Kanaighat, Sylhet

It has been said that there was a boatman named Kanai at the Surma River of Sylhet District. The area is named Kanaighat after him. However, there was no proof of the story, and there are many more tales behind it. Nevertheless, the Kanaighat area guide explores the landscape and beauty of this upazila, located in the northeast of Bangladesh.

Though the Kanaighat Upazila was established in 1983, it was a thana of Sylhet since 1880. Now, there are 1 pourashava, 9 unions, and 250 mouzas in the upazila. It has a land area of about 412.25 square kilometers and a population of 3,17,575 (2022 Census). The upazila is bounded by the Meghalaya State of India and Jaintapur Upazila in the north, Beanibazar, and Jakiganj Upazilas in the south, Assam State of India in the east, and Gowainghat, Jaintapur, and Sylhet Sadar upazilas in the west.


Being surrounded by several major upazilas and cities, Kanaighat offers broader transportation facilities across the country. Other than offering various communication routes inside the country, Kanaighat also offers transportation facilities beyond the border. However, the upazila roads and streets still suffer from the lack of proper development as there are more mud roads and many bus routes are not wide enough for better-traveling access. Several roads in the Upazila Sadar area are even damaged and have potholes.

Since the majority of the population in Kanaighat is Muslim, you will find several mosques in each village. There are more than 470 mosques all over the upazila, along with 30 temples and 2 churches. The upazila also has cultural organizations, political and sports clubs, religious services, community centers, banks, financial institutions, etc.

Among its over 150 educational institutions, the most notable ones are the Kanaighat Government High School, Kanaighat Government College, Kanaighat Women College, Durgapur High School And College, Jamea Islamia Yousufia Fazil Madrasa, Jhingabari Fazil (Degree) Madrasah, etc.

The most remarkable natural resource of Kanaighat is stone. The government earns a lot of revenue from Lovachora Stone Quarry in the upazila. Besides that, agriculture is the main economic source of the people in the upazila, which is about 48%. Other economic sources include non-agricultural labor, business, industries, jobs and services, remittance, etc.

Kanaighat Upazila has many popular tourist spots. Among them, the Surma River, Andal Beel, Satbak Andu Lake, Lovachora Tea Estate and Park, East Barchatola Rubber Plantation, etc, are frequently visited by tourists.