Ulpur

Ulpur is a village to the north of Golpalganj in Bangladesh. It has been founded by the Basu Roy Chowdhury of Ulpur family as seat of their Zamindari & Jagir called Shahpur.

Shahpur Pargana consisted of 27 villages and a population of 30200 in 1931 with Ulpur being the central village and seat of the Zamindari.

Dasarath Basu arrived in the 11th century in Bengal. One of his descendants, Raghunandan Basu, was reconfirmed the Zamindari / Jagir of Ulpur / Shahpur by the Moghuls in the 16th century, where his descendants settled. Many members of the Basu Roy Chowdhury clan of Ulpur left their ancestral home in East Bengal (now Bangladesh) after India was divided in 1947. However a few have remained behind and continue to participate in the social, political and cultural life of the area.

The estates of the different family members can still be found in Ulpur and are now used by the villagers as their homes. The smaller temples and ponds are in a decaying condition, but the main Kali temple is still in use and has been recently renovated.

The village was once the center of the district/pargana with markets and a very active cultural life.

Ulpur (Basu Roy Chowdhury) emigres

Most Basu Roy Chowdhurys as well as other emigres from Ulpur settled down in Calcutta, then the largest city in India. An Ulpur Sammelani exists in that city of `exiles' from the village. In the 1950s, Ulpur emigres had also set up a Ulpur football club which participated in the Indian Football Association shield.

Besides Calcutta, Ulpur residents have settled in Delhi, and most cities in India. They have also settled down in the US, UK, Germany, Austria, Romania and other parts of the globe.