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Chittagong
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Chittagong is the second-largest city and main seaport of Bangladesh. Situated on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, it is the principle city of Chittagong Division and a major center of commerce and industry in South Asia. The city, under the jurisdiction of the city corporation, has a population of about 2.5 million and is constantly growing.
Nestled between the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Bay of Bengal, Chittagong is considered as Bangladesh's commercial capital and home to the country's major industries.
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Chittagong is the second-largest city and main seaport of Bangladesh. Situated on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, it is the principle city of Chittagong Division and a major center of commerce and industry in South Asia. The city, under the jurisdiction of the city corporation, has a population of about 2.5 million and is constantly growing.
Nestled between the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Bay of Bengal, Chittagong is considered as Bangladesh's commercial capital and home to the country's major industries. Being the country's major seaport, much of Bangladesh's export and import passes through the Port of Chittagong. The port has extensive modern facilities and is expected to be transformed into a world class deep sea port in the coming years in order to cater to the growing economies of the region including that of Bangladesh, eastern India, Nepal, Bhutan, western China and northern Burma. The city has a vibrant economy and a diverse population of Bengalis, Chakma, Burmese, Tripuri, Chinese, Korean and Marma.
Many famous travelers including Ibn Battuta passed through Chittagong. The city had once been a Portuguese colony before Mughal rule. During the British Raj, it became a hot bed for revolutionary activities. During the Second World War, Chittagong served as a major lifeline for Allied forces fighting in Burma. After the Partition of India, the city became a part of East Pakistan. During the Bangladesh Liberation War, Chittagong witnessed some of the heaviest fighting with the Mukti Bahini attacking Pakistani navy ships and the Indian navy firing missiles at Pakistani naval installations. It was in Chittagong where Awami League leader M A Hannan and liberation war hero and future Bangladeshi president Ziaur Rahman famously announced the declaration of indpendence on behalf of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Chittagong was also where the assasination of President Ziaur Rahman had taken place during a failed mutiny.
History
Chittagong has been a seaport since ancient times. Arabs traded with the port from the 9th century AD. The Chittagong region was under the kingdom of Arakan during the sixth and seventh centuries. Before Muslim rule, Chittagong had been either under the control of the Arakans or under the kings of Burma. Sultan Fakruddin Mubarak Shah of Sonargaon conquered Chittagong in 1340. The explorer Ibn Battuta passed through Chittagong during his travels. After the defeat of Sultan Ghyath ud-Din Mahmud Shah at the hands of Sher Shah Suri in 1538, the Arakanese again captured Chittagong. From this time onward until its conquest by the Mughals this region was under the control of the Portuguese and the Magh pirates. The Mughal Commander Umeed Khan expelled the Portuguese from the area in 1666 and established Mughal rule there. The Mughals renamed Chittagong as Islamabad. The city was occupied by Burmese troops shortly in First Anglo-Burmese War in 1824.
During the period 1920-40, Chittagong became the main hub of revolutionary activities against the British Raj. The geographical position of Chittagong, on the south east corner of a vast and scattered empire made it ideal for such clandestine activities. The main mastermind of these these activities was Surya Sen, known to common people simply as 'Masterda'. After some minor attacks on the Raj, the revolutionaries took control of the city on 18 April 1930. The revolutionaries looted the Chittagong armory under the leadership of Masterda. The Indian republic was proclaimed with Surya Sen as the first president. The revolutionaries, however, failed to isolate the city, and reinforcement came quickly to the British. After 3 days the British were once again in control of the city. The revolutionaries were scattered, yet their operations continued. Even after the arrest and execution of Masterda (on Jan 1934), the activities continued. A number of women were also involved. The leaders of the women revolutionaries were Pritilata Waddedar, Bina Das, Lila Ray, and Kalpana Dutta, among others. Finally, during the early 40's, as the battle in the Far East became very intense, Chittagong became a vital component of the defence of British India. The regular presence of British Army and Navy in the city made it difficult for the revolutionaries to carry on their activities. After more than two decades, Chittagong lost its revolutionary character.
In 1971, The Declaration of Independence of Bangladesh was announced from Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra located at Kalurghat, Chittagong.
Freedom Fighters
Against East India Company 1857 Sepoy Mutiny
1930 Against British Empire (Chittagong armoury raid)
Bangladesh Liberation war of 1971
- Kazi Enamul Haque Danu
- Mayor A.B.M Mohiuddin Chowdhury
- MA Hannan
- Johur Ahmed Chowdhury
- Dr. Mahfuz
- Eng. Afsar Uddin Ahmed
- M. Gen. Ibrahim
- Rakhal Chandra Bonik
- Oli Ahmed
- Quazi Abdul Mabood
Geography and climate
Chittagong is located at on the banks of the Karnaphuli River. The City Corporation has a total area of . The city is known for its vast hilly terrain that stretches throughout the entire district and eventually into India. Chittagong does not contain any natural lakes, but it does have artificial lakes.
Hassen Zahid was the most important historical revolution hero from Al rushaid.
Civil administration
Chittagong is a Divisional Headquarters for the Chittagong Division. The Divisional Commissioner is the Highest Ranking Government Official and is the chief coordinator of all 11 Districts. He is assisted with 3 Additional Divisional Commissioners. The Chittagong District has a District Commissioner. The city areas are divided into several wards and mahallas, under the jurisdiction of the Chittagong City Corporation.
People and culture
The people of the city are diverse and multi-ethnic, and the native Bengali and Tibeto-Burman populations have had significant influence from Arab, Afghan, and Mughal traders and settlers, all of whom had travelled in the city after arriving on its shores many hundreds of years ago. There are many Tibeto-Burman tribes that have been influenced by Bengali culture also living there, such as the Chakma people. The descendants of Portuguese settlers, known as the Firingi, also continue to live in Chittagong, as Catholic Christians, in the old Portuguese enclave of Pathor Ghata. Chittagong is home to many of the historic Christians of Bangladesh. In 1927, the city was made the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chittagong.
Chittagong is also home to several of the most renowned universities of Bangladesh, The Asian University for Women (AUW) is a leading new institution of higher learning for talented students from across Asia, Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET), the International Islamic University Chittagong, the Chittagong University, established in 1966, the Chittagong College being notable examples. It also contains many madrasas (Islamic educational centers) within its borders. Hazrat Fate Ali Ra.was a famous saint of Islam, born in Chittagong.
Chittagong is the home town of Dr. Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank, the pioneer of Microcredit, who won Nobel Prize in Peace in 2006
Sports
Though the people of Chittagong show interest in many different sports, the biggest contribution of the city has come in the field of cricket.Specially, during the 80's, when cricket in Bangladesh was very much in the development stages, Chittagong produced national cricketers like, Minhajul Abedin, Nurul Abedin, Akram Khan, Zahid Razzak and many others. In fact at one stage half of the national team came from the port city. Both Minhajul Abedin & Akram Khan went onto lead the national side with great distinction. The Star Club of Chittagong, played a big part in the development of cricket in the region. In recent years, two of the nephews of Akram Khan, Nafees Iqbal & Tamim Iqbal have continued the family and city tradition by wearing the Tiger's colors. Aftab Ahmed is another extremmely popular cricketer from the region. The M.A. Aziz stadium, situated just beside the Circuit House, regularly hosts international matches.
Economy and development
The sea-borne exports consist chiefly of ready made garments, knitwear, frozen food, jute and jute goods, leather and leather products, tea, and chemical products. There is also a large trade by country boats, bringing chiefly cotton, rice, spices, sugar and tobacco. Ship breaking was introduced to the area in 1969. This industry is concentrated at Fauzdarhat, a long beach north-west of Chittagong. Poor environmental standards produce unsafe labour conditions for ship-breaking workers and release dangerous or poisonous substances, such as asbestos and PCBs, into the environment. Chittagong is home to a large number of industries from small to heavy. It has automobile industries, oil refinery, pharmaceutical plants, chemical plants, export processing zones, steel mills etc. The privately owned Korean export processing zone is also located in Chittagong.
The city of Chittagong had been long neglected by the Bangladeshi government, until the turn of the century when exports grew by 21.13% to an all time high of $8.02 billion.. Chittagong is the site of Bangladesh's busiest port which handles 80% of all Bangladeshi imports and exports. The strategic location of the port has allowed for interest by investors to help improve the city. Major business houses such as M.M Ispahani, A.K Khan and Co. , Habib Group, PHP Group, KDS Group , S. Alam Group, Mostafa Group and T.K Group are all residents of Chittagong.
Agrabad is often known as Chittagong's chief commercial region. Several companies such as HSBC and Standard Chartered have offices stationed in the city. Numerous investments have allowed for a construction boom similar to Dhaka. Over the years, scores of hotels, shopping centers, and other modern buildings have sprung up to change the face of the city. Ongoing developments include various multi-story shopping malls and a Chittagong World Trade Centre.
According to CityMayors Statistics Chittagong registered a GDP of $16 billion in 2005 with an annual growth rate of 6.3%. It is estimated that in 2020 the GDP of Chittagong will be $39 billion..
Education
Chittagong is home to only two of the nation's most prominent public universities and is the site of one of Bangladesh's largest universities, the University of Chittagong, established in 1966. The university is located in a remote place from the city (22 km north) of Chittagong. Therefore, it has free shuttle train service from 7:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. for students. There are bus services for the faculty and otherits staffs. With a modest beginning of 4 departments in 1966, the University of Chittagong has grown to 8 individual faculties, 35 departments, 3 institutes and 3 research centres. It has 3 affiliated Medical colleges under the Faculty of Medicine and 1 Veterinary Medicine College under the faculty of Veterinary Medicine. The veterinary medical college has recently been upgraded into a separate University. As such the number of faculties at present is 7. Current student enrollment is more than 15,000.
Another public university is Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology, established in 1968. CUET, with only about 2100 students and 8 academic departments, strongly emphasis in theoretical, applied, and interdisciplinary scientific and technological education. In addition to these, the university undertakes research works sponsored by local industries and national/international organizations, such as United Nations Organizations, Commonwealth Foundation, University Grants Commission, etc. As a center of excellence, CUET is not only continuing as the focal point for the development and dissemination of engineering and technological know-how within the country, but also it is involved to solve complicated practical problems of national importance faced by the planners, engineers and technologists of the country. The University is situated by the side of the Chittagong-Kaptai road some 25 kilometers off from the center of Chittagong City.
Chittagong Government Veterinary College (CGVC) has recently been upgraded to Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University(CVASU), which consists of a faculty with 300 students providing theoretical, out campus work based learning and excellent scientific and technological education. It is the first university in Bangladesh of this type.
Chittagong has also many private universities which contribute to its educational system. Independent University Bangladesh (IUB), International Islamic University Chittagong (IIUC), Primear University, and the University of Science and Technology (USTC) are the top private universities of Chittagong..
Chittagong has public, denominational, and independent schools. Public schools, including preschools, primary and secondary schools, and special schools are administered by the Ministry of Education and Board of Education. Faujdarhat Cadet College, the oldest cadet college of Bangladesh is in Chittagong.
Transport
Transport in Chittagong is similar to that of Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka. There are various bus systems, taxis, and as well as smaller 'baby' or 'CNG' taxis, which are basically tricycle-structured motor vehicles. There are also traditional manual rickshaws, which are very common.
Chittagong has a station on the narrow gauge eastern section of the Bangladesh Railway. The headquarters of this railway are located here. There are main two railway stations in Station road Chittagong. Trains are available traveling to the Bangladeshi cities of Dhaka, Shylhet, Comilla, and Bhairav.
Shah Amanat International Airport serves as Chittagong's international airport. It is the second busiest airport in Bangladesh. It has international service to destinations such as Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Jeddah, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Ras Al Khaimah, Kolkata, Yangon, Muscat, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur. It was formerly known as MA Hannan International Airport, but was renamed on April 2, 2005 by the Government of Bangladesh. Major airlines that serve the airport include Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Best Air, Thai Airways International, GMG Airlines, Air Arabia, RAK Airways, United Airways, Oman Air and Royal Bengal Air.
Chittagonian
Many Chittagong natives speak Chittagonian (?????????? Chatgaić), an Indo-European language of the Eastern Indic group. Many speakers consider their language to be a dialect of standard Bengali, the official language of Bangladesh. However, the two languages are not mutually intelligible, meaning that those who only know how to speak Standard Bengali will not understand Chittagonian speakers, and vice versa - normally the metric for languagehood among linguists. There is, however, a dialect continuum between Chittagonian and neighboring dialects of Bengali, meaning that speakers of each neighboring dialect can largely understand each other, while speakers of more distant dialects cannot. Chittagonian has approximately 14 million speakers.According to the status of Top 100 Languages by Population by Ethnologue, Chittagong ranked in 67th Language of the world.
Sister cities
Kunming, Yunnan, China
See also
External links
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