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Nilphamari, Rangpur

Teesta Barrage

The great barrage of the Teesta irrigation project, spanning the river between Dalia in Nilphamari and Doani in Lalmonirhat — a wide sweep of river, sandbanks and sky.

Local food to try

  • Teesta river fish

    Teesta Barrage

    Small river fish fried or cooked in a light curry at the eateries near the barrage.

  • Shidol bhorta

    Teesta Barrage

    The north’s fermented fish paste with chilli and garlic, with plain rice.

  • Tea and jhalmuri

    Teesta Barrage

    From the stalls by the barrage, especially busy on holiday afternoons.

Where to eat

  • Stalls by the barrage

    Dalia, Dimla

    Simple eateries and tea stalls; for a full meal, Dimla or Nilphamari town has more choice.

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Where to stay

  • Nilphamari or Saidpur

    Nilphamari district

    Most visitors come on a day trip and stay in Nilphamari town or Saidpur.

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History

The Teesta rises in the Sikkim Himalaya, crosses West Bengal and enters Bangladesh in Nilphamari before joining the Brahmaputra in Kurigram. The Teesta Barrage, completed in 1990, holds back its water at Dalia to feed the canals of the Teesta irrigation project, which waters farmland across greater Rangpur.

For visitors the barrage is above all a view: a long line of gates across a river that is a broad blue-grey flood in the monsoon and a braid of channels and pale sandbanks in winter. The far bank, at Doani, is in Lalmonirhat’s Hatibandha upazila.

The flow of the Teesta is shared with India upstream, and how much water reaches the barrage in the dry season is a long-running issue for farmers here — one reason the river is so present in the region’s talk and songs.

Tour plans

A day at the Teesta Barrage

Full day

  1. Step 1: Leave Nilphamari after breakfast

    Take a bus or a hired CNG north through Dimla towards Dalia.

  2. Step 2: Walk along the barrage

    See the gates and the river from the permitted viewpoints, and look out over the canals of the irrigation project.

  3. Step 3: Lunch nearby

    River fish and rice at a local eatery near the barrage or in Dimla.

  4. Step 4: Out to the sandbanks

    In the dry season, walk down to the chars or take a short boat ride with a local boatman, if the river is calm.

  5. Step 5: Sunset and return

    Watch the light fade over the Teesta, then head back to Nilphamari or Saidpur before it is fully dark.

Plan your visit

Best time to visit

October to March for clear skies and walks on the sandbanks; July to September to see the river in full flow

How to get there

North of Nilphamari town via Dimla, roughly 1.5 hours by road. Take a local bus towards Dimla and Dalia, or hire a CNG or car for the day. From Lalmonirhat, the Doani side is reached via Hatibandha.

Travel tips

  • The barrage is a working installation: follow the signs and the instructions of the staff and police on duty, and check locally where visitors may walk.
  • Do not climb on the gates or railings, and keep children close.
  • In the monsoon the current below the barrage is fast and dangerous; never swim or wade there.
  • If you take a boat onto the river, go with an experienced local boatman, wear a life jacket where available, and return before dark.
  • Late afternoon is the best light; carry water and a hat, as there is little shade.

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