Lesson 2/45 min
Borders and border districts
Border basics
- Two neighbours: India and Myanmar
- The Bangladesh-India border is the 5th longest in the world (Khandokar)
- Of 64 districts, 32 lie on a border: 30 with India and 3 with Myanmar; Rangamati touches both, so 30 + 3 - 1 = 32
- Half of Bangladesh's districts are border districts
- Five Indian states border Bangladesh: West Bengal, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam, Mizoram
- The longest border is with West Bengal, the shortest with Assam
Border lengths: sources differ
| Item | Border Guard / Land Ministry (in books) | Secondary geography (in books) |
|---|---|---|
| Total boundary | 5,138 km | 4,711 km |
| Total land boundary | 4,827 km | 3,995 km |
| With India | 4,156 km | 3,715 km |
| With Myanmar | 271 km | 280 km |
Watch out: Banglapedia gives a total land border of about 4,246 km; another international source gives 4,413 (India 4,142, Myanmar 271). Figures differ by source, so check the source named in a question. For Myanmar, 271 km (border guard and Wikipedia); secondary textbooks say 280. Coastline length is not in this lesson; it comes in the next topic.
Indian side: states and border districts (Khandokar's count)
| State | Border districts |
|---|---|
| West Bengal | 10 |
| Tripura | 8 |
| Meghalaya | 7 |
| Assam | 4 |
| Mizoram | 3 |
The 30 districts bordering India (Khandokar's list)
| Division | No. | Districts |
|---|---|---|
| Chattogram | 6 | Chattogram, Rangamati, Khagrachari, Feni, Cumilla, Brahmanbaria |
| Rangpur | 6 | Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, Panchagarh, Nilphamari, Thakurgaon, Dinajpur |
| Khulna | 6 | Satkhira, Jashore, Jhenaidah, Kushtia, Meherpur, Chuadanga |
| Rajshahi | 4 | Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj, Joypurhat, Naogaon |
| Sylhet | 4 | Sylhet, Sunamganj, Habiganj, Moulvibazar |
| Mymensingh | 4 | Mymensingh, Jamalpur, Netrokona, Sherpur |
Watch out: This list is from Khandokar and could not be matched with a second source (especially the name Chattogram district). Use the division counts and the total of 30, but do not rely on each name for a quiz.
Myanmar and the usual questions
- Three districts border Myanmar: Rangamati, Bandarban, Cox's Bazar; Myanmar's states: Rakhine and Chin
- Which divisions have no border with India or Myanmar? Dhaka and Barishal
- In which two divisions is every district a border district? Sylhet and Mymensingh
- Borders both India and Myanmar: Rangamati
- No India border: Bandarban and Cox's Bazar; no Myanmar border (among the hill districts): Khagrachari
- Meghalaya lies north of Sylhet; India has a district also named Dinajpur
- Matching Indian districts: Chapainawabganj-Murshidabad, Panchagarh-Jalpaiguri, Satkhira-24 Parganas, Kushtia-Nadia (Zubair)
- Bangladesh district on the Tripura border: Cumilla (Zubair)
Direction of the Indian border
| Side | What lies there |
|---|---|
| West | West Bengal |
| North | West Bengal, Meghalaya, Assam |
| East | Assam, Tripura, Mizoram and Myanmar |
| South | Bay of Bengal; India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands (capital Port Blair) |
Check yourself
Which district borders both India and Myanmar?
At a glance
- 1
32 border districts: 30 with India, 3 with Myanmar, Rangamati with both.
- 2
Dhaka and Barishal divisions have no border; every district of Sylhet and Mymensingh is a border district.
- 3
5 Indian states: West Bengal (longest), Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam (shortest), Mizoram.
- 4
India 4,156 km (border guard), Myanmar 271 km; sources differ.
- 5
Bandarban and Cox's Bazar have no India border; Khagrachari has no Myanmar border.