Introduction to Bhojpur District

Bhojpur district (भोजपुर जिल्ला), a part of Kosi Zone, is one of the seventy five districts of Nepal, a landlocked   country in South Asia. The district, with Bhojpur as its district headquarters, covers an area of 1,507 km² and has a population (2001) of 203,018. Traditionally, the inhabitants of this area have been the indigenous Rai ethnic group; the Newar ethnic group being the main people in the Bhojpur town. Bhojpur forms part of Majh Kirat/Kirant (Middle Kirat). It is one of the richest districts in Nepal in biodiversity.
To the northern part of this district lies the beautiful small city of Dingla. Various hill castes, Brahmin (bahun in Nepali), Kshetriya(Chhettri in Nepali), and ethnic groups like Rai reside within this beautiful area. This is the place where rudraksha trees are grown naturally in the forest as well as individually on people's land. The religious leader, women's rights activist and poet Yogmaya Neupane was born in 1860 in Dingla.
Champe is the other small town where people from surrounding villages come and sell their products. This happens every 15 days and is called Hatiya.
Balankha (Walangkha) is one of the growing towns in the southwest area of Bhojpur. Another town Ghoretar, southeast of Bhojpur, has been a center point of trade, education and administration for a long time. It is famous as Hatuwa Gadi "a powerful Fort of Kirat king Sunahang" in Kirat history.
Balankha borders with neighboring Khotang district's Bopung village. Balankha is slowly emerging as another hub of education, communication, health and trade. The most distinctive thing about Balankha is its famous Chhongkha Chandi celebration. It is the Kirat Rai festival when Rais go to 'Chandi Than' at Dammarkhu village of Khotang (across the river Buwa Khola), pray for good harvest and rain. Then they flock back to the open space of Chandi bazar to dance and celebrate with great joy