Rangpur

About Rangpur

Rangpur district lies in the middle of North Bengal, with Nilphamari and Lalmonirhat to the north, Kurigram to the east, Gaibandha to the south and Dinajpur to the west. The Teesta forms part of its northern edge, and smaller rivers such as the Ghaghat, Jamuneshwari, Karatoya and Akhira wind through its flat farmland. Its eight upazilas cover about 2,400 square kilometres. The 2022 census counted nearly 3.17 million people, about a third of them in towns, most of all in Rangpur city.

Since 2010 the city has been the headquarters of Rangpur Division, and since 2012 it has had its own city corporation. Universities, medical colleges, a cantonment and the division's main courts and offices are all here, so people from the eight northern districts come to Rangpur for study, treatment and business. Outside the city the district is open, fertile farming country, among the most important in Bangladesh for potatoes, rice, tobacco and mangoes.

History

Rangpur was once part of the old kingdom of Kamrup and later of Cooch Behar. One legend says the name comes from "Rangapur", a pleasure town of the Kamrup king Bhagadatta. Another links it to "rang", the dye from the indigo grown here under the British. Mughal armies reached the area in the late sixteenth century, but it was fully absorbed into the empire only in the 1680s, and place names such as Mughalhat still recall that period. The East India Company organised Rangpur as a district in 1769. In 1783 the peasant leader Nuruldin led an uprising against the harsh revenue farmer Debi Singh, and the legendary Devi Chaudhurani is remembered in Pirgachha.

The district's best-known daughter is Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, born at Pairaband in Mithapukur in 1880. She was a pioneering writer and campaigner for girls' education, and the public university in Rangpur city carries her name. Over the twentieth century the old greater Rangpur district was divided several times, and today's Rangpur district took its present shape in 1984.

Economy and livelihoods

Agriculture comes first. Rangpur grows huge amounts of potatoes, which are stored in cold stores across the district, along with rice, maize, jute, vegetables and tobacco. The tobacco feeds the bidi factories of Haragach. Mithapukur and the surrounding area are the home of the Haribhanga mango, a late, fibre-free variety that has become one of the best-selling mangoes in the country. The BSCIC estate and nearby industrial areas host foundries, food processors, dairy plants and power stations, and the Shyampur sugar mill is in Badarganj. Weaving is the craft that carries the Rangpur name furthest. At Nisbetganj on the edge of the city, artisans weave shataranji, colourful flat-woven cotton rugs, on simple ground looms.

Food, culture and festivals

People across the region speak Rangpuri, a distinctive northern variety of Bangla. Its friendly "bahe" form of address is so typical that Rangpur is often called "baher desh". Bhawaiya, the slow, longing folk song of North Bengal, is closely tied to Rangpur, and the town hall and cultural academy hold regular performances. Food is simple and filling: rice with river fish, shutki-based dishes and seasonal pithas. In June the mango arrives and the Haribhanga season becomes a district-wide event.

Places to visit in Rangpur

1. Tajhat Palace

   A white marble-staircase palace built in the early twentieth century by the Tajhat zamindar family on the edge of Rangpur city. In the 1980s it housed a bench of the High Court. It is now a museum, with old manuscripts, terracotta and coins, set in landscaped gardens.

2. Carmichael College

   Founded in 1916, one of the oldest colleges in northern Bangladesh. Its long main building with domes and arches stands on a large green campus that is pleasant to walk around in the late afternoon.

3. Begum Rokeya Memorial Centre, Pairaband

   At Begum Rokeya's birthplace in Mithapukur, about half an hour's drive from the city. A memorial complex and a few remains of the family home honour the writer and educator.

4. Mithapukur three-domed mosque

   A late Mughal-era mosque in Mithapukur with three domes and fine plaster decoration. It is an easy stop on the highway towards Pirganj.

5. Vinnya Jagat

   A large private amusement park and resort in Gangachara with gardens, rides and replica landmarks. It is popular with families on weekends and holidays.

What Rangpur is famous for

• Rangpur shataranji
• Haribhanga mango
• Rangpur potatoes

How to get to Rangpur

Rangpur is roughly 300 km from Dhaka. By road, buses from Gabtoli, Kallyanpur and Mohakhali cross the Jamuna Bridge and take about 6–8 hours, depending on traffic. The Rangpur Express from Kamalapur reaches Rangpur station in about 8–9 hours. The quickest option is to fly to Saidpur, about an hour from Dhaka, then drive roughly 45 km, which takes about an hour, into the city. Rangpur is also the road hub for onward buses to Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari and Dinajpur.

Markets and haats

Nisbetganj shataranji village

The weaving neighbourhood on the city's edge where shataranji rugs are made by hand. Workshops and showrooms sell floor rugs, wall hangings, bags and table runners directly to visitors.

Padaganj haat, Mithapukur

In June and July this market becomes the centre of the Haribhanga mango trade. Growers bring fruit by van and bicycle, and wholesale buyers load trucks for Dhaka and other cities.

Jahaj Company Mor and Station Road

The central shopping area of Rangpur city, with clothing, electronics, sweet shops and the busy daily markets around them.

Rangpur at a glance

Shops from Rangpur on Midmart

No shop from Rangpur is selling on Midmart yet.

Questions about Rangpur

More districts in Rangpur Division

• Dinajpur Terracotta temples, Kataribhog rice and the litchi capital of Bangladesh
• Gaibandha Char country on the Brahmaputra, home of rasmanjari and winter knitwear
• Kurigram Where the Brahmaputra enters Bangladesh, a land of rivers, chars and Bhawaiya
• Lalmonirhat Railway town, Teesta Barrage and the Tin Bigha Corridor on the northern border
• Nilphamari Old indigo country, Saidpur's railway workshop and the north's industrial edge
• Panchagarh Bangladesh's northern tip, with flatland tea gardens and Kanchenjunga on the horizon
• Thakurgaon The wheat basket of Bangladesh, home of Suryapuri mangoes and a giant old mango tree