
• Danav River
• Danda River
• Ghodaha
• Khadawa

Major lakes

• Gaidahawa lake (Gaidahawa)
• Gajedi lake (Gajedi)
• Nanda vauju lake (Chilhiya)
• Sukaiiya lake

Climate

Climate Zone^[6]	Elevation Range	% of Area
Lower Tropical	below 300 meters (1,000 ft)	89.3%
Upper Tropical	300 to 1,000 meters 1,000 to 3,300 ft.	10.5%
Subtropical	1,000 to 2,000 meters 3,300 to 6,600 ft.	0.2%

Praketeshwar Mahadev

Praketeshwar Mandir is near of Lumbini Road. In months of Shrawan (late July and early August), there is a big crowded fair, quite popular among locals and people around the regions.^{[citation needed]}

Nawa Durga Bhawani Mandir

It lies in Sainamaina-3, Murgiya. Many peoples visit there to worship Goddess Durga throughout the year. Many poojas are conducted timely. It is regularly repaired by the members involved in its development.

Lumbini

 

Birth place of Gautam Buddha

Lumbini is the birthplace of Buddha on whose teachings Buddhism was founded.^[7] It is granted World Heritage status by UNESCO in 1997.^[7] Thousands of Buddhist monks, pilgrims and tourists visit Lumbini annually. The ongoing up-gradation of Gautam Buddha Airport into international airport is expected to increase the number of visitors.^[8] Mahinda Rajapakshe, President of Sri Lanka is one of the high-profile visitor of Lumbini.^[9]

Siddha Baba Mandir

 

Siddha Baba Temple

This is a temple dedicated to Shiva situated in border between Palpa and Rupandehi.^[10] There is a belief that Shiva grants the wishes of the devotees who visit the temple.^[10] There are two Siddha Baba Mandir adjacent to each other. One lies within Rupandehi and another in Palpa. Nonetheless, both Mandir are regarded as pilgrimages of equal importance.

Satiya Devi Temple and Satiya Mai Mandir

This is a temple dedicated to Devi Satiya situated in Patkhauli VDC, near Rohini Khola In Rupandehi.^[11] There is a belief that Real Lady grants the wishes of the devotees who visit the temple.^[10] There are a real Maya Devi Mandir and other is modified temple adjacent to each other. One lies within Rupandehi and another in Palpa. Nonetheless, both Mandir are regarded as a pilgrimage of equal importance. Due to the Godes beloved to visitors in Satiya Ban area. Actually, this temple is situated in the middle of Rohini Khola but now River is flowing west of Satiya Devi Temple and Satiya Bagaicha.

Manimukunda Sen Park

Once a winter palace of King Manimukunda Sen, Manimukunda Sen Park is another major attraction in Rupandehi. The palace is not in shape but the ruins and antiquities of the majestic palace can still be found. It is situated in Butwal City and is popular for the picnic spots, zoo and the gardens inside the park. The greenery and the view of Rupandehi, Palpa and Kapilvastu districts is also another attraction in the park.^[12]

Parroha Bol Bam Dham

It is the oldest Bol Bam Dham (pilgrimage and festival) in Nepal. The pilgrimage is dedicated to Shiva located in Sainamaina Municipality. Thousands of Shiva's devotees from various parts of the country and from neighboring States of India visit to worship the Shivalinga inside the Bol Bam Dham. The major inflow of pilgrims occurs during the Bol Bam. Bol Bam is an annual pilgrimage glorifying Shiva made in Shraavana in which devotees travel barefooted wearing saffron robes in routes to the dham.^[13]

Shankar Nagar Ban Bihar and Research Center

Shankar Nagar Ban Bihar and Research Centre, simply referred as Ban Batika by locals is an attraction in Tilottama Municipality. The centre is maintained inside Shankarnagar Community Forest. It is visited for its picnic spots, zoo and garden.^[14]

• Chanchala Mai Mandir
• Jit Gadhi

Marchwari Devi Temple lies in Bogadi VDC of Rupandehi. It is a historical temple among the 24 previous VDC. The area surrounding this temple (now 18 VDCs) are named after this temple as Marchwar. The local people and peoples from INDIA, Uttar Pradesh visit there on specific occasions to celebrate childbirth, engagement and marriage ceremonies.^{[citation needed]}

Chappiya Fish village

Chappiya fish village resort has become an attraction in siyari municipality and has peoples visiting from many neighbouring municipalities.^{[citation needed]} It provides various species of fish and mouth watering cuisines, and have the option of boating and fishing. It is located in Siyari Gaupalika which is about 12 kilometer west of Bhairahawa.

Pardasani mela

It is one of the most popular mela held annually in butwal. It is related to business.

Major economic centers

• Butwal
• Siddharthanagar (Bhairahawa)
• Dhakdhai (industrial area)
• Lumbini (world Heritage Area, as tourism)
• Devdaha (miroduct area)
• Sainamaina (Murgiya for sports and tourism)
• Murgiya
• Manigram
• Chho.gen Never (grain products area)
• Kothihawa
• Lumbini
• Saljhandi
• Sauraha Pharsatikar
• Bhalwari
• Manglapur
• Bashgadi
• Jogada
• Divertole
• Sankarnagar
• Jogikuti
• Thutipipal
• semlar
• marchawar
• Chhapiya
• SEMARI (industrial area)

Non-profit organisations

• Center for Development and Disaster management (CDM-Nepal)-CDM-Nepal is a leading non-governmental development and humanitarian organisation of Province 5 of Nepal, established in 2000 in Butwal, CDM-Nepal has worked in DRM, CCA, WASH, livelihood and GBV

NAMUNA Integrated Development Council (NAMUNA)

• Tarai Dalit Concern centre Nepal TDCC Nepal
• FSC Rupandehi^[15]
• Samriddhi Foundation
• Ma Bhagawiti Anurag Jagarn Samooh
• Astha Samuha (www.asthasamuha.org.np)
• Brahmakumaris organization
• Biodiversity Conservancy Nepal
• Lilaram Kuntidevi Neupane Foundation
• Namaste Kids Nepal
• Seto Gurans Child Development Service Rupandehi
• Nepal Bikash Kendra Butwal -11,Rupandehi (Nepal Development Center)

Education

Rupandehi is renowned at national level on education sector for its infrastructure and achievements. Jilla Shikshya Karyalaya, Rupandehi (District Education Office, Rupandehi) under Ministry of Education manages and govern the education in the district. Currently, it manages 745 educational institutions in the district. As per National Census 2011, the literacy rate of the district is 72%, where male literacy rate is 89% and female literacy rate is 62%.^[16] The literacy rate is above the national average.^[17]

Transportation

Siddhartha Highway and Mahendra Highway connects Rupandehi with rest of the country. Gautam Buddha Airport connects Rupandehi with the rest of the country.^[18] It is the only airport in Lumbini.^[18] Currently it is being upgraded to make it an international airport. The late Prime Minister Sushil Koirala laid a foundations stone of the airport on January 15. It is expected to be completed by 2018 with an estimated budget of Rs 6.22 billion. North-West Civil Aviation Airport Construction Company of China is responsible for the construction of the airport.^[19]

West Nepal Bus Entrepreneurs' Association established in 2026 with the approval of District Administration Office is the major provider of transportation services for Rupandehi and the whole country.^[20]

Sports

Cricket and football are the most popular sports in Rupandehi. Players in Rupandehi compete in domestic cricket tournaments as Region No. 4 Bhairahawa.^[21] Shakti Gauchan and Basanta Regmi are leading cricketers from Rupandehi who regularly play for the national team.^[22][23] Rupandehi XI represents Rupandehi in domestic football tournaments.^[24] Dipak Chhetri, Pukar Gahatraj, and Pradip Karki are notable footballer from Rupandehi.^[25]

References

1. . National Planning Commission Secretariat, Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Government of Nepal. September 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-04-15.
2. "संक्षिप्त परिचय : रुपन्देही जि.वि.स". ddcrupandehi.gov.np. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
3. 2011 Nepal Census, Social Characteristics Tables
4. "NEPAL: Administrative Division". www.citypopulation.de.
5. "स्थानिय तह". www.mofaga.gov.np. Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
6. The Map of Potential Vegetation of Nepal - a forestry/agroecological/biodiversity classification system (PDF), Forest & Landscape Development and Environment Series 2-2005 and CFC-TIS Document Series No.110., 2005, ISBN 978-87-7903-210-1, retrieved Nov 22, 2013
7. Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Lumbini, the Birthplace of the Lord Buddha - UNESCO World Heritage Centre". whc.unesco.org. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
8. Holden, Kevin. "Buddha's birthplace brings light to Nepal". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
9. "| श्रीलङ्काली राष्ट्रपतिद्वारा लुम्बिनीमा मायादेवी मन्दिरको दर्शन र पूजा". www.mechikali.com. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
10. 99MustSee.com. "Siddha Baba Temple in Butwal - Unexplored Attraction in Butwal - Lumbini Nepal". www.99mustsee.com. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
11. "Maya devi Temple- Unexplored Attraction in - Nepal".
12. "Manimukunda sen Park, Butwal". Suggest Nepal | Write a suggestion about any place you have visited in Nepal. 2014-09-02. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
13. "साउनभर बोलबम धाम – www.ekhabarnepal.com". www.ekhabarnepal.com. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
14. "Shankarnagar Ban bihar - Butwal Park, Refreshment area, Picnic Spot, manimukunda sen park, hill park". Shankarnagar Ban bihar. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
15. First Non-profit Organizations for Farmers Development in Nepal, is described as (Farmers Service Committee, Rupandehi) in Rupandehi Desticis but was registered in more than 11 Desticis in Nepal
16. "जिल्ला शिक्षा कार्यालय रुपन्देही :: District Education Office Rupandehi". deorupandehi.gov.np. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
17. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 18, 2013.
18. Administrator. "Airports". www.caanepal.org.np. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
19. "My Republica - PM Oli inspects Gautam Buddha Int'l Airport". www.myrepublica.com. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
20. "West Nepal Bus Interpreneurs Association". pnbbs.org.np. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
21. "Cricket Association of Nepal". www.cricketnepal.org. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
22. "Shakti Gauchan". Cricinfo. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
23. "Basant Regmi". Cricinfo. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
24. "Rupandehi XI stun APF 2-1". kathmandupost.ekantipur.com. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
25. "| रुपन्देही : क्रिकेट उर्वरभूमि". www.mechikali.com. Retrieved 2016-03-18.

• Shaha, Rishikesh (1992). Ancient and Medieval Nepal. Manohar Publications, New Delhi. ISBN 978-81-85425-69-6.
• Shreshta, S.H (2005). Nepal in Maps. Kathmandu: Educational Publishing House. p. 129.
• Shreshta, Vinod Prasad (2007). A Concise Geography of Nepal. Kathmandu: Mandal Publications. p. 126. ISBN 978-99946-55-04-5.
• Woodhatch, Tom (1999). Nepal handbook. The Royal Palace. Footprint Travel Guides. p. 194. ISBN 978-1-900949-44-6. Retrieved 2009-12-17.

Coordinates: 27°30′N 83°27′E / 27.500°N 83.450°E / 27.500; 83.450

 

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