Chitwan District (Nepali: चितवन जिल्ला) is one of 77 districts of Nepal, and takes up the southwestern corner of Bagmati Province. Bharatpur, largest city of Nepal after Kathmandu, is its administrative centre. It covers 2,238.39 km2 (864.25 sq mi). In 2011 it had a population of 579,984 (279,087 male and 300,897 female) people. In 2021 it had a population of 722,168 (354,071 male and 368,097 female) people. Bharatpur is the commercial and service centre of South Central Nepal and a major destination for higher education, health care and transportation in the region. Chitwan lies in the Terai region of Nepal.