Dong Thap province

Dong Thap province Tỉnh Đồng Tháp
—  Province  —
Nickname(s): Bronze Tower
Location of Đồng Tháp within Vietnam
Coordinates: 10°40′N 105°40′E / 10.667°N 105.667°E / 10.667; 105.667Coordinates: 10°40′N 105°40′E / 10.667°N 105.667°E / 10.667; 105.667
Country	Vietnam
Region	Mekong Delta
Capital	Cao Lanh and Sa Dec
Government
– People's Council Chair	Huynh Minh Doan
– People's Committee Chair	Trương Ngọc Hân
Area
– Total	3,238 km2 (1,250.2 sq mi)
Population (2004)
– Total	1,639,400
– Density	506.3/km2 (1,311.3/sq mi)
Demographics
– Ethnicities	Vietnamese, Khmer, Hoa, Ngái
Time zone	ICT (UTC+7)
Calling code	67
ISO 3166 code	VN-45
Website	www.dongthap.gov.vn

Đồng Tháp ( listen) is a province in the Mekong Delta region of southern Vietnam. The eastern part of the province is largely dominated by Đồng Tháp Mười marsh. Dong Thap is in the Đồng Tháp Mười area and is famous for its lotus.

Administrative divisions

The province is divided into one city (Cao Lãnh), and two towns (Sa Dec) and (Hong Ngu); in 2010, Sa Dec will be recognized as cities in Dong Thap province, and nine districts:.

1. Cao Lãnh
2. Châu Thành
3. Hồng Ngự
4. Lai Vung
5. Lấp Vò
6. Tân Hồng
7. Tam Nông
8. Thanh Bình
9. Tháp Mười

Economy

Sa Dec Industry Park

Agriculture was the previous pillar of Dong Thap’s economy. But now, industry and trade are being developed. Sa Dec Industry Park (the largest industry park)- Sa Dec town, Song Hau Industry park and Tran Quoc Toan Industry park has attracted a large number of businessmen from the Mekong Delta region.

Buddhism

Đồng Tháp has, since December 22, 2008, the largest Buddha statue of the Mekong Delta, built in Quan Âm Pagoda, abbot Venerable Thich Giac An. "The sculpture, 32 meters long and weighing 100 tons, is that of Buddha lying on his side on a lotus petal, his right arm supporting his head and his left arm lying along his body. Buddhist scriptures say the Buddha assumed this position when he attained Nirvana, the release from the cycle of death and rebirth of an enlightened person. Thich Giac An of Quan Âm Pagoda, which from today will be home to the statue, said many Buddhists and locals contributed the 2,000 sacks of cement, five tons of iron and many other necessary materials worth VND1.6 billion (US$94,000) needed to build the statue. Quan Âm Pagoda, founded 200 years ago by a mandarin named Tran Quy Tanh, receives many devotees from across the country for major Buddhist festivals."^[1]

See also

• Doubtful legal case of 47,800 VND

References

1. ^ Giao Huong, Thanh Nien News, Dec 21, 2008

External links

• dongthap.gov.vn