GovTwin / Institution
Thakurgaon District
Local Gov
Thakurgaon is the northwesternmost district of Bangladesh, a landlocked agrarian border district producing paddy, wheat, maize and sugarcane for the Thakurgaon sugar mill. It is one of the poorest districts in the country and records the nation's worst aerosol pollution.
Wealth rank 5/64
(1 = poorest district)
Warming +0.27°C
(1980s–2020s)
Air NO₂ #41/64
(1 = most polluted)
Night-lights +70%
(2014–23 activity)
Built-up 36 km²
Forest loss 105 ha
(2001–23)
Rainfall 2,491 mm/yr
Indicators: Meta RWI (HDX); ERA5-Land; MODIS; Sentinel-5P; VIIRS night-lights; GHSL; Hansen v1.11; CHIRPS v2.0. Exposure: GloFAS v2.1, FABDEM, MODIS LST, ACAG PM2.5, WorldPop 2020.
Problems and issues
- poverty Among the very poorest districts: mean Relative Wealth Index is -0.27, national rank 5 of 64 (1 is poorest). So what: Severe poverty in a remote border district with weak market access keeps households dependent on low-return subsistence farming. Source: Meta Data for Good Relative Wealth Index (HDX), ~2.4 km grid
- air quality The worst aerosol pollution in the country: AOD ranks 1 of 64 nationally (1 is worst); NO2 ranks 41 of 64. So what: The nation's heaviest aerosol loading drives a high respiratory disease burden in a district with limited tertiary care. Source: MODIS MAIAC aerosol optical depth (550 nm) via Google Earth Engine
- water No measurable permanent surface water (0.0 km2), leaving dry-season cropping fully reliant on groundwater. So what: Total dependence on groundwater for irrigation makes the farm economy acutely vulnerable to falling water tables. Source: JRC Global Surface Water (permanent water) via Google Earth Engine
- economy Economic dynamism is weak: nighttime-lights growth of 70 percent ranks 52 of 64 nationally. So what: Sluggish growth in a remote corner district offers few non-farm jobs, sustaining out-migration and dependence on agriculture. Source: VIIRS nighttime lights (annual radiance) via Google Earth Engine
- climate disaster Heavy monsoon rainfall (2,491 mm) drives flooding and erosion along the Tangon, Senua and Nagar rivers. So what: Flood damage to crops in an already poor district deepens seasonal food insecurity. Source: CHIRPS v2.0 precipitation (UCSB Climate Hazards Group) via Google Earth Engine
Probable solutions
- Improve border-district market connectivity (feeder roads, growth-centre markets) and support sugarcane and maize value chains to raise farm incomes and create local off-farm jobs. Responsible: Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) · policy proposal
- Prioritise conversion of brick kilns to cleaner technology and control crop-residue burning to cut the country's highest aerosol loading. Responsible: Department of Environment · policy proposal
- Expand surface-water conservation, canal and pond re-excavation and water-saving irrigation to reduce groundwater dependence. Responsible: Barind Multipurpose Development Authority / Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE) · policy proposal
- Continue targeted social protection and seasonal employment support for landless and char-adjacent households in this high-poverty border district. Responsible: Department of Social Services / Department of Disaster Management · policy proposal