Meherpur, Khulna

Meherpur

A small border district of mango groves and villages, and the birthplace of the Bangladesh government: the Provisional Government took its oath at Mujibnagar on 17 April 1971.

Local food to try

Sabitri and rosokadamba
Meherpur
Meherpur’s well-known sweets: sabitri, a dense, rich milk sweet, and rosokadamba, a round sweet with a grainy sugar coating. Ask at the town’s sweet shops.
Mangoes
Meherpur
From the district’s groves in early summer, roughly May and June.
Date-palm gur
Meherpur
In winter, patali and jhola gur from the villages.

Where to eat

Meherpur town centre
Meherpur town
Simple restaurants and sweet shops around the main bazaar and bus stand.
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Stalls at Mujibnagar
Mujibnagar
Tea, snacks and simple meals outside the memorial complex.
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Where to stay

Meherpur town
Meherpur Sadar
A few simple hotels in the centre, close to the bus stand.
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Government guest houses at Mujibnagar
Mujibnagar
There is government accommodation near the complex; availability and booking rules vary, so check locally.
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Kushtia or Chuadanga as a base
Kushtia, Chuadanga
Both have more hotels and are close enough for a day trip to Mujibnagar.
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Culture

Meherpur’s identity is bound up with Mujibnagar and 1971. Every year on 17 April, Mujibnagar Day is marked at the memorial with a state ceremony, a guard of honour and cultural programmes, and the area fills with visitors.

Folk music: like the rest of the old Nadia country, Meherpur shares in the Baul and folk-song tradition associated with Lalon Shah.
Mangoes: mango groves surround the villages — the oath itself was taken in one — and the fruit ripens in early summer.
Indigo history: the neelkuthi at Amjhupi recalls the indigo planters and the peasants’ resistance to them in the 19th century.

History

Meherpur lies on the far western edge of Bangladesh, bordering India’s West Bengal, in the old Nadia country. It was a subdivision of Kushtia until it became a district in 1984. In the 19th century indigo planters worked the land here, and their neelkuthi at Amjhupi still stands.

Its great moment came in 1971. On 17 April, in a mango grove at Baidyanathtala, the Provisional Government of Bangladesh was sworn in, with Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as President in his absence, Syed Nazrul Islam as Acting President and Tajuddin Ahmad as Prime Minister. The place was renamed Mujibnagar, and the government that led the Liberation War became known as the Mujibnagar Government.

Today Meherpur is a quiet, rural district. The Mujibnagar Memorial Complex draws visitors from across the country, especially on 17 April.

Plan your visit

Best time to visit

November to March; 17 April for Mujibnagar Day; May–June for the mango season

How to get there

By bus from Dhaka: about 6–8 hours, with day and night buses to Meherpur town, usually via Kushtia or Chuadanga; some run on to Mujibnagar.
From nearby cities: buses from Kushtia (about 1.5–2 hours) and Chuadanga (about 1 hour).
By train: there is no railway in Meherpur; the nearest stations are Chuadanga and Darshana, from where you continue by bus or CNG.

Getting around

Meherpur town is small; rickshaws and battery auto-rickshaws cover it easily.
For Mujibnagar and Amjhupi, take a local bus or hire a CNG; one CNG for half a day can cover both.
Roads are rural and quiet, but transport thins out after dark, so plan to return by evening.

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