Rajshahi Division
The city of Rajshahi (Bangla: রাজশাহী) is the divisional headquarters of Rajshahi division as well as the administrative district that bears its name and is one of the six metropolitan cities of Bangladesh. Often referred to as Silk City and Education City, Rajshahi is located in the north-west of the country and has an estimated population of around 475,000 people. Its total area is 96.69 km2 (37.33 sq mi) and is situated on the northern banks of the river Padma (or Ganges which is one of the major rivers of the Indian subcontinent). Rajshahi consists of 4 Thanas, 35 Wards and 175 Mahallahs.
Rajshahi was formerly known as Rampur Boalia. Though an epigraphic record engraved on the Dargah (mausoleum) of the famous saint Hazrat Shah Makdhum (Rh.) indicates that the antiquity of Rajshahi goes back to at least 1634 A.D. The town was given importance in 1825, when the East India Company shifted the administrative headquarters of the district of Rajshahi from Natore to then Rampur Boalia, mainly for the ease of communication from Calcutta through the Hooghly river, Bhairab River and Padma river. Rajshahi Municipality, which was one of the first municipalities in Bangladesh, was established in 1876. Rajshahi Municipality was renamed as Rajshahi Pourashabha, and finally, Rajshahi Pourshava was declared Rajshahi City Corporation in 1991. Besides the City Corporation, a governing body named Rajshahi Unnayan Kortripokhkho (Rajshahi Development Authority-RDA) is there to plan the development of the city and to coordinate all the development related work.
Rajshahi is famous for its silk industries. Fine and cheap silk products of Rajshahi have earned it the nickname Silk City. Rajshahi is also well known for its fruits, especially for Mango and Lychee. Besides the beautiful Mango Orchards and river beaches, it is home to renowned educational institutions covering almost all of professional and cultural fields available within the country. This is why Rajshahi is sometimes referred to as Education City in Bangladesh. Rajshahi is an important tourist destination because of a number of ancient mosques, shrines and temples in and around the city.
If Indiana Jones were a real man, then he’d be living in Rajshahi division. For tucked away in this unknown corner of the country are a plethora of ruins and reminders. In fact there’s so much history stashed away up here that you sometimes feel that you can’t move without tripping over some other forgotten temple or decaying palace.
Though today largely removed from mainstream Bangladeshi life, the rich soils of Rajshahi division once held court for powerful Buddhist kingdoms, neutered Hindu empires and fell easily to the embrace of Islam; all of which have left their mark in the tumble-down walls that litter the region.
However, it’s not just about relics: there are small villages where children will leap in the air in excitement at the sight of you; passionate market towns full of colour; and, if you’re very lucky, views to the great Himalayan peak of Kanchenjunga.
But at the end of the day it’s the sense of past glories that is the highlight of this region, and what is so remarkable about this historical fantasy is that you will almost certainly have these ancient sights all to yourself – even Indiana Jones hasn’t got the secret map to Rajshahi’s treasures.
Click at the link below of Rajshahi City Corporation webiste: