The district lies in the cultural region of Braj. Kasganj was established on 15 April 2008 by separating Kasganj, Patiali and Sahawar tehsils from Etah district. For a while, the district was named after a politician, Kanshi Ram. The decision taken by Mayawati, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and president of the BSP provoked protests by lawyers who had proposed to call it in honor of Sant Sant Tulsidas, who was born in the district, that place known as Soron (Sukarkshetra).[2] The district reverted to its original name in 2012.[3] Adjacent districts of Kasganj are Aligarh, Budaun, Etah, Farrukhabad and Khair Tehsil.
According to the 2011 census Kasganj district has a population of 1,436,719,[6] roughly equal to the nation of Eswatini[7] or the US state of Hawaii.[8] This gives it a ranking of 345th in India (out of a total of 640).[6] The district has a population density of 736 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,910/sq mi).[6] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001–2011 was 17.05%.[6] Kasganj has a sex ratio of 879 females for every 1,000 males,[6] and a literacy rate of 62.3%. 20.06% of the population lived in urban areas. Scheduled Castes make up 17.70% of the population.[6]
India
