Banke District (Nepali: बाँके जिल्ला (
listen), a part of Lumbini Province, is one of the 77 districts of Nepal. The district, located in midwestern Nepal with Nepalganj as its district headquarters, covers an area of 2,337 km2 (902 sq mi) and had a population of 385,840 in 2001 and 491,313 in 2011. There are three main cities in the Banke District: Nepalganj, Kohalpur and Khajura Bajaar.
Geography and Climate
Banke is bordered on the west by Bardiya district. Rapti zone’s Salyan and Dang Deukhuri Districts border to the north and east. To the south lies Uttar Pradesh, India, a country in Asia; specifically Shravasti and Bahraich districts of Awadh. East of Nepalganj the international border follows the southern edge of the Dudhwa Range of the Siwaliks.
Most of the district is drained by the Rapti, except the district’s western edge is drained by the Babai. Rapti and Babai cross into Uttar Pradesh, a state in India, Nepal’s neighboring country and eventually join the Karnali, whose name has changed to Ghaghara.
| Climate Zone[3] | Elevation Range | % of Area |
|---|---|---|
| Lower Tropical | below 300 meters (1,000 ft) | 79.1% |
| Upper Tropical | 300 to 1,000 meters 1,000 to 3,300 ft. |
20.6% |
| Subtropical | 1,000 to 2,000 meters 3,300 to 6,600 ft. |
0.3% |
Demographics
At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Banke District had a population of 491,313. Of these, 39.5% spoke Nepali, 23.7% Awadhi, 18.5% Urdu, 14.3% Tharu, 1.0% Maithili, 0.9% Magar and 0.8% Hindi as their first language.
| Census year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 205,323 | — |
| 1991 | 285,604 | +3.36% |
| 2001 | 385,840 | +3.05% |
| 2011 | 491,313 | +2.45% |
| 2021 | 603,393 | +2.08% |
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| Source: Citypopulation[5] | ||
Sub- Metropolitan City, Municipality and Rural Municipalities
There are one Sub-metropolitan city, one Municipality and six Rural Municipalities in Banke District.
- Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan City
- Kohalpur Municipality
- Rapti-Sonari Rural Municipality
- Narainapur Rural Municipality
- Duduwa Rural Municipality
- Janaki Rural Municipality
- Khajura Rural Municipality
- Baijanath Rural Municipality
Former VDCs and Municipalities
Map of the VDC/s and Municipalities (blue) in Banke District
- Bageswari
- Bashudevpur
- Baijapur
- Belahari
- Belbhar
- Betahani
- Bhawaniyapur
- Binauna
- Chisapani
- Ganapur
- Gangapur
- Hirminiya
- Holiya
- Indrapur
- Jaispur
- Kalaphanta
- Kamdi
- Kanchanapur
- Kathkuiya
- Khajura Khurda
- Khaskarkado
- Khaskusma
- Kohalpur
- Laksmanpur
- Mahadevpuri
- Manikapur
- Matahiya
- Narainapur
- Naubasta
- Nepalganj
- Parsapur
- Phatepur
- Piparhawa
- Puraina
- Puraini
- Radhapur
- Rajhena
- Raniyapur
- Saigaun
- Samserganj
- Sitapur
- Sonapur
- Titahiriya
- Udarapur