The origin of the name Savar is thought to be an evolved version of the ancient 7th-8th century township of সর্বেশ্বর Shôrbeshshôr ("Lord of everything") or সম্ভার Shômbhar situated on the banks of the river known today as the Bangshi. Shôrbeshshôr, in turn, is said to have been established on the site of the ancient Sambagh Kingdom. Local legends as well as archeological finds indicate a king by the name of Harishchandra, said to be of the Pala dynasty, ruled over Shôrbeshshôr - purportedly from the first half of the 7th century having arrived from the Rarh region. There is an old shloka that goes বংশাবতী-পূর্বতীরে সর্বেশ্বর নগরী, বৈসে রাজা হরিশচন্দ্র জিনি সূরপুরী Bôngshaboti-purbotire shôrbeshshôr nôgori, boishe raja Horishchôndro jini shurpuri ("On the East banks of the Bangsabati is the city of Sharbeshvar, lives there King Harishchandra conquering Heaven"). There is some contention among historians about legends surrounding the reign of Harishchandra, as they may relate to other monarchs bearing the same or similar name (e.g. Harishchandra of the mythic Suryavansha, king Harishchandra of Bikrampur among others). In any case local legend holds that the childless Harishchandra was succeeded to the throne by his sister Rajeswari's son, Damodar. Damodar's reign started a decline for the kingdom, culminating in the reign of one of his descendants, king Ravan, a music enthusiast. During Ravan's reign, the Koch invaded and sacked the capital established by Harishchandra. However, inscriptions on an undated burnt brick fragment indicates, king Mahendra in 869 CE dedicated a matha to his father, saint king Harishchandra, son of king Ranadhirasena, son of king Dhimantasena, son of king Bhimasena. The same inscription also states the Buddhist king Dhimantasena invaded and captured the land between the Bangshi and the Brahmaputra and king Ranadhirasena extended the kingdom to the Himalayas and fixed his residence in the city of Shômbhar.[citation needed]
During the 1971 war, Savar Cantonment (then Ansar Camp) and the then-newly founded Jahangirnagar University were some of the first targets of military swoop outside the capital following Operation Searchlight of 25 March. In December of that year, Savar was the last obstacle before the freedom fighters (led by Kader Siddiqui and others) entered the capital, and the Pakistan army conceded defeat. Days before the end of the war, teenager Golam Dastagir Titu was killed in a direct encounter between the Pakistani Army and the freedom fighters. The compatriots buried him near the main gate of the Central Cattle Breeding & Dairy Farm, Savar. The Bangladeshi Army constructed a memorial monument in his honor.
On 24 November 2012, a garment factory fire killed at least 112 people. The factory-made clothes for US and European companies and were faulted for negligent safety standards.[1] Walmart and Sears, two of the companies who contracted work from this factory, refused to compensate victims.[2]
On 24 April 2013, a building in Savar collapsed, killing 1,129 people and injuring around 2,500.[3][4] The building housed a garment factory that exported clothing to US and European companies. Eighty percent of the workers were women aged 18–20, paid $0.12-$0.26 per hour.[5]
Geography
Savar is located at 23°51′30″N 90°16′00″E / 23.8583°N 90.2667°E / 23.8583; 90.2667. It has 66,956 units of household and a total area of 280.13 square kilometers (108.16 sq mi). It is bounded by Kaliakair and Gazipur Sadar Upazilas on the north, Keraniganj Upazila on the south, Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Pallabi, and Uttara thanas of Dhaka City on the east, and Dhamrai and Singair Upazilas on the west. The land of the Upazila is composed of alluvium soil of the Pleistocene period. The height of the land gradually increases from the east to the west. The southern part of the Upazila is composed of the alluvium soil of the Bangshi and Dhalashwari rivers. The main rivers are Bangshi, Turag, Buriganga, and Karnatali. The Bangshi River has become polluted due to industrialization. The total cultivable land measures 16,745.71 hectares (41,379.6 acres), in addition to fallow land of 10,551.18 hectares (26,072.5 acres).
Demographics
As of the 2011 Bangladesh census, Savar Upazila had a population of 1,387,426. Males constituted 54.20% of the population, and females 45.80%. This Upazila's eighteen-up population was 207,401. Savar had an average literacy rate of 65.16% (7+ years) and a national average of 59.4% literate. Male literacy was 69%, and female was 58%. The religious breakdown was Muslim 88.59%, Hindu 9.41%, Christian 1.93%, Buddhist 0.03%, others 0.04%, and ethnic minority group nationals numbered 319 including Buno, Garo, Chakma (Sangma), and Burman. The main occupations are Agriculture 24.34%, agricultural labourer 12.84%, wage labourer 4.44%, cattle breeding, forestry and fishing 1.90%, industry 1.37%, commerce 17.35%, service 20.68%, construction 1.66%, transport 3.96% and others 11.46%.
