Magura Town and the Nabagangaমাগুরা শহর ও নবগঙ্গা

Magura grew up on the Nabaganga. In 1845 it became the first subdivision of Jessore, set up mainly to protect the north of that huge district from Magh river pirates, and in 1984 it became a district of its own. One story says the name comes from mog-ghura, the place where the Maghs were turned back; another links it to a Mundari and Santali word for a water channel. About 114,000 people live in the town today, and its boys' high school dates from 1854.

Walk the river first. About 1 km east of the centre, on the south bank at Satdoha, is Nangta Baba's ashram, and 3 km north at Atharokhada the Siddheshwari Math stands on the Nabaganga too. In town are the Jame Mosque and the Kalibari; at Nijnandualy a Shiva temple built in 1733 by a devotee named Krishnachandra Das still shows its Mughal-period style. Come in November to see Katyayani Puja, which began here in 1950 and now fills the town for five days with lit gates and mandaps, the biggest at Chhana Babur Bot Tola. The Vaina More roundabout, where six roads meet, is the hub for buses to the rest of the district.

Getting there: Buses from Dhaka stop at the Central Bus Terminal, Dhaka Road or Vaina More; rickshaws and easy-bikes go round town.