Achham District

Achham (Nepali: अछाम जिल्ला pronounced [ʌt͡sʰam] ^ⓘ) is a district located in Sudurpashchim province of Nepal. It is one of the nine districts of the province. The district, with Mangalsen as its district headquarters, covers an area of 1,692 km² and has a population (2011) of 257,477.^[2]

Achham अछाम
District
Baidhyanath Dham
Location of Achham District
Coordinates: 29°6′41″N 81°17′56″E
Country	Nepal
Province	Sudurpashchim Province
Established	13 April 1961 (Nepali date: Baishakh 1, 2018)[1]
Admin HQ.	Mangalsen
Municipality	List Urban
Government
• Type	Coordination committee
• Body	DCC, Achham
Area
• Total	1,692 km2 (653 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	257,477
• Density	150/km2 (390/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+05:45 (NPT)
Website	Official website

Etymology

There are many cultural meaning about the naming of the district but one interesting folklore is that:

.... during Mughal era in India, most people by fear of Mughal moved to this place. That time this place was good in the production of Mangoes, so when people from North India came here, they said: "Accha Aam" (अच्छा आम) (meaning good mangoes in Hindi) and that "Accha Aam" became "Achham" later.^[1]

History

Old Doti District

Madan Singh Thapa was the first king of Achham in the 5th century. Achham was a part of Doti Kingdom during medieval era.^[3] Nepal annexed Doti in 1790^[4] It remained part of Doti District until 1961. On 13 April 1961, Achham district carved out from Doti District and declared a separate district^[1]

Geography and Climate

Achham covers an area of 1,692 square kilometres (653 sq mi) and located at Latitude: 280°46’ North to 290°23' North and Longitude: 810°32 East to 810°35' East. 90% area of Achham is mid-hill and 10% is high-hill. The maximum elevation of the district is 3,820 metres (12,530 ft) and minimum elevation is 540 metres (1,770 ft) from the sea level. The district is surrounded by Bajura District in the North, Doti District in the West, Dailekh District in the East and Surkhet District in the South.^[1]

Rivers

The district has 31 rivers in total, the main being the Karnali, Seti, Budhiganga, Ekadi, Kailash Khola, Lungreligad, Pravaligad, Kashagad, Saranigad, Ardoligad, Talagad and Barlegad.^[5]

Climhiate Zone[6]	Elevation Range	% of Area
Upper Tropical	300 to 1,000 meters 1,000 to 3,300 ft.	27.4%
Subtropical	1,000 to 2,000 meters 3,300 to 6,600 ft.	58.3%
Temperate	2,000 to 3,000 meters 6,400 to 9,800 fters 9,800 to 13,100 ft.	1.0%

Demographics

At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Achham District had a population of 257,477, in which female comprises 137,469 (54%) and male comprises 120,008 (46%). Density of the area is 154 people per km².

As their first language, 66.4% of the population spoke Nepali, 32.5% Achhami, 0.4% Magar, 0.1% Doteli, 0.1% Maithili and 0.3% other languages.^[7]

Ethnicity/caste: 55.5% were Chhetri, 16.2% other Dalit, 10.2% Hill Brahmin, 9.5% Kami, 3.1% Damai/Dholi, 2.5% Thakuri, 0.6% Magar, 0.6% Sarki, 0.4% Lohar, 0.3% Badi, 0.2% Bengali, 0.2% Sanyasi/Dasnami, 0.1% Majhi, 0.1% Musalman, 0.1% Tamang, 0.1% Teli, 0.1% other Terai, 0.1% Tharu and 0.2% others.^[8]

Religion: 99.4% were Hindu, 0.3% Buddhist, 0.1% Christian and 0.1% Muslim.^[9]

Literacy: 55.4% could read and write, 3.9% could only read and 40.6% could neither read nor write.^[10]

Historical population

Census year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1981	185,212	—
1991	198,188	+0.68%
2001	231,285	+1.56%
2011	257,477	+1.08%
2021	229,816	−1.13%
Source: Citypopulation[11]

Administration

The district is administered by District Coordination Committee (Legislative), District Administration Office (Executive) and District Court (Judicial) as follows:

Administration	Name of units	Head
Legislative	District Coordination Committee
Executive	District Administration Office	Mr. Bhojraj Shreshtha
Judicial	District Court	Mr. Navin Kumar Joshi

Administrative Divisions

Accham is divided into total of ten local level bodies, of which four are urban and six are rural.

#	Name	Nepali	Type	Population (2011)	Area (km2)
1	Mangalsen	मङ्गलसेन	municipality	32331	220.14
2	Kamalbazar	कमलबजार	municipality	23738	120.78
3	Sanfebagar	साँफेबगर	municipality	33788	166.71
4	Panchadewal Binayak	पञ्चदेवल	municipality	27485	147.75
5	Ramaroshan	रामारोशन	rural municipality	25,166	173.33
6	Chaurpati	चौरपाटी	rural municipality	25,149	182.16
7	Turmakhand	तुर्माखाँद	rural municipality	24,940	232.07
8	Mellekh	मेल्लेख	rural municipality	24,670	134.78
9	Dhakari	ढँकारी	rural municipality	21,562	227.88
10	Bannigadi Jayagad	बान्नीगडीजैगड	rural municipality	17,359	58.26

Religion in Achham district as of 2011.

  Hinduism (99.42%)

  Buddhism (0.30%)

  Christianity (0.13%)

Transportation

Achham is one of the remotest districts of Nepal. It is accessible by automobile from Kathmandu and Nepalgunj via a paved road that runs along the western border of Nepal from Dhangadhi. The unpaved road of Mid-Hill Highway through Dailakh district also traverses to Mangalsen by crossing Karnali at Rakam.^[12]

Mangalsen, the district headquarters, is an eight-hour walk and a 2.5 hour drive from Sanphebagar – a town in Achham sporting a non-functional domestic airport. A bridge crosses the Budhiganga River in Sanphebagar allowing access during high water, a second bridge over the Kailash River. During 2009/2010, the government of Nepal has constructed a paved road connecting Sanphebagar to Mangalsen. The district is served by two hospitals, the government district hospital in Mangalsen and one recently opened in Bayalpata named Bayalpata Hospital that is a collaboration between the government and the non-profit organization Nyaya Health.^[13]

Education

71% of men aged five and above are literate in Achham compared to 75% at the national level, only 43% of such women in the district can read and write (against 57% across Nepal).^[5]

FM radio and newspapers

Achham Besd six FM radio and three newspapers are running now. In this district Ramaroshan Daiy.

Newspapers Ramaroshan Daily Khaptad News daily Miracle weekly

FM Radio Ramaroshan Janapriya Society Achham Panchadewol Paribartan Redio Bannigadhi 93.4 Sanfebagar Fm

See also

• Panchadewal Binayak

References

1. "अछाम जिल्लाको संक्षिप्त परिचय" (in Nepali). Achham DCC. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
2. "National Population and Housing Census 2011(National Report)" (PDF). Central Bureau of Statistics. Government of Nepal. November 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
3. "Deuki Pratha". 15 January 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
4. "M. Gaborieau on 7 Bharats recorded in Nepal (1969)". Retrieved 18 February 2020.
5. "UNDAF District Profile: Achham". United Nation. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
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 87-7903-210-9, retrieved Nov 22, 2013
7. NepalMap Language
8. NepalMap Caste
9. NepalMap Religion
10. NepalMap Literacy
11. "NEPAL: Administrative Division". www.citypopulation.de.
12. "Accham". Far Western nepal. Archived from the original on 2013-05-21. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
13. "Accham District Nepal". Sudur Sansar. Archived from the original on 2014-11-07. Retrieved 2013-06-27.

External links

• UN map of VDC boundaries, water features and roads in Achham
• "Districts of Nepal". Statoids.