Mahottari District

Mahottari District (Nepali: महोत्तरी जिल्ला, ), a part of Madhesh Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Jaleshwar as its district headquarters, covers an area of 1,002 km² (387 sq mi) and had a population of 553,481 in 2001, 627,580 in 2011 and 705,838 in 2021 census. Its headquarters is located in Jaleshwar, a neighbouring town of the historical city of Janakpur. The name Jaleshwar means 'God in Water'. One can find a famous temple of Lord Shiva in Water there. Jaleshwar lies at a few kilometres distance from the Nepal-India border and has a majority Maithili population.

Geography and climate

Demographics

At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Mahottari District had a population of 627,580.

As their first language, 81.0% spoke Maithili, 7.3% Urdu, 5.4% Nepali, 1.9% Magar, 1.4% Tamang, 1.1% Tharu, 0.9% Magahi, 0.2% Hindi, 0.2% Newar 0.1% Bhojpuri and 0.1% other languages.

The ethnic makeup of the region is very diverse. 15.2% were Yadav, 13.4% Musalman, 6.5% Dhanuk, 5.8% Koiri/Kushwaha, 5.1% Terai Brahmin, 4.1% Teli, 3.7% Musahar, 3.6% Chamar/Harijan/Ram, 2.5% Khatwe, 2.4% Dusadh/Paswan/Pasi, 2.4% Sudhi, 2.3% Magar, 2.2% Nuniya, 1.8% Hill Brahmin, 1.6% Baraee, 1.6% Chhetri, 1.6% Tatma/Tatwa, 1.6% Tharu, 1.5% Bin, 1.5% Kalwar, 1.5% Tamang, 1.4% Mallaha, 1.3% Hajam/Thakur, 1.3% Sonar, 1.1% Kanu, 1.1% Kewat, 1.0% Dhobi, 0.9% Kurmi, 0.9% Lohar, 0.8% Halwai, 0.7% Kami, 0.7% Newar, 0.7% Rajput, 0.6% Dhunia, 0.6% Kumhar, 0.5% Kathabaniyan, 0.4% Bantar/Sardar, 0.4% Danuwar, 0.4% Kayastha, 0.4% other Terai, 0.3% Damai/Dholi, 0.3% Mali, 0.2% Badhaee, 0.2% Dom, 0.2% Gaderi/Bhedihar, 0.2% Gharti/Bhujel, 0.2% Kumal, 0.2% Sanyasi/Dasnami, 0.1% Amat, 0.1% Majhi, 0.1% Punjabi/Sikh, 0.1% Rai, 0.1% Sarki, 0.1% Sunuwar, 0.1% Thakuri and 0.2% others.

Religion: 84.2% were Hindu, 13.3% Muslim, 2.0% Buddhist, 0.1% Christian and 0.2% others.

Literacy: 46.2% could read and write, 2.5% could only read and 50.9% could neither read nor write.

Notable people

List ordered alphabetically

Bhadrakali Mishra- Nepali Congress leader of Minister of Nepal at various times
Giriraj Mani Pokharel-CPN (Maoist Centre) leader and former Minister for Education
Hari Shankar Mishra- Current governor of Madhesh Province, former Nepali Congress leader and Member of House of Representatives
Mahantha Thakur- Chairman of Democratic Socialist Party and former Minister for various ministries as NC leader
Mahendra Kumar Raya- Nepali Congress leader and former Minister of state for Industry, Commerce and Supplies under Bimalendra Nidhi
Maheshwar Prasad Singh- democracy icon and Nepali Congress leader
Ram Narayan Mishra- Nepali Congress leader and minister in first democratically elected government of BP Koirala
Sharat Singh Bhandari- former NC leader and senior leader of DSP, N. Also former Minister for Defence
Shivajee Yadav-Deputy chairman of People's Progressive Party and former member of constituent assembly

Administration

The district consists of ten urban municipalities and five rural municipalities. These are as follows:

Aurahi Municipality
Balawa Municipality
Bardibas Municipality
Bhangaha Municipality
Gaushala Municipality
Jaleshwor Municipality
Loharpatti Municipality
ManaraShiswa Municipality
Matihani Municipality
Ramgopalpur Municipality
Ekdara Rural Municipality
Mahottari Rural Municipality
Pipara Rural Municipality
Samsi Rural Municipality
Sonama Rural Municipality

Former Village Development Committees (VDCs) and Municipalities

The 2011 National Population and Housing Census by the government of Nepal identifies 77 municipalities and village development committees (VDC) within the Mahottari District.