Panchagarh, Rangpur
The earthen ramparts and moats of an ancient fortified city north of Panchagarh town, the largest of the “five forts” that gave the district its name.
Bhitargarh is one of the largest ancient fortified sites in Bangladesh: a great enclosure of earthen walls and moats, in places several rings deep, spread across the countryside north of Panchagarh, with its northern edge near the Indian border. Local tradition links it with a king called Prithu Raja, and a large tank inside, the Maharajar Dighi, is still a landmark.
Archaeologists have excavated here since the late 2000s and found brick structures, temple remains and pottery suggesting the city was occupied for many centuries in the first millennium AD, on a trade route between the plains and the Himalayan foothills.
Much of the site is now farmland and villages, so what you see are long green ramparts, old water bodies and excavated pockets rather than standing buildings — a place for those who enjoy imagining the past in the landscape.
Hire a CNG with a driver who knows Bhitargarh.
Walk along a stretch of the earthen walls and moats.
Visit the great tank inside the enclosure.
Ask locally to see where brick foundations have been uncovered.
Return to Panchagarh for lunch.
November to February, when the fields are dry and the ramparts easier to see
About 15 km north of Panchagarh town, in Amarkhana union: 30–40 minutes by CNG or auto-rickshaw. Hire transport for the round trip, as the remains are spread out.
