Rajshahi

Rajshahi (Bengali: রাজশাহী, [radʒ.ʃaɦi]) is a metropolitan city and a major urban, administrative, commercial and educational centre of Bangladesh. It is also the administrative seat of the eponymous division and district. Located on the north bank of the Padma River, near the Bangladesh–India border, the city is surrounded by the satellite towns of Nowhata and Katakhali, which together build an urban agglomeration of about 1 million population. Modern Rajshahi lies in the ancient region of Pundravardhana. The foundation of the city dates to 1634, according to epigraphic records at the mausoleum of Sufi saint Shah Makhdum. The area hosted a Dutch settlement in the 18th century. The Rajshahi municipality was constituted during the British Raj in 1876. It was the divisional capital of the greater Rajshahi division which was the largest division in Bengal Province.
Rajshahi is a historic center of silk production. Varendra Research Museum, the oldest of its kind in Bangladesh, is located in the city. Sometimes the city is referred to as the City of Education, on account of being home to many renowned educational institutions of Bangladesh. The head office of Rajshahi Agricultural Development Bank and Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA) is situated in the city. The Shah Makhdum Airport serves Rajshahi.
It is the most environmentally friendly city in Bangladesh.
According to The Guardian, Rajshahi is the cleanest city of Bangladesh.
The name "Rajshahi" originates from the Bengali words "Raj" (meaning "kingdom") and "Shahi" (meaning "royal"), reflecting its historical association with ruling dynasties and governance. The region was historically part of the Pundra Kingdom and later saw rule by various empires, including the Maurya and Gupta empires.
Rajshahi has a rich history dating back to ancient times. The region was a significant center during the Mauryan period, and archaeological evidence suggests it was an important hub for trade and cultural exchange. The area was later part of the Pala Empire, which contributed to its Buddhist and Hindu heritage. It was also under the rule of the Sena dynasty before the Muslim conquest in the 13th century.
During the medieval period, Rajshahi came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate and later the Bengal Sultanate. The region saw the influence of Persian and Mughal culture, which is still reflected in its architecture and traditions. The Mughal Empire played a crucial role in developing Rajshahi as a trade center, especially for silk production.
Under British rule, Rajshahi became an important administrative and commercial hub. The British established educational institutions and modern infrastructure, including railways, which boosted trade and connectivity. The region was particularly known for its silk industry, which flourished under British patronage. However, it was also a center of nationalist movements, with local leaders actively participating in the struggle for independence.
After the partition of India in 1947, Rajshahi became part of East Pakistan and later, following the Liberation War in 1971, an integral part of independent Bangladesh. The city continued to grow as a major educational and cultural center, housing prestigious institutions such as the University of Rajshahi. Today, Rajshahi is recognized for its contributions to education.
Geographically Rajshahi is situated within Barind Tract, 23 m (75 ft) above sea level, and lies at 24°22′26″N 88°36′04″E﻿ / ﻿24.37389°N 88.60111°E﻿ / 24.37389; 88.60111. The city is located on the alluvial plains of the Padma River, which runs through the southern side of the city. It is bounded on the east, north, and west by Paba Upazila (a subdivision of a district) of the district.
Rajshahi District is bounded by Naogaon District to the north, Natore District to the east, and Chapai Nawabganj District and the river Padma & Kushtia District to the south.
Under the Köppen climate classification, Rajshahi has a tropical wet and dry climate. The climate of Rajshahi is generally marked with monsoons, high temperature, considerable humidity and moderate rainfall. The hot season commences early in March and continues till the middle of July. The maximum mean temperature observed is about 32 to 36 °C (90 to 97 °F) during April, May, June, and July and the minimum temperature recorded in January is about 7 to 16 °C (45 to 61 °F). The highest rainfall is observed during the months of monsoon. The annual rainfall in the district is about 1,448 millimetres (57.0 in).
Although once noted for its air pollution, since 2014 the levels of particulates have been dramatically reduced by various efforts to switch to cleaner fuels and to battery-powered vehicles, to pave earth streets, to encourage walking and bicycle transport, and to plant vegetation. The levels of PM10 dropped by 67% and PM2.5 which are particularly harmful to human health, dropped from 70 to 37 micrograms per cubic meter between 2014 and 2016. Lowest recorded temperature in Rajshahi was 3.4 °C on 9 January 2003 and highest recorded temperature was 45.1 °C on 18 May 1972.
Shaheed A.H.M Qamaruzzaman Central Park and Zoo is one of the popular public places in Rajshahi city. A wide area with green trees and grasses houses different animal species. It is located by the bank of the Padma River. Other parks in the city are Bhubon Mohon Park and Captain Monsur Ali Park. Shahid Zia's children's park is specially designed for children's amusement. The bank of the Padma River along the city is also a destination for recreation. The bank is a planned zone in many parts of the city to accommodate city dwellers for recreation purposes. In 2015, Munsguard Park near the old Dutch Boro Kuthi building and Lalonshah Park near Shahmukhdum Eidgah was built bordering the bank to provide residents a place to enjoy the views of the Padma river.
Rajshahi is the headquarters of one of the eight administrative divisions of Bangladesh. The Divisional Commissioner, who is the administrative chief of the Rajshahi Division, the DIG for the Rajshahi division, and other divisional civil servants have their own offices in the city, which function as part of the government administrative setup. Deputy Commissioner (DC) who is the administrative chief of Rajshahi District, Civil Surgeon, and other district-level civil servants have their offices in the city. District judges as well as Metropolitan magistrates have their offices within the city.
Rajshahi is one of seven metropolitan cities in Bangladesh. One mayor and 30 ward commissioners are elected for five-year terms by direct votes. Rajshahi City Corporation is responsible for all the administrative work related to city governance under its jurisdiction.
Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP), headed by a Commissioner, controls law and order as well as traffic movements within the metropolitan area.
Rajshahi Unnayan Kortripokhkho/Rajshahi Development Authority (RDA) plans and coordinates the development-related works within the metropolitan area. Rajshahi WASA is responsible for the water supply and drainage system within the city area.
At the time of the 2022 census, Rajshahi had a population of 553,288 in 213,467 households. Rajshahi has a sex ratio of 942 females per 1000 males and a literacy rate of 75.17%
Bengali is the main language for the citizens of the city. Many distinctive Bengali dialects and regional languages are also spoken. There is a minority Urdu-speaking population, who are descendants of displaced Muslims from the eastern part of British India who sought refuge during the separation of India and Pakistan in 1947.
Rajshahi has been famous for its silk textiles since the British period. There are also several jute mills in Rajshahi. At present many glass-making factories have been set up in Rajshahi. Rajshahi City Corporation has constructed BSIC. Industrial City-02 in Paba Upazila of Rajshahi. And work is underway on a leather industry area. There will also be a 1,200-acre industrial zone under the Bangladesh Economic Zone (BEPZA). Bangabandhu Hi-Tech Park will play an important role in the development of IT in Rajshahi. When completed, it will revolutionize information and communication technology in the region, which will employ about 50,000 people.
There is also a char on the banks of the river Padma near the city of Rajshahi. Rajshahi City Corporation has plans to build another economic zone on the char. When the construction of the char is completed, it will become the commercial center of North Bengal.
Rajshahi is famous for Rajshahi silk, which has a special status as clothing material in the Indian subcontinent. Rajshahi is the home of the region's best mangoes and lichis. Rajshahi is also the location of Barendra Museum, which is known for its collection of local sculptures and other artifacts dating from medieval times. It also has some important structures made by the British like the T Dam.
Pohela Baishakh, the Bengali New Year, and Pahela Falgun, the first day of spring of the Bengali month Falgun, in the Bengali calendar, is festively celebrated in the city. There are widespread celebrations of Muslim festivals of Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha, and Muharram; Hindu festivals of Durga Puja, the Buddhist festival of Buddha Purnima; and the Christian festival of Christmas across the city.
There are many Bengali daily newspapers published in the city, including Sonali Sangbad, Uttorbongo Protidin, Sunshine, Dainik Barta, Sonar Desh, Natun Provat, and Amader Rajshahi. There are also many online news portal such as Uttarkal, Padmatimes24, AjkerRajshahi, rajshahinews24.com, silkcitynews.com, Priyojon TV and others.
State-owned Bangladesh Television and Bangladesh Betar have transmission centers in Rajshahi. The BTV relay station in Rajshahi is headquartered in the Kazihata neighborhood and has been operating since 2001.
A local FM radio station, Radio Padma, transmits at 99.2 MHz frequency and Radio Foorti transmits at 88.0 MHz.
There are also five press clubs in Rajshahi City. Known as Rajshahi City Press Club, Rajshahi Press Club, Rajshahi Metropolitan Press Club, Rajshahi Varendra Press Club, and Rajshahi Padma Press Club.
There are three 15,000+ capacity stadiums in the city. One is at the center of the city which is normally called the Rajshahi District Stadium, another is inside the Rajshahi University and the last one used for cricket is located at Terokhadia called Shaheed Qamaruzzaman Stadium. There is also an international standard tennis complex and a few sports training academies in the city.
Many national-level footballers groomed in the city such as former Bangladesh national team captain Mohammed Mohsin and recently midfielder Manik Hossain Molla. The city is the home of several national-level club teams like Diganta Proshari Sangha and Sonali Otit Club. There are also a few football training academies including one in Rajshahi's central eidgah (large open ground used on special occasions for Muslim prayers) and in the Zilla stadium.
The city is an important place for cricket in Bangladesh. As a regular supplier of cricketers in the national team, it is also the home of Bangladesh Premier League team Rajshahi Kings. The city has two cricket academies Banglatrack and Clemon, to grow and train upcoming cricketers.
Rajshahi is also known for hockey. Many local hockey practice clubs allow playing at national, inter-university, college, and school levels. There are National Team hockey players from Rajshahi. Late Mintu was one of them and by his name, there is "Mintu Chottor" at Lokkhipur Mor, Rajshahi.
Rajshahi is connected to most other parts of the country via the N6 national highway. There are two intercity bus terminals in the city. It takes about 5 to 6 hours by road to reach the capital city Dhaka. Several bus services, including air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned buses, are available to and from Dhaka. Bus services to other major cities and the district's headquarters are also available from Rajshahi.
Four inter-city train services are operated by Bangladesh Railway, named Silk City Express, Padma Express and Dhumketu Express, and Bonolota Express between Dhaka and Rajshahi railway station regularly. There are other inter-city, mail and local trains operated from Rajshahi to Khulna and other regions of the country. There are two other railway stations in the city, Rajshahi Court and Rajshahi University.
The city is served by Shah Makhdum Airport, named after the Islamic preacher Shah Makhdum Rupos, situated at Nowhata, a commuter town of the city. Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Novoair, and US-Bangla Airlines operate domestic flights to and from Dhaka.
Auto rickshaws and charging rickshaws are the main modes of transport within the city and metro area. Once there was plenty of Tomtom (horse-driven cart) in the city, which are still found, but fewer in numbers. There are bus and minibus services in a limited number of routes, connecting suburban areas of the city. Plenty of rental car agencies operate within the city and metro area, where sedans, SUVs, and micro-buses are available to hire hourly or daily. Ride-sharing services like Uber and Obhai are also available in the city.
The city has many government, private and NGO-run hospitals. Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH) is a tertiary-level public hospital with a teaching facility for graduate and postgraduate medical education. There are two private medical college hospitals, and another two are under construction in the city. There is also a government-run children's hospital, one chest hospital, a district-level government hospital, and a Christian missionary hospital within the city area.
Rajshahi, commonly referred to as Education City (Sikkha Nogori), is home to many government, private and autonomous educational institutions.
The secondary and higher secondary institutions in the city fall under the jurisdiction of the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Rajshahi.
The city is home to the Rajshahi College- which is the third oldest college in Bangladesh after Dhaka College, and Chittagong College. Rajshahi Medical College is the second oldest medical college in erstwhile East Pakistan. The University of Rajshahi is the second oldest and one of the largest public universities in the country. Rajshahi Engineering College, now known as RUET, was the second engineering college established in East Pakistan in 1964. For Technical Education Rajshahi Polytechnic Institute was Established in 1963, This Institute is under the Bangladesh Technical Education Board.
Rajshahi consistently leads in pass rates and GPA 5 achievements in SSC and HSC results.
Major educational institutes include:
Rajshahi's twin town and sister cities are: