Moulvibazar

About Moulvibazar

Moulvibazar lies in the south-east of Sylhet division, bordered by the Indian states of Tripura and Assam to the south and east. Low hills run north–south through the district, and almost every slope is planted with tea: more than ninety of the country's tea estates are here, which is why Sreemangal, its best-known town, calls itself the tea capital of Bangladesh.

Between the hills lie wide wetlands. Hakaluki Haor, shared with Sylhet district, is the largest haor in Bangladesh and fills with migratory ducks every winter, while Hail Haor near Sreemangal holds the Baikka Beel sanctuary. The Manu, Dhalai and Juri rivers come down from Tripura, and the district town of Moulvibazar stands on the banks of the Manu.

This mix of tea, forest and water makes Moulvibazar one of the country's favourite nature destinations. Lawachara's rainforest, the Madhabkunda waterfall in Barlekha, lily-covered lakes inside tea estates and the villages of the Manipuri, Khasi and Garo peoples all lie within a couple of hours of each other.

History

The district takes its name from Moulvi Syed Qudratullah, who set up a bazaar on the bank of the Manu in the late eighteenth century; the market town that grew around it became Moulvibazar. Under British rule it was a subdivision of Sylhet, and the planters who arrived in the nineteenth century reshaped the landscape, bringing labourers from Bihar, Odisha and central India whose descendants still live and work on the estates. In 1984 the subdivision became a district.

Moulvibazar fell in Sector 4 during the 1971 Liberation War, and fighting along the Tripura border was intense. Bir Sreshtho Sepoy Hamidur Rahman, one of the seven highest-decorated heroes of the war, was killed near the Dhalai border outpost in Kamalganj; a memorial complex stands there in his honour.

Economy and livelihoods

Tea is the backbone of the economy, and the Bangladesh Tea Research Institute at Sreemangal is the centre of the country's tea science. Rubber, pineapple, lemon, oranges, jackfruit and betel leaf grown by Khasi communities are other important crops, and the haors produce boro rice and freshwater fish. Barlekha, especially the Sujanagar area, is the hub of the agarwood industry, where resin-rich agar wood is distilled into attar and oil for markets in the Middle East. Remittance from the United Kingdom, Europe and the Gulf is a major source of household income, and tourism around Sreemangal supports resorts, guides and tea stalls.

Food, culture and festivals

The Manipuri community of Kamalganj brings classical dance and handloom weaving: the Raas Leela festival at Madhabpur on the full moon of Kartik draws visitors from across the country, and Manipuri shawls, sarees and bed covers are sold in Sreemangal and Kamalganj. Khasi villages called punji sit inside the forest, where families tend betel vines on the trees. Tea-worker communities celebrate their own festivals, such as Phagua.

Sreemangal is also known for its tea stalls, especially the layered multi-colour tea served in glass, a local invention that visitors queue for. Sylheti cooking — shatkora curries, fresh haor fish, and bamboo-shoot dishes in the hill villages — is everyday fare across the district.

Places to visit in Moulvibazar

1. Lawachara National Park

   About 1,250 hectares of semi-evergreen forest near Sreemangal and Kamalganj, declared a national park in 1996. The Dhaka–Sylhet railway runs right through it, and guided trails lead to Khasi villages and some of the best places in the country to see hoolock gibbons.

2. Madhabkunda Waterfall

   One of Bangladesh's best-known waterfalls, in Barlekha upazila, dropping over a sandstone cliff into a pool surrounded by forest. It is at its fullest in the monsoon; nearby Paribkunda is a smaller, quieter fall.

3. Hakaluki Haor

   The country's largest haor, spread across Barlekha, Kulaura, Juri and neighbouring Sylhet upazilas. In winter it hosts huge flocks of migratory ducks and waders; in the monsoon it becomes an inland sea of scattered villages.

4. Baikka Beel

   A permanent wetland sanctuary in Hail Haor, a short drive from Sreemangal, with an observation tower over water lilies and reed beds. Winter mornings bring herons, jacanas and migratory ducks.

5. Bangladesh Tea Research Institute, Sreemangal

   The country's centre for tea research, set among experimental tea gardens. Visitors combine it with walks through the estates that surround the town.

6. Madhabpur Lake

   A hill-ringed lake inside a tea estate in Kamalganj, covered in lilies and home to birdlife. It is an easy stop on the way to the Manipuri villages and the Hamidur Rahman memorial.

What Moulvibazar is famous for

• Sreemangal tea
• Manipuri handloom shawls and sarees
• Agar attar from Barlekha
• Khasia betel leaf
• Sreemangal pineapple

How to get to Moulvibazar

Moulvibazar town is roughly 200 km north-east of Dhaka, about four to five hours by bus from Sayedabad or Mohakhali along the Dhaka–Sylhet highway. For Sreemangal the train is the most pleasant option: the Sylhet-bound intercity trains from Kamalapur stop at Sreemangal and Kulaura, taking roughly four and a half to five hours to Sreemangal, with the last stretch running through tea gardens and Lawachara forest. From Sreemangal, Moulvibazar town is about 40 minutes by road. Visitors flying to Sylhet can reach the district in about two hours by road.

Markets and haats

Sreemangal Bazar

The town's busy market and the surrounding tea shops sell loose and packaged tea from local estates, pineapples and lemons in season, and Manipuri handloom.

Sujanagar, Barlekha

Not a single bazaar but the heart of the agarwood trade, where workshops process agar wood and distil attar. Visitors can see how the fragrance is made and buy from local producers.

Manipuri handloom outlets, Kamalganj

Manipuri villages such as Adampur and Madhabpur have weaving households and small shops selling shawls, sarees, bags and bed covers in their distinctive striped and geometric designs.

Moulvibazar at a glance

Shops from Moulvibazar on Midmart

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Questions about Moulvibazar

More districts in Sylhet Division

• Habiganj Tea hills, gas fields and haor country on the road to Sylhet
• Sunamganj Land of haors and mystic songs beneath the Meghalaya hills
• Sylhet City of saints on the Surma, gateway to Jaflong and Ratargul