Balrampur is known for the temple of Pateshwari Devi, a Shakti Pitha, and for the ruins of the nearby ancient city of Sravasti, now a pilgrimage site for Buddhists and Jains.

Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh and is 220 kilometres (140 mi) from Balrampur district headquarters.

In the north of the district is situated the Shivalik ranges of the Himalayas which is called Tarai Region.

The district is named after the erstwhile princely estate (Taluqdari) and its capital, Balrampur.

The name of this estate was derived from its founder Balram Das, who founded it in c. 1600 CE.

The famous incident of Angulimal happened in the forest of Shravasti, where the dacoit who used to kill people and wear a garland of their fingers, was enlightened by Gautam Buddha.

During the British rule a commissionary was made for the administration of this area with its headquarters at Gonda and military command at Sakraura Colonelganj.

After independence, Balrampur estate was merged with Utraula tehsil of Gonda district.

The rest of Balrampur is surrounded by Uttar Pradesh: on the east by Siddarthnagar, Basti on the south, Gonda on the southwest, and Shravasti on the west.

[citation needed] In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Balrampur one of the country's 250 most backward villages (out of a total of 640).

Urdu dailies includes Inqalab, Tareeqh, Roznama Rashtriya Sahara and so on.