Satkhira

About Satkhira

Satkhira is the south-western corner of Bangladesh. The Ichamati, Kalindi and Raimangal rivers form much of its western border with India’s West Bengal, Jashore lies to the north, Khulna to the east, and in the south the district runs into the Sundarbans and the Bay of Bengal. Other rivers — the Betna, Kobadak, Morichap, Kholpetua and Arpangashia — cut the land into islands of embanked fields.

The north of the district around Kalaroa and Satkhira town is fertile, sweet-water farmland known for mangoes, rice and vegetables. The south, in Assasuni and Shyamnagar, is saline, and shrimp and crab ponds have replaced much of the rice. Shyamnagar holds a large share of the Sundarbans, and its islands such as Gabura were among the hardest hit by Cyclone Aila in 2009.

Satkhira is also a trade gateway. Bhomra land port on its western border is one of the busier crossings for goods to and from India, and its markets are full of fish, shrimp and mangoes bound for Dhaka and export.

History

The area was part of the domain of Raja Pratapaditya, the sixteenth-century Baro-Bhuiyan ruler whose capital stood near Ishwaripur in present-day Shyamnagar, where the Jessoreshwari temple still draws pilgrims. Local tradition traces the name Satkhira to Satghoria, an estate bought in the eighteenth century by a landlord family whose seat grew into the town, though the details vary.

Under British rule Satkhira became a subdivision of Jashore in 1861 and was moved into the new Khulna district in 1882. In 1971 it lay in Sector 9 of the Liberation War, and refugees heading for India were attacked at Jhaudanga and in the town itself. Satkhira became a separate district in 1984.

Economy and livelihoods

Satkhira is one of the leading shrimp districts: bagda shrimp from brackish ghers in Assasuni, Debhata, Kaliganj and Shyamnagar feed processing and export plants in Khulna. Crab fattening and soft-shell crab farming around Burigoalini and Gabura have grown into a significant export trade. Satkhira mangoes — Himsagar, Langra and Amrapali — ripen earlier than most in the country and are sent to Dhaka and abroad. Rice, jute, vegetables and date gur are grown in the north, Bhomra land port supports trading and transport businesses, and the Sundarbans supply honey, fish and golpata.

Food, culture and festivals

Satkhira is known for its sandesh, a soft milk sweet made from fresh chhana that visitors take home in boxes, along with shrimp and crab dishes and, in summer, a steady supply of mangoes. Winter brings date juice and pithas.

In the coastal south, forest workers honour Bonbibi before entering the Sundarbans, and the Jessoreshwari temple, counted among the Shakti Peethas, holds large gatherings during Kali Puja. Folk songs, jatra and kirtan remain part of village fairs.

Places to visit in Satkhira

1. Jessoreshwari Kali Temple, Ishwaripur

   An ancient Hindu temple in Shyamnagar upazila, regarded as one of the 51 Shakti Peethas and linked to Raja Pratapaditya, who is said to have renovated it. Pilgrims come from both Bangladesh and India.

2. Sundarbans from Munshiganj and Burigoalini

   Boats from Munshiganj and Nildumur ghat in Shyamnagar enter the western Sundarbans, with mangrove creeks, birds, deer and the Kalagachhia eco-tourism centre. Forest permits are needed for longer trips.

3. Mandarbaria beach

   A remote sandy beach at the edge of the Sundarbans facing the Hariabhanga estuary, reached by a few hours’ boat ride from Burigoalini. Visits are usually arranged through tour operators in winter.

4. Tetulia Jame Mosque, Tala

   A large many-domed mosque built by a local landholding family in the nineteenth century, a well-preserved example of the period’s architecture.

What Satkhira is famous for

• Satkhira mango
• Satkhira sandesh
• Soft-shell crab
• Bagda (tiger) shrimp
• Sundarbans honey

How to get to Satkhira

Buses from Dhaka’s Gabtoli and Sayedabad terminals cross the Padma Bridge and reach Satkhira town via Jashore or Khulna in roughly five to six hours. There is no railway in the district. Jashore airport, with daily flights from Dhaka, is about one and a half to two hours away by road. From Satkhira town, Shyamnagar and Munshiganj are a further two to three hours south.

Markets and haats

Sultanpur Bazar, Satkhira town

The main market of the district town, busy from early morning with fish, shrimp, vegetables and, in season, heaps of local mangoes.

Court Market area

Shops around the court area of Satkhira town, known for established sweet shops selling Satkhira sandesh, as well as clothes and household goods.

Burigoalini and Munshiganj landings

Riverside landing points in Shyamnagar where crabs, fish and forest produce come in from the Sundarbans and are bought by depot traders.

Satkhira at a glance

Shops from Satkhira on Midmart

No shop from Satkhira is selling on Midmart yet.

Questions about Satkhira

More districts in Khulna Division

• Bagerhat Khan Jahan’s mosque city on the edge of the Sundarbans
• Chuadanga Border farmland of date molasses, betel leaf and the Darshana sugar mill
• Jashore The flower capital, home of date molasses and the Benapole gateway
• Jhenaidah Sultanate mosques, Naldanga temples and the giant banyan of Kaliganj
• Khulna River city of shrimp and the gateway to the Sundarbans
• Kushtia Land of Lalon and Tagore, tiler khaja and Kumarkhali handlooms
• Magura Raja Sitaram’s country of jute fields, pera sandesh and Khamarpara doi
• Meherpur Mujibnagar, where Bangladesh’s first government took its oath
• Narail S M Sultan’s Chitra river country, home of boat races and cricketers