Created on 1 April 1992 by the division of the erstwhile West Dinajpur district, it comprises two subdivisions: Raiganj and Islampur.

Undivided Dinajpur district was part of the Pundra and Gauda Kingdom of ancient Bengal.

The whole of Pundra was part of the Mauryan empire, and Jainism was spread in the region in the fourth century BCE.

In 1586, Mughal Emperor Akbar conquered Bengal and Dinajpur was controlled by the sarkars of Tajpur and Panjara.

The regional topography is generally flat with a gentle southerly slope towards which the main rivers like Kulik, Nagar, Mahananda.

The soil is very rich in nature due to the alluvial deposition which helps to grow Paddy, Jute, Mesta and Sugarcane etc.

According to the 2011 census Uttar Dinajpur district has a population of 3,007,134,[3] roughly equal to the nation of Albania[5] or the US state of Mississippi.

[11] According to the 2011 census, 68.06% of the population spoke Bengali, 13.22% Surjapuri, 9.48% Urdu, 3.77% Santali, 3.76% Hindi and 1.03% Rajbongshi as their first language.

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Uttar Dinajpur one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640).

In 1985, Uttar Dinajpur district became home to the Raiganj Wildlife Sanctuary, which has an area of 1.3 km2 (0.5 sq mi).

[15] Other tourist places include: Major railway stations are Raiganj(RGJ), Radhikapur (RDP), Kaliyagunj, Dalkolha and Aluabari Road Jn (Islampur).