Joypurhat, Rajshahi
The weathered ruins of an old zamindar palace in the fields of Panchbibi, close to the Indian border — a favourite picnic spot for the district.
Lakma Rajbari was the seat of a local zamindar family, one of the many landed houses that ruled estates across North Bengal until the zamindari system ended in the 1950s. What remains is a large brick mansion of several storeys, its rooms open to the sky, with outbuildings and a pond nearby.
Little of its decoration has survived, and the details of its builders are told differently by different people in the area. Its appeal today is the setting: a lonely old palace among trees and fields, a short way from the border.
On winter holidays it fills with picnic groups from Joypurhat and around; on an ordinary weekday it is quiet.
Leave in the morning by bus or CNG.
Ride out through the villages and fields towards the border.
Walk around the mansion and the pond, keeping off the unsafe upper floors.
Eat at the bazar, then head back to Joypurhat.
November to February; weekdays if you want it quiet
Take a bus or CNG from Joypurhat to Panchbibi (around 30 minutes), then an auto-rickshaw to Lakma; drivers know the Rajbari. The last stretch is on village roads near the border, so check locally before setting out.
