Dhaka, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the largest and most densely populated cities in the world, with a population of 18.89 million people in the Greater Dhaka Area. Dhaka is the economic, political and cultural center of Bangladesh. It is one of the major cities of South Asia, the largest city in Eastern South Asia and among the Bay of Bengal countries; and one of the largest cities among OIC countries. As part of the Bengal plain, the city is bounded by the Buriganga River, Turag River, Dhaleshwari River and Shitalakshya River. The city is located in an eponymous district and division.
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the liberation war in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 to the fall of Dacca (Dhaka) on 16 December 1971. The war began with preemptive aerial strikes on 11 Indian air stations, which led to the commencement of hostilities with Pakistan and Indian entry into the war of independence in East Pakistan on the side of Bengali nationalist forces. Lasting just 13 days, it is one of the shortest wars in history.
The Bangladeshi taka is the currency of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Issuance of banknotes ৳10 and larger is controlled by Bangladesh Bank, and for the ৳2 and ৳5 banknotes, which are the responsibility of the Ministry of Finance of the government of Bangladesh. The most commonly used symbol for the taka is "৳" and "Tk", used on receipts while purchasing goods and services. ৳1 is subdivided into 100 poisha.
Muhammad Yunus is a Bangladeshi social entrepreneur, banker, economist, and civil society leader who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for founding the Grameen Bank and pioneering the concepts of microcredit and microfinance. These loans are given to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. In 2006, Yunus and the Grameen Bank were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts through microcredit to create economic and social development from below". The Norwegian Nobel Committee said that "lasting peace cannot be achieved unless large population groups find ways in which to break out of poverty" and that "across cultures and civilizations, Yunus and Grameen Bank have shown that even the poorest of the poor can work to bring about their own development". Yunus has received several other national and international honours. He received the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2010.
The Jatiya Sangsad, often referred to simply as the Sangsad or JS and also known as the House of the Nation, is the supreme legislative body of Bangladesh. The current parliament of Bangladesh contains 350 seats, including 50 seats reserved for women, which are apportioned on elected party position in the parliament. Elected occupants are called members of parliament or MP. The 11th National Parliamentary Election was held on 30 December 2018. Elections are held every five years unless the parliament is dissolved before that time.
The Bangladesh Liberation War, also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh, was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in what was then East Pakistan during the 1971 Bangladesh genocide. It resulted in the independence of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The war began after the Pakistani military junta based in West Pakistan launched Operation Searchlight against the people of East Pakistan on the night of 25 March 1971. It pursued the systematic elimination of nationalist Bengali civilians, students, intelligentsia, religious minorities and armed personnel. The junta annulled the results of the 1970 elections and arrested Prime minister-designate Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The war ended on 16 December 1971 after West Pakistan surrendered.
The Bangladesh national cricket team, is administered by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). Bangladesh is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test and One Day International (ODI) status. It played its first Test match in November 2000 against India in Dhaka, becoming the tenth Test-playing nation.
The genocide in Bangladesh began on 26 March 1971 with the launch of Operation Searchlight, as West Pakistan began a military crackdown on the Eastern wing of the nation to suppress Bengali calls for self-determination rights. During the nine-month-long Bangladesh War for Liberation, members of the Pakistani military and supporting Islamist militias from Jamaat-e-Islami killed between 300,000 and 3,000,000 people and raped between 200,000 and 400,000 Bangladeshi women, according to Bangladeshi and Indian sources, in a systematic campaign of genocidal rape. In December 2011, a BBC News report cited unnamed "independent researchers" as claiming that between 300,000 and 500,000 people were killed. The actions against women were supported by Muslim religious leaders, who declared that Bengali women were gonimoter maal. As a result of the conflict, a further eight to ten million people, mostly Hindus, fled the country at the time to seek refuge in neighbouring India. It is estimated that up to 30 million civilians became internally displaced. During the war, there was also ethnic violence between Bengalis and Urdu-speaking Biharis. Biharis faced reprisals from Bengali mobs and militias and from 1,000 to 150,000 were killed. Other sources claim it was up to 500,000.
Bangladesh and India are South Asian neighbours. Relations have been friendly, although sometimes there are border disputes. The historic land boundary agreement was signed on 6 June 2015 which opened a new era in the relations and further stopped all irritants in ties. They are common members of SAARC, BIMSTEC, IORA and the Commonwealth. The two countries share many cultural ties. In particular, Bangladesh and the east Indian state of West Bengal are Bengali-speaking. Bangladesh has a high commission in New Delhi with consulates in Mumbai and Kolkata. India has a high commission in Dhaka with a consulate in Chittagong. In 1971, the Bangladesh Liberation War broke out between East Pakistan and West Pakistan, India intervened in December 1971 on behalf of East Pakistan and helped secure East Pakistan's independence from Pakistan as the country of Bangladesh. In a 2014 survey, 70% of Bangladeshis expressed a favorable opinion and perception of India. Indo-Bangladesh bilateral trade surged by 24% to reach US$ 9.3 billion in the year 2018 from about US$ 7.52 billion in the preceding year.
Mohammad Mushfiqur Rahim is a Bangladeshi cricketer and the former captain of the Bangladesh national cricket team. Between August 2009 and December 2010 Rahim served as Bangladesh's vice-captain in all formats. At domestic level he represents Rajshahi Division and captains Sylhet Super Stars. According to Jamie Siddons in 2010, a former Bangladesh coach, Rahim's batting is so versatile that he can bat anywhere in the top order, from one to six.
Shakib Al Hasan is a Bangladeshi international cricketer who currently captains the Bangladesh national team in Test and T20I formats. He is well known for being a Top all rounder in Bangladesh. His aggressive left-handed batting style in the middle order, controlled slow left-arm orthodox bowling, and athletic fielding has helped him win trophies in top leagues across the world.
Muhammad Tamim Iqbal Khan is a Bangladeshi international cricketer. Tamim made his One Day International debut in 2007 and played his first Test the following year. A left-handed opening batsman, he is the Bangladeshi's most successful runscorer to date. Between December 2010 and September 2011 he was vice-captain of the national side. Considered as the best batsman ever to have played for Bangladesh, Tamim has set up centuries in all three formats of the game and is also the first Bangladeshi to score 10,000 international runs. On 23 January 2018 against Zimbabwe at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Dhaka, he became the first batsman for Bangladesh to reach 6,000 runs in ODIs and went past Sanath Jayasuriya's 2,514 runs at the R. Premadasa Stadium to become highest run-scorer at a single venue in ODIs.
The Bangladesh–India border, known locally as the International Border (IB), is an international border running between Bangladesh and India that demarcates the eight divisions of Bangladesh and the Indian states.
Radhikapur is a railway station in Uttar Dinajpur district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a defunct rail transit system on the Bangladesh-India border and is an India-Bangladesh land border checkpoint.
As a sovereign state, Bangladesh requires all foreigners to obtain permission to enter its territory. Visas are issued by Bangladesh missions, located throughout the world, or on arrival in Bangladesh. All foreigners require a Bangladeshi visa to enter Bangladesh. Most diplomats can get a visa on arrival in Bangladesh. Tourists, investors and business travellers can get a single entry visa on arrival in Bangladesh, if travelling with an eligible passport; carrying US $500 in cash; having a return/onward air ticket or train ticket; and if entering Bangladesh by air, sea or road but not on a train. The maximum duration of this single entry visa on arrival is 30 days. The visa on arrival fee must be paid only in cash when entering Bangladesh and the cost per person is US $51 or €51, with all taxes included. Visa extensions are available at the Department of Immigration and Passports located in West Agargaon, Dhaka City, Bangladesh.
Singhabad is a railway station in Malda district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a railway transit point on the Bangladesh-India border.
Rohanpur is a border railway station in Bangladesh, situated in Nawabganj District, in Rajshahi Division. It is a functioning railway transit point on the Bangladesh-India border.
