Mohastan Gor

Mohastan Gor is really an interesting & historical place in Bangladesh.

It is seven miles away from the district town of Bogra. It has the relics of the ancient culture, Mazar, old buildings etc. There runs the river Karotoa nearby. So, it offers very charming sceneries together with the murmuring sound of the Karotoa. There is the Mazar Sharif of Balki Sultan who dedicated his life to the cause of Islam. It was during thereign of king Parsuram. The Sultan came from ‘Balkan’ to preach Islam. It was the order of Allah. He gradually won the heart of the people & defeated Parsuram.

Now, the Mazar Sharif is visited by thousands of Muslims everyday. There are ‘Zeut Kunda’ & ‘the Museum’ in Mohastan Garh. When the soldiers of Parsuram had been killed in the battle field, the king took water from the pucka well & used to give it on the body of the dead soldiers. As a result, they got back their lives again. So, it was named ‘Zeut Kunda’. Now, there is no wonderful magic power of that so called ‘Zeut Kunda’. There the Museum behind a beautiful flower garden is a soundless evidence of historical & archaeological signs of Mohastan Garh. At Mohastan Garh, the other historical places are the Bridal chamber of Behula & Laxmindar, the Seladevir Ghat & the burial place of the chief disciple of Balkan Sultan.

A thing of beauty is a joy forever. I believe that tourists must feel delighted to see the historical places & sceneries at Mohastan Garh & I hope that the memory of this traveling will last for long.

Jamuna Bridge

Jamuna Bridge is the largest Bridge in Bangladesh and the 11th longest bridge in the world.It is constructed over the river jamuna, mightiest of the three major rivers of Bangladesh, and fifth largest in the world in terms of volumetric discharge. The bridge established a strategic link between the eastern and western parts of Bangladesh. It generates multifarious benefits for the people and especially,promotes inter-regional trade in the country. Apart from quick movement of goods and passenger traffic by road and rail, it facilitated transmission of electricity and natural gas, and integration of telecommunication links.

The bridge was constructed at a cost of $962 million. The cost of construction was shared by IDA, ADB, OECF of Japan, and the government of Bangladesh. Of the total, IDA, ADB and OECF supplied 22% each, and the remaining 34% was borne by Bangladesh. The components of the project's cost were: bridge and viaducts - $269 million (28%); river training works - $323 million (35%); roads and embankments - $71 million (7%); consultancy - $33 million (3%); land, resettlement and environment - $67 million (7%); establishment - $13 million (1%) and others - $186 million (19%).

Considering the fact that the width of the main channel does not exceed 3.5 km, and after making allowances for Floods, a bridge length of 5 km was considered adequate. In October 1995, one year after the commencement of physical work of the bridge, a bridge length of 4.8 km, instead of a flood-width of the river at 14 km, was finalised. This narrowing was essential to keep the overall project cost within economic viability. It has, however, required considerable river training work to keep the river under the bridge.

To withstand predicted scourge and possible EarthQuack, the bridge is supported on 80-85 m long and 2.5 m and 3.15 m diameter steel piles, which were driven by powerful (240-ton) hydraulic hammer. The superstructure of the bridge is pre-cast segments erected by the balanced cantilever method. Basic features of the bridge are: length (main part) - 4.8 km; width - 18.5 metre; spans - 49; deck segments - 1263; piles - 121; piers - 50; road lanes - 4; railway tracks - 2.

Niribili

A confirmed bachelor, Sultan settled down in an abandoned building in Narail overlooking the river Chitra, where he lived ever since with an adopted family and pets of his own including dogs, mongoose and monkeys. Sultan would later build a mini-zoo near his home. Apart from occasional visits to Dhaka, the capital, Sultan only once left Narail for any substantial period of time. He became interested in a ruined house in Sonargaon, pretty much like his own home in Narail, and lived there for a period.