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Bangladesh
is situated in the north-eastern part of south Asia. It lies
between 20° 34' and 26° 36' north latitude and 88° 1' and 92°
41' east longitude. The heavy and great Himalayas stand as the
northern ramparts, while the southern frontier is guarded by the
Bay of Bengal. On the west lies the expansive gangetic
plains (West Bengal) of India and on the eastern frontier
lies the almost impass able forest of Myanmar (Arakan Province)
and India (Tripura and Assam hills). These picturesque
geographical boundaries delineate out a low lying plain of about
143,998 sq. Km. (55,598 sq. miles) criss - crossed by
innumerable brooks, rivers, rivulets and streams. Mighty rivers
the Padma, Jamuna, Meghna, Karnaphuli and others flow through
Bangladesh. The land is mostly flat except for a range of hills
in the south-east. It is mainly characterized by wooded
marshylands and jungles with forest regions in Sylhet, Rangamati,
Khagrachari and Bandarban Hill Tracts, Sundarbans, Mymenshingh
and Tangail.
History
The
history of Bangladesh has been one of extremes, of turmoil and
peace, prosperity and destitution. From 15th century the
Europeans, namely: Portuguese, Dutch, French and British traders
exerted an economic influence over the region. British political
rule over the region began in 1757 A.D. when the last muslim
ruler of Bengal was defeated at Palassey. In 1947 the country
was partitioned into India and Pakistan.
Following
the partition of India in 1947, the area of Bangladesh became a
province of Pakistan, initially known as East Bengal, and then,
from 1955, as East Pakistan. The people of East Pakistan
Province declared their independence as the nation of Bangladesh
on March 26, 1971, while fighting a savage war against the
central Pakistani government. The separation from Pakistan took
place, with extensive aid from India, on December 16, 1971 as a
result of the third Indo-Pakistan War. Bangladesh was soon
recognized by most other nations, although Pakistan withheld
diplomatic recognition until 1974 and China did not recognize
the nation until 1976. Bangladesh was admitted to the United
Nations in 1974.
The
country's initial government was formed in January 1972 under
the charismatic leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman known as
Mujib, who became prime minister. His immediate tasks were to
rebuild the war-ravaged nation, reestablish law and order, and
reintegrate the numerous Bengalis returning from India. A
longer-range goal was to foster economic growth in order to
raise the very low living standard of the densely populated
nation. In the first years of independence, Bangladesh received
much aid from abroad, and Mujib nationalized major industries as
part of his programme of developing the country along the lines
of democratic socialism. He had little success, however, in
improving the economy, and lawlessness prevailed.
In
mid-1974 the country was devastated by floods that destroyed
much of the grain crop. At the same time, political disorder was
increasing, and in late 1974 a national state of emergency was
declared. In early 1975 Mujib became president under a
remodelled constitution that granted him virtually dictatorial
power. He was unable to stabilize the political situation,
however, and was killed in a military coup datat on August 15,
1975. In November military leaders ousted Mujib's successor,
Khandakar Mushtaque Ahmed, who had initiated martial law, and
installed Abusadat Muhammad Sayem as president. General Ziaur
Rahman assumed the presidency when Sayem resigned in 1977.
Martial law was lifted in 1979, following parliamentary
elections. Despite a continuing food shortage, the nation made
considerable economic progress in 1980 and 1981.
President
Rahman was assassinated in May 1981 as part of an abortive military
coup. He was succeeded by Vice President Abdus Sattar, who won election
to the presidency in his own right in November. However, a bloodless
military coup in March 1982 brought General Hussein Muhammed Ershad to
power. After suspending the constitution and abolishing all political
parties, Ershad ruled by martial law under a figurehead president.
A
proposal by Ershad to require all schools to teach Arabic and the Koran
sparked demonstrations and riots in February 1983. Later in the year,
limited political activities were allowed to resume; in December Ershad
assumed the presidency. The long-postponed parliamentary elections took
place in May 1986. Some members boycotted the initial meetings of
parliament because Ershad did not lift martial law. In an October 1986
presidential election that was boycotted by opposition parties, Ershad
was elected to a five-year term with a majority of more than 80 per
cent. In November, after parliament passed legislation protecting his
military regime from reprisals, Ershad lifted martial law and reinstated
the constitution. Devastating floods in September 1988 inundated about
three-quarters of the country and left an estimated 30 million people
homeless. Faced with rising political opposition, Ershad resigned in
December 1990; he was subsequently convicted and imprisoned on charges
of corruption and illegal weapons possession. In February 1991, Khaleda
Zia, widow of President Rahman, was elected prime minister, which became
the governmental position with primary executive power after a change in
the constitution later that year. 
More
than 120,000 people were killed and millions left homeless in April 1991
when a powerful cyclone struck the coastal areas in the Ganges delta. An
influx of Muslim refugees in the early 1990s, fleeing persecution in
Burma, further strained Bangladesh's already devastated economy.
By
1993 the Bangladeshi economy was recovering, despite continuing problems
with flooding and other crises. In May 1994 opposition parties began a
series of boycotts of parliament, amid a deepening personal feud between
Prime Minister Zia and the opposition Awami League leader, Sheikh Hasina
Wazed. In September the author Taslima Nasreen fled to Switzerland after
a series of legal cases, demonstrations, and death threats against her
by Islamic fundamentalists. In December 1994 opposition Members of
Parliament resigned en masse to force new elections, and organized a
series of violent strikes in January 1995. Following general strikes in
September and October 1995, President Abdur Rahman Biswas formally
dissolved parliament in November to make way for a general election, but
opposition parties refused to participate without the appointment of an
impartial caretaker government. The general election went ahead in
February 1996, but the opposition boycott, a low voter turnout, and
violent incidents undermined the landslide victory of the ruling
Bangladesh Nationalist party. With strikes and demonstrations
continuing, Zia was finally forced in March 1996 to concede the
appointment of a caretaker administration by the president and tendered
her resignation. President Biswas swore in the caretaker government in
April, with all parties promising to cooperate, and scheduled general
elections for June. Following a reported coup attempt in May, the June
general elections brought the Awami League and Sheikh Hasina Wazed to
power.
Climate
and seasons
The
climate is sub-tropical with temperatures ranging from a daytime low of
8° c in the cold season to a maximum of 43° c in the summer. Annual
rain fall ranges from 160cm. to 200cm. in west, 200cm. to 400cm. in the
south-east and 250cm. to 400cm. in the north-east mainly in monsoon. The
country has mainly four seasons, the Winter (Dec-Feb), Summer (Mar-May),
Monsoon (June-Sept) and Autumn (Oct-Nov).
In
all areas about 80 per cent of the annual rainfall typically occurs in
the monsoon period, which lasts from late May to mid-October. Average
annual precipitation ranges from about 1,400 mm (55 in) along the
country's east-central border to more than 5,080 mm (200 in) in the far
north-east. In addition to the normal monsoonal rainfall, Bangladesh is
subject to devastating cyclones, originating over the Bay of Bengal,
from April to May and September to November. Often accompanied by
surging waves, these storms can cause great damage and loss of life. The
cyclone of November 1970, in which about 500,000 lives were lost in
Bangladesh, was one of the worst natural disasters of the 20th century.
Bangladesh
has warm temperatures throughout the year, with relatively little
variation from month to month. January tends to be the coolest month and
May the warmest.
Rivers
and Lakes
Rivers
are a prominent and important feature of the landscape in Bangladesh.
Some rivers are known by different names in various portions of their
course. The Ganges (Ganga), for example, is known as the Padma below the
point where it is joined by the Jamuna River, the name given to the
lowest part of the main channel of the Brahmaputra. The combined stream
is then called the Meghna below its confluence with a much smaller
tributary of the same name. In the dry season the numerous branches of
the delta that lace the terrain may be several kilometres wide as they
near the Bay of Bengal, whereas at the height of the summer monsoon
season they coalesce into an extremely broad expanse of silt-laden
water. In much of the delta, therefore, homes must be constructed on
earthen platforms or embankments high enough to remain above the level
of all but the highest floods. In nonmonsoon months the exposed ground
is pocked with water-filled tanks, or borrow pits, from which the mud
for the embankments has been excavated. These tanks are a chief source
of water for drinking, bathing, and small-scale irrigation.
Seaports
Chittagong
and Mongla.
Airports
Zia
International Airport, Dhaka, Domestic Airports at Chittagong, Jessore,
Sylhet, Cox's Bazar, Rajshahi and Saidpur.
Tourist
Season
October
to March.
Main
tourist Attractions
Colourful
Tribal life, Longest sea beach, Centuries old Archaeological sites, Home
of the Royal Bengal Tigers, Largest Tea Gardens, Interesting Riverine
Life etc.
Cultural
Life
Bangladeshi
culture is, in many respects, inseparable from that of Bengal, since the
country was created by the partitioning of Bengal in 1947, and since the
early 19th century a majority of the most widely read and admired
Bengali writers and artists, Hindu and Muslim, worked for a time in the
Indian metropolis of Calcutta. Greatest among these was the writer,
artist, and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore.
Classical,
light-classical, devotional, and popular music enjoy a wide following in
Bangladesh. Classical dancing is of various Indian schools, such as
Kathak Bharatanatyam, and indigenous folk genres are being developed.
Cultural
Activity
Bangladesh
lacks sufficient numbers of schools and cultural institutions, even
though facilities were increased substantially in the 1970s.
Cultural
Institutions
Higher
cultural life is concentrated in Dhaka, which is the site of the Bangla
Academy (1972), devoted to the promotion and development of the Bengali
language and literature. The country's largest library is part of the
University of Dhaka, and the Bangladesh National Museum, also in Dhaka,
is noted for its art and archaeology collections. The Varendra Research
Museum, controlled by the University of Rajshahi, is an important centre
for archaeological, anthropological, and historical research.
Aviation
& Tourism
Serious
reforms have taken place in the civil aviation sectorby allowing
operation of private sector airlines in the domestic services. Tourism
sector is fully open for the private sector to operate.
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