Known for
- 1
Old Bikrampur.
Munshiganj is the heart of Bikrampur, the seat of the Sena kings and the birthplace of the Buddhist scholar Atish Dipankar. Its later history shows too: Baba Adam's sultanate mosque of 1483, the Mughal water fort at Idrakpur and the towering Shyamsiddhi math.
- 2
The Padma at Mawa.
The Padma bridge starts at Mawa, and the old ferry ghat is still where Dhaka comes to eat fried hilsa by the river. Jagadish Chandra Bose's family home at Rarikhal, now a museum, is nearby in Sreenagar.
Best season
GoodFairNov–Feb
November to February is dry and pleasant for the monuments. Hilsa is best in the monsoon and early autumn (July to October), when the Padma is full and the ghat restaurants fry the fresh catch; in winter the fish there is often frozen.
Getting there
Bus
Dhaka (Gulistan, Jatrabari)
About 1 h to Mawa
By the Dhaka–Mawa expressway; get off at Sreenagar for Rarikhal
Bus
Dhaka
About 1 h to the town
Over the Muktarpur bridge to Munshiganj town, for Idrakpur and Baba Adam
Launch
Dhaka (Sadarghat)
Launches down the Dhaleshwari to Munshiganj
Munshiganj town is about an hour from Dhaka by road via the Muktarpur bridge, or by launch from Sadarghat. For Mawa and Sreenagar take the Dhaka–Mawa expressway; buses from Gulistan and Jatrabari get there in about an hour.
Local food
Fried Padma hilsaMust try
At the Mawa ghat, with the eggs fried alongside
Fried Padma hilsa with rice, lentils and fried hilsa eggs at the Mawa ghat restaurants is the district's best-known meal. Bikrampur is also known for its sweets and for winter khir.
Places to see
Atish Dipankar's Birthplace
The site at Bajrayogini where the Buddhist teacher Atish Dipankar Srijnan was born in the late 10th century, marked by a memorial and a small temple.
Mosque and shrineMd Saiful Islam Khan (Aopu) · CC BY-SA 4.0Baba Adam's Mosque
A six-domed sultanate mosque of 1483 at Qazi Kasba in Rampal, with the grave of the preacher Baba Adam Shahid in its yard.
Fort and palaceNasir8891 · CC BY-SA 3.0Idrakpur Fort
The largest of the three Mughal river forts around Dhaka, built around 1660 in Munshiganj town on what was then the bank of the Ichhamati.
Museum and gallerySabbirAbeir (md sabbir) · CC BY-SA 4.0Jagadish Chandra Bose Memorial Museum
The family home of the scientist Jagadish Chandra Bose at Rarikhal in Sreenagar, kept as a small museum in leafy grounds.
Food spotSarkershuvro · CC BY-SA 4.0Mawa Ghat
The old Padma ferry ghat at the foot of the Padma bridge, where riverside restaurants fry hilsa to order.
Monument and memorialRiads08 · CC BY-SA 4.0Padma Bridge
The road and rail bridge over the Padma from Mawa in Lohajang to the Shariatpur and Madaripur side, opened on 25 June 2022.
Hindu templeMd Saiful Islam Khan (Aopu) · CC BY-SA 4.0Shyamsiddhi Math
An octagonal memorial tower in Sreenagar, about 241 feet tall and some two and a half centuries old, said to be the tallest math in the subcontinent.
Sources 2
Times, fares and opening hours change. Check before you go.
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