Capital City Of Bangladesh ( Dhaka )

Dhaka (Bangla: ঢাকা, pronounced [ɖʱaka]; formerly known as Dacca and Jahangir Nagar, under Mughal rule), is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka District. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, has a population of around 13 million, making it the largest city in Bangladesh.[2] It is one of the most densely populated cities in the world and forms the world's 9th largest agglomeration and the largest city within the Organisation of the Islamic Conference. Dhaka is known as the City of Mosques[3] and renowned for producing the world's finest muslin. Dhaka is also known as the Rickshaw Capital of the World . Approximately 400,000 cycle rickshaws run each day.[4] Today it serves as one of the prime centers for culture, education and business in the region.

The history of Dhaka begins with the existence of urbanised settlements in the area that is now Dhaka dating from the 7th century CE. The city area was ruled by the Buddhist kingdom of Kamarupa before passing to the control of the Sena dynasty in the 9th century CE. Many believe that the name of the city was derived after the establishment of the Goddess Dhakeshwari's temple by Raja Ballal Sena in the 12th century CE. The Dhaka area of that time was identified as Bengalla. The town consisted of a few market centers like Lakshmi Bazar, Shankhari Bazar, Tanti Bazar, and a few localities of other craftsmen and businessmen like Patuatuli and Kumartuli, Bania Nagar and Goal Nagar. After the Sena dynasty, Dhaka was successively ruled by the Turkish and Afghan governors descending from the Delhi Sultanate before the arrival of the Mughals in 1608. The Afghan Fort in Dhaka was located at the present Central Jail.

Mughal Rule: The city passed to the control of the British East India Company in 1765 after the Battle of Plassey. The city then became known by its anglicized name, Dacca. Owing to the war, the city's population shrank dramatically in a short period of time. Although an important city in the Bengal province, Dhaka remained smaller than Kolkata, which served as the capital of British India for a long period of time. Under British rule, many modern educational institutions, public works and townships were developed. A modern water supply system was introduced in 1874 and electricity supply in 1878. The Dhaka Cantonment was established near the city, serving as a base for the soldiers of the British Indian Army. Dhaka served as a strategic link to the frontier of the northeastern states of Tripura and Assam.

British Rule: The city passed to the control of the British East India Company in 1765 after the Battle of Plassey. The city then became known by its anglicized name, Dacca. Owing to the war, the city's population shrank dramatically in a short period of time. Although an important city in the Bengal province, Dhaka remained smaller than Kolkata, which served as the capital of British India for a long period of time. Under British rule, many modern educational institutions, public works and townships were developed. A modern water supply system was introduced in 1874 and electricity supply in 1878.[5] The Dhaka Cantonment was established near the city, serving as a base for the soldiers of the British Indian Army. Dhaka served as a strategic link to the frontier of the northeastern states of Tripura and Assam.

East Pakistan's Capital: Following the partition of Bengal in 1905 and again in 1946, Dhaka became the capital of East Bengal. On August 15, 1947 East Bengal became a part of the new Muslim state of Pakistan. The city witnessed serious communal violence that left thousands of people dead. A large proportion of the city's Hindu population departed for India, while the city received hundreds of thousands of Muslim immigrants from the Indian states of West Bengal, Assam and Bihar. The city's population catapulted in a very short period of time, creating severe shortages and infrastructural problems.[6] As the centre of regional politics, Dhaka saw an increasing number of political strikes and incidents of violence. The adoption of Urdu as the sole official language of Pakistan led to protest marches and strikes involving hundreds of thousands of people. Known as the BengaliLanguage Movement, the protests soon degenerated into widespread violence after police firing killed students who were demonstrating peacefully. Martial law would be imposed throughout the city for a long period of time.

The arrest of Bengali politician Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1968 would also spark intensive political protests and violence against the military regime of Ayub Khan. The 1970 Bhola cyclone devastated much of the region, killing numerous people. More than half the city of Dhaka was flooded and waterlogged, with millions of people marooned. The following year saw Sheikh Mujib hold a massive nationalist gathering on March 7, 1971 at the Race Course Ground that attracted an estimated one million people. Galvanising public anger against ethnic and regional discrimination and poor cyclone relief efforts from the central government, the gathering preceded the March 26 declaration of Bangladesh's independence. In response, the Pakistan Army launched Operation Searchlight, which led to the arrests, torture and killing of hundreds of thousands of people, mainly Hindus and Bengali intellectuals. The fall of the city to the Indian Army on December 16 marked the creation of the independent state of Bangladesh.

Post-independence

Despite independence, political turmoil continued to plague the people of Dhaka. The Pakistan Army's operations had killed or displaced millions of people, and the new state struggled to cope with the humanitarian challenges. The year 1975 saw the killing of Sheikh Mujib and three military coups. The city would see the restoration of order under military rule, but political disorder would heighten in the mid-1980s with the pro-democracy movement led by the Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Political and student strikes and protests routinely disrupted the lives of Dhaka's people. However, the post-independence period has also seen a massive growth of the population, attracting migrant workers from rural areas across Bangladesh. A real estate boom has followed the development of new settlements such as Gulshan, Banani and Motijheel. In 1985, Dhaka hosted the inaugural summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. It has also hosted the summits of the D8 group and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference.

Although living in Dhaka can be tough at times, there are some great things about it, for me. I fully realise some points in the list below can't be enjoyed by everyone in B'desh whether as a tourist or a resident, but there you have it. I'm well aware I'm incredibly lucky to be in this country and enjoy so much of it in ways many millions of people here can't due to not being British/white/able to earn a half-decent salary (I work at a local school and earn a local salary, but I know it's still more than the majority)/other factors I'm well aware of. I'm just trying to defend myself a bit here as I've had a few comments about this particular blog entry along the lines of how I sound elitist/prejudiced/patronising etc etc, which I don't think is true at all. I have tried to be a part of everyday life here in Dhaka as much as I can and have met many wonderful people here, from Bangladesh and from other countries. Anyhow, here's a glimpse of life in B'desh from my point of view.

25 great things about living in Dhaka (in no particular order):

1. Being able to get your own shoes made, to fit you, out of any colour leather you want, any buckle, shape, size, style, heel..all within a week and for £15 equivalent.

2. Having freshly-made waffles with fresh cream and jam, with a jug of iced tea, for 2 quid, at Sally-Ann's, a Salvation Army place which sells lovely handmade stuff including household items, paper, candles, decorations.

3. The fab restaurants. Thai, Chinese, Indian, Bangladeshi, Japanese, Korean, Italian, French...the list goes on, and all for less than £10 between 3 people usually. I've lived and travelled quite a bit and I've never had such good food so consistently in one place. I really like the Mango Cafe near where I live (lassis to die for) and also the Dhaba on Road 11 (I think?) in Banani...yummy mutton curry...aah don't get me started..yum...

4. Fresh fruit like pineapples, grapes, coconuts (is that a fruit?!), mangoes..again, for less than 1p per whole pineapple for example, all year round

5. Getting any material you fancy and/or any clothing pattern you like and getting a dress, or a skirt, or a top etc made to measure for..not a lot.

6. Jatra, Aranya, Aarong, Karamanga, Kumudini..the array of fair-trade, individual, non-massed produces products you can buy at these kinds of places is amazing..wish the UK had these. And they're in such bright colours - again, the UK has much to learn from B'desh when it comes to experimenting with bold, bright colours. Good to know People Tree (peopletree.co.uk) work so closely with B'desh sourcing beautiful clothing and accessories from there to sell in the UK!

7. Being whizzed around the streets in a rickshaw. It feels like you are going to be thrown off every second and the rickshaw-wallahs are always trying to scheme me for much more taka than I know locals get charged (as I have found out), but I like being whizzed around in one occasionally! Anyway I don't mind paying a bit more than perhaps is usual; I have so much compared to them. However when I had a rickshaw ride that was under a mile long and he wanted 100 taka for it (when I know people usually pay 10-20), I refused to be a mug!

8. Buying a dinner set (cups, platters, 2 different sized plates, bowls, teapot etc) for 20 quid from the warehouses that produce china and porcelain for John Lewis, M&S etc..but before those shops put mark-up prices on!

9. Being called 'pretty' or 'beautiful' almost every day by my students or random people..I don't know why because I've never had such compliments while living in the UK! Maybe it's because I wear shalwaar kameez(es) all the time, as they're much cooler in this climate than Western clothes..I know people say they appreciate me wearing 'their' clothes as I've had comments about it but...I have no idea!

10. Movenpick ice cream parlour, a Swiss ice cream company that acts like a bar, open til late, most people don't drink alcohol here (Muslim) so this is the equivalent of going down the pub on a Friday night!

11. Going out on the boat on the river at weekends. Peace and quiet, greenery, kids from villages waving from the shore, seeing kingfishers and dolphins.

12. Village life 30 mins outside the city. Saris drying on the line, chickens clucking around, kids playing, men fishing with massive Chinese nets..

13. Cheap DVDs and CDs!

14. Markets. Manic but great once you're in and try to ignore being stared at! Last time I went to Newmarket I tried to search for a poster of Hrithik Roshan...he's so fit!

15. Learning to be a 'proper' teacher, making my kids laugh (occasionally) and trying to raise funds for e.g. the cyclone victims through school bake sales! (Any excuse to bake...)

16. Watching Bollywood movies and learning the songs (I can now sing..a little...in Hindi ;)) I love 'Dhoom 2', 'Bunty aur Babli' and basically anything with the aforementioned Hrithik in...

17. Material. Silk everywhere, cotton, silk-cotton mix, handwoven stuff, love it.

18. Swimming in an open air pool, having a fresh pineapple juice and a club burger at the British High Commission down the road. Aaah. Yes, in that way, I'm very spoilt having access to a pool!

19. Singing in a band. It can get thorny at times with 9 people in the band currently, but it's fun. We play gigs at various Embassies when wanted...

20. Going to the local salon around the corner and getting a massage/manicure/hot oil treatment/henna etc, again for only a few quid.

21. Call to prayer. OK it's a bit annoying sometimes when you're in a quiet bit in a movie when you hear 'aaaaaAAAAAAAA' from the mosque down the road, but it's kind of nice and comforting.

22. The sound and smell of monsoon rain. Not practical to move about in, but enjoyable if you're under a solid roof! Watch the road outside turn into a lake in minutes!

23. A brown baguette from the Westin hotel. Ridiculously expensive but I treat myself once in a while as I really miss crusty brown bread (even tho I didn't have it in China, still I miss it!). Also it has very cold air conditioning, which is a relief after a hot day!

24. The friendliness of people here..they want to practise their English and it's much better than in China (sorry China) so it's much easier to hold a conversation with a random person! First question 'Where you from?' Second question 'Are you married?' (this from women and men...and then they gasp when I say no...)


25. The different and seemingly endless festivals they have here with clothing to match...Spring Day (yellow and orange everywhere); Mother Language Day (black and white everywhere); I now have every shalwaar kameez colour in the world to go with every festival/celebration that happens in Bangladesh! For more information please contract us.