Gopal Chandra Lahiri (1858-1936) was a feudal lord and pioneer of education in Northern Bengal. He was the founder of Edward College in Pabna. [1]
Lahiri was born in 1858 in Rokonpur, Kacharipara, Gopalpur, Pabna District, Bengal Presidency, British Raj in a Jotdaari family. [2] He studied at Rajshahi College. [2] He lived in the house of Shrijukto Guruprasad Sen, a lawyer, in Rajshahi. [2] He was the home tutor of Rajanikanta Sen, son of Shrijukto Guruprasad Sen, who went on to become a notable poet of Bengal. [2] He graduated from Rajshahi College with a bachelor's degree in 1882. [2]
In March 1884, Lahiri founded the Pabna Institution, English curriculum school, in Pabna. [2] The school was financed by Bhaduri zamindar family also known as the Tahirpur Raj family. [2] [3] He was the principal and headmaster of the institution. [2] He founded Pabna Institution (college) in July 1898 and affiliated with the University of Kolkata. [4] It was renamed to Pabna College in 1906 and would later be renamed to Edward College in 1911, after King Edward VII, emperor of India. [2] [4] It would later be affiliated with the University of Rajshahi. [5]
Lahiri served as the principal of Edward College till 1914. [4] He was succeeded by Roy Radhika Nath Bose. [4]
Lahiri died in 1936. After his death, the Pabna Institution' (school) was renamed to Gopalchandra Lahiri Institution. [2] Gopal Chandra Institution High School is one of the oldest high schools in Pabna District. [6] Edward College is the oldest college in Pabna District. [7]
Rajshahi Division is one of the eight first-level administrative divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of 18,174.4 square kilometres (7,017.2 sq mi) and a population at the 2022 Census of 20,353,119. Rajshahi Division consists of 8 districts, 70 Upazilas and 1,092 Unions.
Rajshahi Collegiate School, a public school for boys located in Boalia Thana in the center of Rajshahi, which is a metropolitan city in northern Bangladesh, is the oldest school in the country.
Pabna District is a district in central Bangladesh. It is an economically important district. Its administrative capital is the eponymous Pabna town.
Sirajganj District is a district in the North Bengal region of Bangladesh, located in the Rajshahi Division. It is an economically important district of Bangladesh. Sirajganj district is the 25th largest district by area and 9th largest district by population in Bangladesh. It is known as the gateway to North Bengal.
Malda district, also spelt Maldah or Maldaha, is a district in West Bengal, India. It lies 347 km north of Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal. Mango, jute and silk are the most notable products of this district. The special variety of mango, Fazli, produced in this region is popularly known by the name of the district and is exported across the world and is internationally acclaimed. The folk culture of gombhira is a feature of the district, being a unique way of representation of joy and sorrow in daily life of the common people, as well as the unique medium of presentation on national and international matters. According to the National Investigation Agency Malda is believed to be a hub of a fake currency racket. It is reported that 90 percent of the fake currency that enters India originates in Malda.
Kandi is a sub-divisional city and a municipality in Murshidabad district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Kandi subdivision and is located on the east bank of Kana Mayurakshi River. It is also known as the rice store of Murshidabad district, owing to its large production of rice. It is situated 30 km away from Berhampore, the district headquarter of Murshidabad and approximately 195 km from Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal.
Ullapara is an upazila in Sirajganj District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. It is known as the gateway to North Bengal, since the Dhaka-Rangpur and Dhaka-Rajshahi highways intersect at Hatikumrul in Ullapara.
Rasikendra Nath Nandi a Vaishnav scholar, a social reformer and a zamindar was born in the village named Bhat-bera in district Pabna of undivided Bengal in 1882. As a serious scholar of Vaishnavism, he wrote several manuscripts explaining the Vaishnavism in simple Sanskrit. Apart from his scholarly activities, he established schools for spreading of modern education in Pabna and in Agarpara, where he died in 1962. Rasikendra Nath is one among those unsung stars of Bengal who was forgotten in the midst of political and economic turmoil of Bengal after Indian independence.
Varendra, also known as Barind, was a region of North Bengal, now mostly in Bangladesh and a little portion in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Pabna Textile Engineering College is a government educational institution in Pabna, Bangladesh that offers a bachelor's degree in textile engineering. It is operated by a department of the Ministry of Textiles and Jute, and an affiliated college of the Bangladesh University of Textiles.
Rajanikanta Sen, also known as Kantakobi, was a Bengali poet and composer, known for his devotional (bhakti) compositions, as well as his patriotic songs.
Sarat Kumar Ray (1876–1946) was a member of the royal family of Dighapatia. A noted scholar, he was the son of the Raja (King) Pramathanath Ray and lived in the Maharaja's Palace. Along with historian Ramaprasad Chanda, he co-founded the Varendra Research Museum, which Lord Dundas the Governor of Bengal, inaugurated in November 1919. He was well traveled, and visited England in 1900. He was a friend of Rabindranath Tagore.
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Govt. Edward College, Pabna is one of the oldest colleges in Bangladesh.
A J Mintu is a Bangladeshi film director and screenwriter. He won the Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Director four times and Best Screenplay twice for the films Lalu Mastan (1987), Satya Mithya (1989), Pita Mata Santan (1991), and Banglar Bodhu (1993).
Omar Ali was a Bangladeshi poet. He was awarded Ekushey Padak by the Government of Bangladesh in 2017.
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Acharya Chinmoy Lahiri was an Indian vocalist from Bengal in the Hindustani classical tradition. He is known for the Khayal form of singing, as well as for his popular renditions of Dhrupad, Thumri and Tappa, along with Bengali Raga-pradhan songs.
Aminul Islam Badsha was a Bangladeshi language movement activist and freedom fighter. In recognition of his contribution in the Bengali Language Movement in 1952, the government of Bangladesh awarded him the country's second highest civilian award Ekushey Padak posthumously in 2020.