Latehar district is one of the 24 districts of Jharkhand state in eastern India, and Latehar town is the administrative headquarters of this district. This district is part of Palamu division.
Latehar district is situated on longitude 84° 31' E and 23° 44.4' N latitude. The area of the district is 3660 km², with a population of 726,978 (2011 census).
History
The territory covered by the present district became a part of Palamu district, when it formed on 1 January 1928. Latehar district was created on 4 April 2001 by separating the erstwhile Latehar subdivision of Palamu district. It is currently a part of the Red Corridor.[1]
In 2006 the Indian government named Latehar one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640).[3] It is one of the districts in Jharkhand currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[3]
According to the 2011 census Latehar district has a population of 726,978.[6] Roughly equal to the nation of Bhutan[7] or the US state of Alaska.[8] This gives it a ranking of 499th in India (out of a total of 640).[6] The district has a population density of 200 inhabitants per square kilometre (520/sq mi).[6] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 29.38%.[6] Latehar has a sex ratio of 964 females for every 1000 males,[6] and a literacy rate of 59.51%. 7.13% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 21.31% and 45.54% of the population respectively.[6]