Geography of Dhaka division
Location: 20●51 to 25●25 north latitude and 89●19 to 91●15
east longitude.
Boundaries: Indian state of Meghalaya in the north, Bagerhat, Pirojpur, Barisal and Chandpur districts in the south, Sunamganj, Habiganj, Brahmanbaria, Comilla and Chandpur districts in the east, Narail, Magura, Jhenaidah, Kushtia, Pabna, Sirajganj, Bogra, Gaibandha districts in the west.
Department Background
Dhaka Division is one of the 10 administrative divisions of Bangladesh.
It is located in the central region of Bangladesh.
Area: 31051 sq. km
Population: 4,67,29,000
Number of districts: There were 17 but now the number of districts is 8 due to the division of Padma Division
Number of upazilas: There were 123. Presently the number of Upazilas is 60 due to the division of Padma Division.
Development Circle: 01 (Tejgaon Development Circle)
Number of
Police Stations: 133
Police Stations, 49 Metropolitan Police Stations, 04 Highway Police Stations,
04 Railway Police Stations, 01 Naval Police Stations.
Parliamentary Seats: 94
City Corporation: 04
Union Parishad: There were 1248 but now the number of Union Parishads is 581 due to the division of Padma Division.
Municipalities: 88
Village: 25237
Mouza: 12765
Education Rate: 62%
Traditions of the department
Dhaka region of Bangladesh is a very old and famous region. Dhaka metropolis is a world famous city. Since ancient times, people from different countries have wandered in Dhaka, including the Dutch, Dutch, Portuguese, and British. Around 1655, Nicola Manucci from Italy came to Bengal. He was engaged in the service of Darashiko in the Mughal court. Then Mir Jumla was Subedar of Dhaka. It took him 40 days to reach Dhaka through the Sundarbans. 'Storia do mogor' is his travel book. Also among the tourists who came to ancient Bengal were geographers Ptolemy and Dionysus, Duarte Barbosa of Portugal, Jahuri Tervanier of France, Ralph Fitch of England, and Cesar Frederick of Italy. They came to this rich Bengal. He has recorded the golden age of Bengal, nobility, generous nature and hospitable people. Sonar Gaon or Dhakai muslin, Maurla fish in Kalapata, Kabigan, and elephant tied to the palace door, history of thirteen parvans of twelve months. The people of this region have contributed tremendously in various fields apart from economy, culture and politics. In recent times, Dhaka has gained great popularity in social and cultural fields. Clothing, art, medicine and overall medical, education and culture have improved which has been recognized internationally. Currently, Dhaka is known in the world as a prosperous and modern region.
The entire Bangladesh is currently divided into 10 administrative divisions. The divisions are - Dhaka, Chatrag, Rajshahi, Khulna, Barisal, Sylhet, Rangpur, Mymensingh, Padma and Meghna. Mymensingh Division was established in 2015. During the rule of the East India Company, the then Governor General of Bengal, Lord William Benting, created a division of some districts of Bengal in 1829 with the aim of securing the revenue system and strengthening the administrative system. At that time, the title of the head of the department was the divisional commissioner (Divisional Commissioner). In the same year (1829) Burdwan, Presidency, Dhaka, Rajshahi and Chittagong divisions were created.
Dhaka is one of the divisions of Bangladesh consisting of 13 districts. The administrative center of these 13 districts is the Dhaka Divisional Commissioner's office. District Commissioners conduct administrative activities under the direction and supervision of Divisional Commissioners. The Divisional Commissioner is the Chairman of the Divisional Law and Order Committee, the Chairman of the Divisional Development Coordination Committee, the Chief Revenue Officer of the Division, the Chairman of the Regional Task Force on Prevention of Smuggling, the Chairman of the Divisional Selection Committee, and the Chairman of the Divisional Sports Association.
Ahsan Manzil
Ahsan Manzil is located at Kumartali in Islampur, Dhaka on the banks of the Buriganga, it was the residential palace and cachari of the Nawabs of Dhaka. The French bought it from his son Matiullah and made it their trading post. Khwaja Alimullah bought it from the French in 1830 and converted it into his residence with necessary remodeling and renovation. Nawab Khwaja Abdul Ghani renovated it in the third quarter of the 19th century and named it after his son Khwaja Ahsanullah.
Currently it is being used as a museum. Its construction period was 1859-1872. A meeting held here in 1906 decided to establish the Muslim League. Established in 1872. Ahsan Manzil has been renovated several times. The last renovation was completed very recently.
History: Sheikh Inayetullah Ahsan, the zamindar of Jalalpur Pargana, built a palace named Rangmahal at the site of the present Manzil in the middle of the 18th century. His son later sold the palace to a French merchant. It was known as a trading cottage for a long time. Then in 1835, Khwaja Alimullah, father of Nawab Abdul Gani, who lived in Begum Bazar, bought it and started living there. On June 12, 1897, Ahsan Manzil was badly damaged when an earthquake hit Dhaka. The Nahwat Khana on Islampur Road was completely destroyed along with the south verandah of Ahsan Manzil. Later Nawab Ahsanullah rebuilt it.
Architecture: This palace has a beautiful dome on the roof. At one time the top of this dome was the highest in Dhaka city. The triple arched entrance outside the main building is also beautiful. Similarly, the stairs going up attract everyone's attention. There are two graceful arches at the east and west ends which are most beautiful. Ahsan Manzil has two parts inside. The meeting room and library are in the eastern part. The western part contains the ballroom and other sitting rooms. The ground floor houses the courtroom and dining room.
Lalbagh Fort
Lalbagh Fort is an incomplete Mughal palace fortress at Dhaka by the river Buriganga. The river has now gone further south and flows at quite a distance from the fort. The construction of the fort was commenced in 1678 AD by Prince Muhammad Azam and was left unfinished in 1684. At the center of the fort stands the Tomb of Pari Bibi, the beloved daughter of Shaista Khan. On the western side of the tomb stands the Mosque and the Diwan-e-aam along with the hummam khana is in the east. The fort has a huge tank and residence for the soldiers and officials in the inner side of the southern wall.
Lalbagh Fort is an ancient fort located in the heart of Dhaka, the
capital city of Bangladesh. It is
located in Lalbagh of old Dhaka, hence its name as Lalbagh Fort. It is one of
the most popular tourist destinations in Bangladesh. Currently (viewed 2012)
the Archeology Department of Bangladesh Government maintains this fort area.
Construction: First the name of this fort was Aurangabad Fort. And this fort was designed by Shah Azam. Azam Shah, the 3rd son of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, started the construction of this fort as the residence of the Subedar in 1678 AD. Just a year later, before the construction of the fort was completed, he was summoned to Delhi by Emperor Aurangzeb to quell the Maratha rebellion. At that time, the construction of the fort stopped after the construction of a mosque and Durbar hall. Nawab Shaista Khan came to Dhaka in 1680 and started the construction of the fort again. However, after the death of Shaesta Khan's daughter Pari Bibi, the fort was considered abandoned and Shaesta Khan stopped its construction in 1684 AD. The marriage of Shahzada Azam Shah was fixed with this Pari Bibi. Pari Bibi is buried right between the Durbar Hall and the Mosque. Shaista Khan used to sit in the Durbar Hall and manage the royal affairs.
When Shaista Khan retired to Agra in 1688, he bequeathed the ownership of the fort to his heirs. After Shaista Khan left Dhaka, the importance of Lalbagh Fort began to decline due to various reasons. In 1844, a semi-governmental organization called the Dhaka Committee started the development of the fort. At that time the fort came to be known as Lalbagh Fort. In 1910, the Lalbagh fort wall was brought under the Department of Archeology as a protected structure. Finally, after 300 years of construction, in the 1980s, Lalbagh Fort was restored to its original form and opened to visitors. The structures here include: Paribibi's tomb is quite remarkable. It is a fine example of the Mughal period. Lalbagh Fort is located in a wide area.
There are three structures in the fort premises:
a) Durbar
Hall and Hammam Khana in the center
b)
Paribibi's tomb
c) Shahi Mosque in North Western part
There is also a beautiful gateway on the south-east, and a roofed garden on the south wall. At present Sunday is closed for the full day and Monday for half day. The fort is open for visitors on the remaining six days of the week.
Paribibi's tomb
This building is known as the Samadhi of Paribibi, the favorite daughter of Mughal Subedar Shaista Khan. In this unique building in Bangladesh, the interior nine rooms are decorated with the help of marble stones, rough stones and glossy tiles decorated with flowers and leaves of different colors. The roofs of the rooms are made of rough stone. The artificial dome above the central chamber of the main mausoleum is covered with copper sheets. This 20.2 meter square tomb was built before 1688 AD. However, experts are of the opinion that Paribibi's body is not present here.
Armenian Church
Situated in the present day Armanitola of the old part of Dhaka, it is a church established in 1781 by the Armenian community who came to Dhaka in the 17th Century to trade with jute and salt. Although the community started moving off the region from the beginning of British rule and disappeared by the beginning of the 20th Century, the church is still in use by the local Christian community.
Armenian Church is an ancient Christian place of worship in Old Dhaka. Many Armenians arrived in Dhaka in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries for business purposes. Before the construction of the church there was an Armenian cemetery. Aga Minas Katchik donated the land for this church. In 1880, due to financial difficulties, the church bell stopped ringing. The clock tower of the church was destroyed in the earthquake of 1897. The Armenian cemetery is located in the courtyard of the church.
Bahadur Shah Park
Before 1957 Bahadur Shah Park located in Old Dhaka's Laxmibazar area was known as 'Victoria Park'. The prehistory of Bahadur Shah Park suggests that it was formerly a clubhouse of the Armenian community, known as Altaghar. In the early 19th century, the British bought it from the Armenians and turned it into a park. At that time the British built another clubhouse at Dargin in the park, which was run under the patronage of Nawab Khawaja Ah Ghani and Khawaja Ahsan Ulsnah of Dhaka. Here the English used to play billiard racket, tennis, badminton etc. Many times there were parties. Later, due to horse racing in the race course and other relevant reasons, the British shifted the club house to Shahbagh area of Dhaka which is now known as 'Dhaka Club'.
After suppressing the Sepoy Mutiny, the British built a monument in the Altaghier courtyard to commemorate the fallen British soldiers. Before 1857, India was ruled by the East India Company. But realizing the future situation, East India directly handed over the rule of India to Queen Victoria. In November 1857, the then Commissioner of Dhaka read a proclamation of the Maharani in a gathering of many local and foreign people in the field adjacent to Badughar Shah Park. Since then the name of this park is Victoria Park.
A painful memory of the Nawab family of Dhaka is associated with Victoria Park. Khawaja Hafizulsnah, the eldest son of Nawab Bahadur Khwaja Ahsan Ulsnah of Dhaka, died prematurely in 1884 at the age of 16. Khwaja Ahsan Ulsnah fell ill in Putrasho and was bedridden. At that time the Nawabs of Dhaka bore most of the entertainment expenses of the British in Dhaka. But after the death of Kishore Hafizulsnah, a shadow of grief fell on the Nawab family. The English made a big splash in all kinds of entertainment. To win the hearts of the Nawabs and to preserve the memory of Khawaja Hafizulsnah, the British took the initiative to build the monument of Khwaja Hafizulsnah. It chose Victoria Park for settlement. Chota Lat Saheb of East Bengal inaugurated the monument on 17 February 1885.
Star Mosque
Tarka Masjid is located on Abdul Khairat Road in Armanitola in the old part of Dhaka city. Mirza Ghulam Pir built the three-domed mosque in the 19th century. A local businessman named Alijan Bepari added a verandah to the mosque in 1926 and even later in 1987, the Bangladesh government added two more domes to create a five-domed mosque. The star decoration on its dome gave it such a name.
Rickshaw
Rickshaws are one of the main means of transportation in urban areas of Bangladesh. It was first introduced in Japan in the early 20th century. European jute exporters living in Narayanganj and Netrakona first imported cycle rickshaws from Calcutta in 1938 for their personal use. In 1941 there were only 37 rickshaws in Dhaka, but now there are about 600,000 rickshaws in the city. Apart from its vehicle value, it is an attractive tourist attraction of Dhaka.
Curzon Hall
This structure was built in 1904. A town hall was conceived and named after the then British Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon. It was used until 1911, when the partition of Bengal was cancelled. After the abolition of partition in 1911 it was used as a campus of Dhaka College and after the establishment of Dhaka University in 1921, became part of the University's Science Department and continued as such.
The building has a happy blend of European and Mughal elements,
particularly noticeable in the north projecting facade which has both
horseshoes and arches. The style combined traditional art with modern
technology and functions and favored Mughal forms such as arches and domes,
which are believed to have entered the Islamic world from the West.
Liberation War Museum
The Liberation War Museum collects and displays objects, artefacts and all other materials related to Bangladesh's liberation war against Pakistan in 1971. It was inaugurated on 22 March 1996 in a two-storey old-style building at 5 Segun Bagicha, Dhaka. . There is an eternal flame at the entrance.
The museum has six galleries, the first of which showcases the customs and traditions of Bengal as well as the struggle against colonial rule. The second gallery presents a history of the period of Pakistani rule since 1947 and the political, economic and cultural oppression of and resistance to the people of East Pakistan in particular. The third gallery displays relics of the 1971 March Non-Cooperation Movement, massacres and resistance, the Declaration of Independence and the plight of refugees. Three galleries on the second floor display documents and materials that show various aspects of the resistance of the people of East Pakistan, international solidarity towards them, the killing of intellectuals by the Pakistan Army and its allies and the Bengali victory.
National Museum
The Bangladesh National Museum preserves and displays specimens of Bangladesh's natural history as well as cultural properties and heritage. It is located in Shahbagh, Dhaka. The museum is well organized. It was officially inaugurated on March 20, 1913.
The museum's four-story building has 43 galleries in a total of 238,000 square feet of floor space. It collected 82,475 objects. The most notable objects are ancient petrified wood (2.5 million years old) collected from Lalmai and Mainamati; 10th-11th century black stone naga darwaza (serpent door) collected from Bangar, Dinajpur; Fragments of the atomic bombs detonated in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan in 1945; mats made of ivory; The object of Bangladesh's liberation war; Material used by martyrs of language movement; Muslin of Dhaka; Folk arts and crafts items; Coins of Emperor Sher Shah; terracotta plaques; A collection of sculptures and contemporary art including a variety of statues.
Language Martyrs Memorial
'Shaheed Minar' in Bengali, was built on February 21, 1952 to commemorate the martyrs who died in the then East Pakistan during the Bangladesh language movement. The language movement, the first revolt against the then Pakistani rulers, is a symbol of our courage and dignity and hence this memorial is very significant to our society and life.
Dhakeshwari Temple
The Dhakeshwari temple was built in the 12th century by Ballal Sena, a king of the Sena Dynasty, and many say the name of the city was coined after this temple. This is a complex of several temples and ancillary buildings. The main temple is situated in the inner quarter on the east. A wall separates this quarter from the outer wall and enters through a monumental gateway, a bell adorns its top. The female deity has got the epithet dhakeshwari as the patron deity of the city of Dhaka (dhaka + ishvari).
Buriganga River
Buriganga is a very small river of only 27 km long. On average the river is 400m wide and 10m deep. It is a tributary of the mighty Brahmaputra River, which is called Jamuna in Bangladesh. Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh is situated by this river. Majority of the water transports linking Dhaka to the southern part of Bangladesh use this river. Sadarghat is the main terminal, while Damra is also used for minor purposes.
National Parliament Building
Bangladesh National Parliament Building is one of Louis I Kahn's master creations. Some say this is one of the most significant monumental buildings in the history of mankind. The construction began in 1964, and with a gap during the independence war in 1971, it was completed in 1982.
National Martyrs’ Memorial
National Martyrs' Memorial situated at Savar, about 35 km north-west of Dhaka, symbolises the valour and sacrifice of the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the liberation of Bangladesh. The main monument is composed of seven isosceles triangular planes each varying in size in its height and base. The highest one has the smallest base while the broadest base has the lowest height. The planes are folded in the middle and placed one after another. The highest point of the structure reaches 150 feet. This unique arrangement of the planes has created a structure that seems to change its configuration when viewed from different angles.
The whole complex is spread over an area of 34 hectares (84 acres) which is again wrapped around by a green belt of 10 hectares (24.7 acre). Several mass-graves and a reflection water body are placed in front of the monument.
Sonargaon
The ‘village of Gold’ is the literal meaning of the name. Since before the 11th Century, this has been a very important trading centre in the region for a long time till the 17th Century, when Dhaka was made the capital of Mughals. During its long glorious history the town has seen several kings and rulers of different origins and religions.
The ancient city has been traced to have embraced a wide tract bounded on the east, west and south by the Rivers Meghna, the Shitalakhya and the Dhaleshwari respectively and on the north by the Brahmaputra River. It is now a township in the name of an upazila about 27km southeast of Dhaka in the Narayanganj district. Ancient city of Panam Nagar and a few majestic buildings are the attractive remains of its old glory.
Murapara Jamindar’s Palace
Situated in a very calm and tranquil area on the bank of Buriganga River, this double storied palace is a 20th Century structure. Local tax collectors were called ‘Jamindars’ and since the palace was built by the Jamindar, it is commonly known as the Murapara Jamindar’s Palace. Currently this building is being used as the premise for a local degree college.
Birishiri
Shusong Durgapur of Birishiri is located at Netrokona about 170 km north from Dhaka. It’s not only blessed by charismatic natural beauty, it is also rich in ethnic culture as there are many ethnic groups like Hajong, Garo, Achik and Mandi etc live here. Many people around the world come here to learn the ethnic culture and living.
The main attraction of Birishiri is the ceramic hill of Durgapur and the picturesque landscape along the Someshwari River.
Madhupur National Park
Home to beautiful capped langur monkeys, wild boars, barking deer and a galaxy of bird species, Madhupur National Park, covering about 8500 hectares, is one of Bangladesh's richest patches of old-growth sal forest. Apart from abundant wildlife, the park also provides a home to the Mandi tribes. The area was once famous for tigers, though no more.