View source for Place:Dhaka

{{Short description|Capital and largest city of Bangladesh}}
{{Infobox settlement  
<!-- Basic info -->
| name               = Dhaka
| settlement_type    = Megacity
| official_name      = 
| native_name        = ঢাকা
| other_name         = Dacca
| nickname           = ''The Venice of the East''<ref>{{cite news|last=Imam|first=Shah Husain|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/pleasure-all-mine/dhaka-where-will-it-go-here-1607983|title=Dhaka: Where will it go from here?|date=20 July 2018|work=The Daily Star|type=Opinion|access-date=2 March 2022|quote=Dhaka, once the Venice of the East by virtue of being surrounded by four ebullient rivers, is now an urban behemoth.|archive-date=2 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230302210152/https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/pleasure-all-mine/dhaka-where-will-it-go-here-1607983|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/climate-change/2019/12/10/the-tales-of-urban-street-children-is-there-anything-we-could-do |title=The tales of urban street children:Is there anything we could do? |work=Dhaka Tribune |date=10 December 2019 |access-date=2 April 2021 |archive-date=1 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210801075352/https://www.dhakatribune.com/climate-change/2019/12/10/the-tales-of-urban-street-children-is-there-anything-we-could-do |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/my-dhaka/are-we-willing-know-more-dhaka-1570981 |title=Are we willing to know more of Dhaka? |work=The Daily Star |date=4 May 2018 |access-date=2 April 2021 |archive-date=3 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210803010913/https://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/my-dhaka/are-we-willing-know-more-dhaka-1570981 |url-status=live }}</ref><br />''City of Mosques''
| image_flag         = <!--Flag of Dhaka.svg-->
| flag_size          = 150px
| image_caption      = 
| image_skyline      = {{Multiple image
| border      = infobox
| total_width = 300 
| image_style = 
| caption_align = center
| perrow      = 1/2/2/1
| image1      = Bangladesh Bank (33398162476).jpg
| caption1    = Skyline of Motijheel
| image2      = National Assembly of Bangladesh (10).jpg
| caption2    = Sangsad Bhaban
| image3      = Titu Oheduzzaman Ahsan Manzil 001.jpg
| caption3    = Ahsan Manzil in Old Dhaka
| image4      = Lalbag Fort Front.jpg
| caption4    = Lalbagh Fort
| image5      = Curzon hall front.jpg
| caption5    = Curzon Hall of the University of Dhaka
| image6      = 1. স্বাধীনতা স্তম্ভ.jpg
| caption6    = Independence Monument in Suhrawardy Udyan
 }}
| image_seal         = 
| shield_size        = 
| motto              = 
| image_map          = 
| mapsize            = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|zoom=8|type=shape-inverse|stroke-width=2|stroke-color=#5f5f5f}}
| map_caption        = 
| pushpin_map        = Bangladesh Dhaka#Bangladesh Dhaka division#Bangladesh#Asia#Earth
| pushpin_label_position = right
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Dhaka##Location in Dhaka Division##Location in Bangladesh##Location in Asia##Location in Earth
| coordinates        = {{Coord|23|45|50|N|90|23|20|E|region:BD-13|display=it}}
<!-- Politics ----------------->
| subdivision_type   = [[Earth:List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = Bangladesh
| subdivision_type1  = Division
| subdivision_name1  = Dhaka Division
| subdivision_type2  = District
| subdivision_name2  = Dhaka District
| established_title  = Establishment
| established_date   = {{Start date and age|df=y|1608|p=y}}
| established_title2 = 
| established_date2  = 
| established_title3 = <!-- Incorporated (city) -->
| established_date3  = 
| government_type    = Mayor–council
| governing_body     = {{nowrap|DNCC and DSCC}}
| government_footnotes = 
| leader_title       = Mayor of North Dhaka
| leader_name        = Atiqul Islam<ref name="unofficially">{{cite news |title=Hasan Mahmud states 3 reasons behind low voter turnout |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/dhaka-city-elections-2020/news/hasan-mahmud-states-3-reasons-behind-low-voter-turnout-1862512 |work=The Daily Star |agency=UNB |date=2 February 2020 |access-date=2 February 2020 |archive-date=2 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200202132114/https://www.thedailystar.net/dhaka-city-elections-2020/news/hasan-mahmud-states-3-reasons-behind-low-voter-turnout-1862512 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| leader_title1      = Mayor of South Dhaka
| leader_name1       = Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh<ref name="unofficially" />
| leader_title2      = Police Commissioner
| leader_name2       = Habibur Rahman
<!-- Area --------------------->
| area_total_km2     = 270<!-- The Daily Star wrote it would be 127.63 + 178.75 = 306.38 *if approved* by NICAR, bdnews24.com wrote 2 days later that what NICAR approved was 270 sq km -->
| area_land_km2      = 
| area_water_km2     = 
| area_urban_km2     = 
| area_metro_km2     = 1600<ref name="wikimapia.org">{{cite web |url=http://wikimapia.org/26768999/Dhaka-Metropolitan-City-Area |title=Dhaka Metropolitan City Area |access-date=29 September 2017 |archive-date=29 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170929093019/http://wikimapia.org/26768999/Dhaka-Metropolitan-City-Area |url-status=live}}</ref>
| area_metro_sq_mi   = 618<ref name="wikimapia.org"/>
| area_footnotes     = <ref>{{cite news |author1=Partha Pratim Bhattacharjee |author2=Mahbubur Rahman Khan |date=7 May 2016 |title=Govt to double size of Dhaka city area |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/govt-double-size-dhaka-city-area-1219972 |newspaper=The Daily Star |access-date=1 March 2017 |archive-date=2 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170302025916/http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/govt-double-size-dhaka-city-area-1219972 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Dhaka City expands by more than double after inclusion of 16 union councils |url=http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2016/05/09/dhaka-city-expands-by-more-than-double-after-inclusion-of-16-union-councils |newspaper=bdnews24.com |date=9 May 2016 |access-date=1 March 2017 |archive-date=2 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170302025316/http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2016/05/09/dhaka-city-expands-by-more-than-double-after-inclusion-of-16-union-councils |url-status=live}}</ref>
| elevation_m        = 32
| elevation_ft       = 104.96
| elevation_footnotes = <ref name="Elevation of Dhaka">{{cite web|url=http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/maps/map_city_dhaka.html|title=Dhaka, Bangladesh Map|work=National Geographic|access-date=6 September 2009|archive-date=7 January 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100107084813/http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/maps/map_city_dhaka.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
<!-- Population ----------------------->
| population_total   = 10,278,882
| population_as_of   = 2022
| population_footnotes = <ref>{{cite web |title=Dhaka (Bangladesh): City Districts and Subdistricts - Population Statistics, Charts and Map |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/bangladesh/dhaka/ |access-date=19 January 2022 |website=City Population |archive-date=3 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190203120015/http://www.citypopulation.de/php/bangladesh-dhaka.php |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="dhakapop1">{{cite web |url=http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/National%20Reports/Union%20Statistics.pdf |title=Population & Housing Census-2011 |publisher=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics |page=41 |access-date=15 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208044832/http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/National%20Reports/Union%20Statistics.pdf |archive-date=8 December 2015}}</ref>
| population_rank    = 1st
| population_metro   = 22,478,116
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_density_metro_km2 = auto
| population_metro_footnotes = 
| population_demonym = Dhakaiya, Dhakaites
| population_blank1_footnotes = <ref>{{cite web|title=Evolving Urban Form: Dhaka &#124; Newgeography.com|url=http://www.newgeography.com/content/003004-evolving-urban-form-dhaka|access-date=19 January 2022|website=www.newgeography.com|archive-date=11 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130611103831/http://www.newgeography.com/content/003004-evolving-urban-form-dhaka|url-status=live}}</ref>
| population_blank2_footnotes = <ref name="District Statistics 2011, Dhaka">{{cite web|url=http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/District%20Statistics/Dhaka.pdf|title=District Statistics 2011, Dhaka|publisher=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics|date=December 2013|access-date=14 May 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150424233706/http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/District%20Statistics/Dhaka.pdf|archive-date=24 April 2015}}</ref>
<!-- General information --------------->
| unit_pref          = Metric
| utc_offset         = +06:00
| timezone           = [[Bangladesh Standard Time|BST]]
| postal_code_type   = Postal code
| postal_code        = 1000, 1100, 12xx, 13xx
| registration_plate = DHAKA-D-11-9999""111
| blank_name         = [[Telephone numbering plan|National calling code]]
| blank_info         = +088
| blank1_name        = [[Telephone numbering plan|Calling code]]
| blank1_info        = +880-2 (for Dhaka City only)
| blank2_name        = Police
| blank2_info        = Dhaka Metropolitan Police
| blank3_name        = International airport
| blank3_info        = Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport
| blank4_name        = [[ISO 3166-2:BD|ISO 3166-2]]
| blank4_info        = BD-13
| blank_name_sec1    = [[Engineering:Human Development Index|HDI]] (2021)
| blank_info_sec1    = 0.745<ref name="GlobalDataLab">{{Cite web|url=https://globaldatalab.org/shdi/table/shdi/BGD/?levels=1+4&years=2021&interpolation=0&extrapolation=0|title=Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab|website=hdi.globaldatalab.org|language=en|access-date=2023-02-08|archive-date=8 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208072227/https://globaldatalab.org/shdi/table/shdi/BGD/?levels=1+4&years=2021&interpolation=0&extrapolation=0|url-status=live}}</ref><br/>{{color|#093|high}} · 1st of 20
| blank1_name_sec2   = Metro [[Finance:Gross domestic product|GDP 2023]] (Market XR)
| blank1_info_sec2   = $95 billion (per capita $4,018)
| blank2_name_sec2   = Metro [[Finance:Gross domestic product|GDP 2023]] ([[Finance:Purchasing power parity|PPP]])
| blank2_info_sec2   = $316 billion (per capita  $13,614)<ref name="tellusant.com">{{cite web|title=TelluBase: Dhaka Extract|url=https://www.tellusant.com/repo/23/tellusant_factsheet_dhaka.pdf|website=tellusant.com|access-date=1 June 2023|archive-date=3 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230603211713/https://www.tellusant.com/repo/23/tellusant_factsheet_dhaka.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
| blank4_name_sec1   = Rapid Transit
| blank4_info_sec1   = Dhaka Metro Rail
| website           = {{URL|https://www.dncc.gov.bd|dncc.bd}} (North Dhaka)<br />{{URL|https://dscc.gov.bd|dscc.bd}} (South Dhaka)
| footnotes          = {{designation list | embed = yes
| designation1            = WHS
| designation1_offname    = Mangal Shobhajatra on Pahela Baishakh
| designation1_date       = 2016 <ref>{{cite news |date=16 December 2021 |title=Pahela Baishakh Mangal Shobhajatra now a UNESCO Heritage |work=The Daily Observer |url=https://observerbd.com/details.php?id=46270 |access-date=26 November 2023 |archive-date=26 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126132723/https://observerbd.com/details.php?id=46270 |url-status=live }}</ref> <small>(11th [[Social:Intangible cultural heritage|session]])</small>
| designation1_type       = Cultural
| designation1_criteria   =
| designation1_number     = [https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/mangal-shobhajatra-on-pahela-baishakh-01091]
| designation1_free1name  = Region
| designation1_free1value = Southern Asia
| designation1_free3name  = Notability 
| designation1_free3value = "Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" category
}}
}}

'''Dhaka''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ɑː|k|ə}} {{respell|DAH|kə}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|æ|k|ə}} {{respell|DAK|ə}}; {{lang-bn|ঢাকা|Ḍhākā}}, {{IPA-bn|ˈɖʱaka|IPA}}), formerly known as '''Dacca''',<ref name="Choguill2012">{{cite book |last=Choguill |first=C.L. |title=New Communities for Urban Squatters: Lessons from the Plan That Failed in Dhaka, Bangladesh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slvlBwAAQBAJ&pg=PR8 |year=2012 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-1-4613-1863-7 |page=viii |access-date=10 July 2016 |archive-date=5 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200605175215/https://books.google.com/books?id=slvlBwAAQBAJ&pg=PR8 |url-status=live}}</ref> is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh. It is the ninth-largest and seventh-most densely populated city in the world. Dhaka is a megacity, and has a population of 10.2 million residents as of 2022, and a population of over 22.4 million residents in Dhaka Metropolitan Area.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2022/01/14/dhaka-ranks-worlds-sixth-most-populous-city |title=Dhaka ranks world's sixth most populous city |date=2022-01-14 |access-date=2023-01-15 |work=Dhaka Tribune |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230115041503/https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2023/01/12/dengue-18-more-patients-hospitalized-in-24hrs |archive-date=2023-01-15 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Population & Housing Census-2011 |volume=2: Union Statistics |url=http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/National%20Reports/Union%20Statistics.pdf |website=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208044832/http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/National%20Reports/Union%20Statistics.pdf |archive-date=8 December 2015 |access-date=17 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-world-s-most-densely-populated-cities.html |title=The World's Most Densely Populated Cities |website=WorldAtlas |date=4 October 2020 |access-date=11 March 2022 |archive-date=19 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319082523/https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-world-s-most-densely-populated-cities.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It is widely considered to be the most densely populated built-up [[Engineering:Urban area|urban area]] in the world.<ref>{{cite conference |title=Demographia World Urban Areas 17th Annual Edition: 202106 |url=http://www.demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf |conference=Demographia |publisher=Demographia |access-date=2 February 2022 |archive-date=3 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180503021711/http://www.demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Ferreira 2021">{{cite web |last=Ferreira |first=Luana |title=Here's How Many People Live In The Most Densely Populated City On Earth |website=Grunge.com |date=3 September 2021 |url=https://www.grunge.com/594981/heres-how-many-people-live-in-the-most-densely-populated-city-on-earth/ |access-date=2 February 2022 |archive-date=2 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202202931/https://www.grunge.com/594981/heres-how-many-people-live-in-the-most-densely-populated-city-on-earth/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Dhaka is the most important cultural, economic, and scientific hub of Eastern South Asia, as well as a major Muslim-majority city. Dhaka ranks third in South Asia and 39th in the world in terms of GDP. Lying on the Ganges Delta, it is bounded by the Buriganga, Turag, Dhaleshwari and Shitalakshya rivers. Dhaka is also the largest [[Social:Bengali language|Bengali-speaking]] city in the world.

The area of Dhaka has been inhabited since the first millennium. An [[History:Early modern period|early modern]] city developed from the 17th century as a provincial capital and commercial centre of the Mughal Empire. Dhaka was the capital of a [[Finance:Proto-industrialization|proto-industrialised]] Mughal Bengal for 75 years (1608–39 and 1660–1704). It was the hub of the muslin trade in Bengal and one of the most prosperous cities in the world. The Mughal city was named Jahangirnagar (''The City of Jahangir'') in honour of the erstwhile ruling emperor Jahangir.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.thedailystar.net/forum/2008/august/jahangirnagar.htm |title=From Jahangirnagar to Dhaka |magazine=Forum |publisher=The Daily Star |date= |access-date=4 March 2022 |archive-date=8 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408174313/https://archive.thedailystar.net/forum/2008/august/jahangirnagar.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Islam_Khan_Chisti |title=Islam Khan Chisti |website=Banglapedia |date=18 June 2021 |access-date=4 March 2022 |archive-date=4 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304054550/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Islam_Khan_Chisti |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite thesis |last=Khondker |first=Kamrun Nessa |date=December 2012 |title=Mughal River Forts in Bangladesh (1575-1688): An Archaeological Appraisal |type=PhD |publisher=School of History, Archaeology and Religion, Cardiff University |url=https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/46748/1/2013khondkerknmphil.pdf |access-date=4 March 2022 |archive-date=4 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304054600/https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/46748/1/2013khondkerknmphil.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The city's wealthy Mughal elite included princes and the sons of Mughal emperors. The pre-colonial city's glory peaked in the 17th and 18th centuries when it was home to merchants from across [[Earth:Eurasia|Eurasia]]. The Port of Dhaka was a major trading post for both riverine and seaborne trade. The Mughals decorated the city with well-laid gardens, tombs, mosques, palaces, and forts. The city was once called the ''Venice of the East''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hough |first=Michael |year=2004 |orig-year=First published 1995 |title=Cities and Natural Process: A Basis for Sustainability |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pj8cderhbr8C&pg=PA57 |edition=2nd |publisher=Psychology Press |page=57 |isbn=978-0-415-29854-4 |access-date=26 August 2017}}</ref> Under [[History:British Raj|British rule]], the city saw the introduction of [[Physics:Electricity|electricity]], railways, cinemas, Western-style universities and colleges and a modern water supply. It became an important administrative and educational centre in the British Raj, as the capital of Eastern Bengal and Assam province after 1905.<ref name=dani>{{Cite book |last=Dani |first=Ahmad Hasan |year=1962 |orig-year=First published 1956 |title=Dacca: A record of its changing fortunes |edition=2nd |publisher=Mrs. Safiya S. Dani |pages=98, 118–119, 126 |oclc=987755973}}</ref> In 1947, after the end of British rule, the city became the administrative capital of East Pakistan. It was declared the legislative capital of Pakistan in 1962. In 1971, after the Liberation War, it became the capital of independent Bangladesh. In 2008, Dhaka celebrated 400 years as a municipal city.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{cite news |title=400 years of Dhaka |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-65599 |work=The Daily Star |date=1 December 2008 |type=Editorial |access-date=18 December 2022 |archive-date=18 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218092154/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-65599 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="voabangla.com">{{cite news |title=Bangladesh CA Inaugurates Three-year Gala Celebrations of 400 Anniversary of Dhaka |url=https://www.voabangla.com/a/a-16-2008-11-28-voa6-94432729/1396287.html |work=VOA Bangla |date=28 November 2008 |access-date=18 December 2022 |archive-date=18 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218090654/https://www.voabangla.com/a/a-16-2008-11-28-voa6-94432729/1396287.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="ReferenceC">{{cite book |last= |first= |year=2011 |title=400 Years of Capital Dhaka and Beyond: Economy and culture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dYchNAEACAAJ |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |volume=2 |page= |isbn=9789845120128 |access-date=29 January 2023 |archive-date=11 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211094349/https://books.google.com/books?id=dYchNAEACAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref>

A [[Global city|beta-global city]],<ref>{{cite web |title=The World According to GaWC 2020 |url=https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2020t.html |website=GaWC - Research Network |publisher=Globalization and World Cities |access-date=31 August 2020 |archive-date=24 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200824031341/https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2020t.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Dhaka is the centre of political, economic and cultural life in Bangladesh. It is the seat of the Government of Bangladesh, many Bangladeshi companies, and leading Bangladeshi educational, scientific, research, and cultural organizations. Since its establishment as a modern capital city, the population, area and social and economic diversity of Dhaka have grown tremendously. The city is now one of the most densely industrialized regions in the country. The city accounts for 35% of Bangladesh's economy.<ref name="Rezaul Karim" /> The Dhaka Stock Exchange has over 750 listed companies. Dhaka hosts over 50 diplomatic missions as well as the headquarters of BIMSTEC, CIRDAP, and the [[Organization:International Jute Study Group|International Jute Study Group]]. Dhaka has a renowned culinary heritage. The city's culture is known for its rickshaws, kacchi biryani, art festivals, and religious diversity. Dhaka's most prominent architectural landmark is the modernist Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban; while it has a heritage of 2000 buildings from the Mughal and British periods.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/living-there-no-past-1758094|title=Living like there is no past|date=17 June 2019|website=The Daily Star|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=21 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230821221037/https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/living-there-no-past-1758094|url-status=live}}</ref> The city is associated with two Nobel laureates. Its annual Bengali New Year celebrations are known for being widely colourful and artistic, which was recognized by UNESCO for its importance to world heritage.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/mangal-shobhajatra-on-pahela-baishakh-01091|title=UNESCO - Mangal Shobhajatra on Pahela Baishakh|website=ich.unesco.org|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=8 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170508054516/http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/RL/mangal-shobhajatra-on-pahela-baishakh-01091|url-status=live}}</ref> Dhaka has produced many writers and poets in several languages, especially in Bengali and English.

== Etymology ==
The origins of the name Dhaka are uncertain. It may derive from the ''[[Biology:Butea monosperma|dhak]]'' tree, which was once common in the area, or from Dhakeshwari, the 'patron goddess' of the region.<ref name=britannicaetymology>{{cite encyclopaedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Dhaka |title=Dhaka |encyclopaedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica |date=26 June 2023 |quote=Dhaka's name is said to refer to the dhak tree, once common in the area, or to Dhakeshwari (“The Hidden Goddess”), whose shrine is located in the western part of the city. |access-date=11 February 2018 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010143325/https://www.britannica.com/place/Dhaka |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=dailystaretym>{{cite news |last=Ayan |first=Anindya J. |title=History of Dhaka's origin |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/video-stories/watch-glimpse-the-history-dhakas-origin-208639?amp |work=The Daily Star |date=28 January 2018 |access-date=15 April 2023 |quote=In history, it is often believed that Raja Ballal Sen of the Sen Dynasty of Bengal founded the Dhakeshwari Temple in the 12th century to mark the place of his birth and to pay tribute to the patron goddess of this region. The name Dhaka is believed to have originated from Dhakeshwari in the same way Athens got its name from Athena, the patron goddess of the Greek city. |archive-date=15 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230415135035/https://www.thedailystar.net/video-stories/watch-glimpse-the-history-dhakas-origin-208639?amp |url-status=live }}</ref> Another popular theory states that Dhaka refers to a [[Engineering:Membranophone|membranophone]] instrument, ''dhak'' which was played by order of Subahdar Islam Khan I during the inauguration of the Bengal capital in 1610.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Islam_Khan_Chisti|website=[[Banglapedia]]|title=Islam Khan Chisti|access-date=4 February 2013|archive-date=2 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150202002132/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Islam_Khan_Chisti|url-status=live}}</ref>

Some references also say it was derived from a [[Social:Prakrit|Prakrit]] dialect called Dhaka Bhasa; or Dhakka, used in the Rajtarangini for a watch station; or it is the same as Davaka, mentioned in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta as an eastern frontier kingdom.<ref name="banglapedia">{{cite web |last=Chowdhury |first=A.M. |website=Banglapedia |date=23 April 2007 |url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Dhaka |title=Dhaka |access-date=23 April 2007 |archive-date=16 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516050956/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Dhaka |url-status=live}}</ref> According to [[Religion:Rajatarangini|Rajatarangini]] written by a Kashmiri Brahman, Kalhana,<ref name="Mamoon 2010">{{cite book |last=Mamoon |first=Muntassir |year=2010 |orig-year=First published 1993 |title=Dhaka: Smiriti Bismiritir Nogori |publisher=Anannya |page=94}}</ref> the region was originally known as ''Dhakka''. The word ''Dhakka'' means ''watchtower''. [[Place:Bikrampur|Bikrampur]] and Sonargaon—the earlier strongholds of Bengal rulers were situated nearby. So Dhaka was most likely used as the watchtower for fortification purpose.<ref name="Mamoon 2010" />

==History==
{{For timeline}}
[[File:Map of Bengal, Behar, Orissa 1813.jpg|thumb|Dhaka was the capital of the Mughal province of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa]]

===Pre-Mughal===
The history of urban settlements in the area of modern-day Dhaka dates to the first millennium.<ref name="Britannica-Dhaka">{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/160598/Dhaka|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|title=Dhaka|access-date=4 February 2013|archive-date=16 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116092341/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/160598/Dhaka|url-status=live}}</ref> The region was part of the ancient district of [[Place:Bikrampur|Bikrampur]], which was ruled by the Sena dynasty.<ref>{{cite web |author=Dhaka City Corporation |date=5 September 2006 |url=http://www.dhakacity.org/his_pre_mughal.html |title=Pre-Mughal Dhaka (before 1608) |access-date=1 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410184215/http://www.dhakacity.org/his_pre_mughal.html |archive-date=10 April 2008}}</ref> Under Islamic rule, it became part of the historic district of Sonargaon, the regional administrative hub of the [[History:Delhi Sultanate|Delhi]] and the Bengal Sultanates.<ref name="archive.thedailystar.net">{{cite news |title=From Jahangirnagar to Dhaka |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/forum/2008/august/jahangirnagar.htm |url-status=live |department=Forum |work=The Daily Star |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208123832/http://archive.thedailystar.net/forum/2008/august/jahangirnagar.htm |archive-date=8 February 2015 |access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref> The Grand Trunk Road passed through the region, connecting it with North India, Central Asia and the southeastern port city of Chittagong. Before Dhaka, the capital of Bengal was Gour. Even earlier capitals included Pandua, Bikrampur and Sonargaon. The latter was also the seat of Isa Khan and his son Musa Khan, who both headed a confederation of twelve chieftains that resisted Mughal expansion in eastern Bengal during the late 16th century. Due to a change in the course of the Ganges, the strategic importance of Gour was lost. Dhaka was viewed with strategic importance due to the Mughal need to consolidate control in eastern Bengal. The Mughals also planned to extend their empire beyond into Assam and Arakan. Dhaka and Chittagong became the eastern frontiers of the Mughal Empire.

===Early period of Mughal Bengal===
[[File:Lalbagh Kella (Lalbagh Fort) Dhaka Bangladesh 2011 54.JPG|thumb|left|upright|Ruins of Lalbagh Fort]]
[[File:Asiatic Society Heritage Museum.jpg|thumb|Nimtali arch]]
[[File:Muslin men.jpg|thumb|Prince Dara Shikoh and another man wearing muslin robes]]
[[File:Renaldis muslin woman.jpg|thumb|Woman draped in muslin and holding a hookah in Dhaka in 1789]]
Dhaka became the capital of the Mughal province of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa in 1610 with a jurisdiction covering modern-day Bangladesh and eastern India, including the modern-day Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. This province was known as Bengal Subah. The city was founded during the reign of Emperor Jahangir. Emperor [[Biography:Shah Jahan|Shah Jahan]] visited Dhaka in 1624 and stayed in the city for a week, four years before he became emperor in 1628.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thedailystar.net/my-dhaka/news/shah-jahans-dhaka-visit-he-became-the-mughal-emperor-3413231 | title=Shah Jahan's Dhaka visit before he became the Mughal emperor | date=7 September 2023 | access-date=8 September 2023 | archive-date=8 September 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230908153928/https://www.thedailystar.net/my-dhaka/news/shah-jahans-dhaka-visit-he-became-the-mughal-emperor-3413231 | url-status=live }}</ref> Dhaka became one of the richest and greatest cities in the world during the early period of Bengal Subah (1610-1717). The prosperity of Dhaka reached its peak during the administration of governor Shaista Khan (1644-1677 and 1680–1688). Rice was then sold at eight maunds per rupee. Thomas Bowrey, an English merchant sailor who visited the city between 1669 and 1670, wrote that the city was 40 miles in circuit. He estimated the city to be more populated than [[Place:London|London]] with 900,000 people.<ref>Historical Background for the Establishment of Naib-Nazimship (Deputy Governorship for the four Divisions of Subah Bangla), ''Asiatic Society of Bangladesh''</ref>

Bengal became the economic engine of the Mughal Empire. Dhaka played a key role in the proto-industrialisation of Bengal. It was the centre of the muslin trade in Bengal, leading to muslin being called "daka" in distant markets as far away as [[Place:Central Asia|Central Asia]].<ref>Richard Maxwell Eaton (1996), The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204-1760, page 202, University of California Press</ref> Mughal India depended on Bengali products like rice, silk and cotton textiles. European East India Companies from Britain, Holland, France, and Denmark also depended on Bengali products. Bengal accounted for 40% of Dutch imports from Asia, with many products being sold to Dutch ships in Bengali harbours and then transported to Batavia in the Dutch East Indies. Bengal accounted for 50% of textiles and 80% of silks in Dutch textile imports from Asia.<ref>Om Prakash, "Empire, Mughal", in John J. McCusker (ed.), ''History of World Trade Since 1450'', vol. 1, Macmillan Reference USA, 2006, pp. 237–240, World History in Context. Retrieved 3 August 2017</ref> Silk was also exported to premodern {{wipe|Japan}}.<ref>John F. Richards (1995), The Mughal Empire, page 202, Cambridge University Press</ref> The region had a large shipbuilding industry which supplied the Mughal Navy. The shipbuilding output of Bengal during the 16th and 17th centuries stood at 223,250 tons annually, compared to 23,061 tons produced by North America from 1769 to 1771.<ref>Indrajit Ray (2011). Bengal Industries and the British Industrial Revolution (1757-1857). Routledge. p. 174. ISBN 978-1-136-82552-1.</ref> The Mughals decorated the city with well-laid-out gardens. Caravanserai included the Bara Katra and Choto Katra. The architect of the palatial Bara Katra was Abul Qashim Al Hussaini Attabatayi Assemani.<ref name="thedailystar3">{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/weekend-read/news/discovery-may-save-bara-katra-3132221 |title=A discovery that may save Bara Katra |work=The Daily Star |date= |access-date=1 October 2022 |archive-date=1 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221001050745/https://www.thedailystar.net/weekend-read/news/discovery-may-save-bara-katra-3132221 |url-status=live }}</ref>  According to inscriptions in the Bangladesh National Museum, the ownership of Bara Katra was entrusted to an Islamic ''[[Religion:Waqf|waqf]]''.<ref name="thedailystar3" />  The Bara Katra also served as a residence for Mughal governors, including Prince Shah Shuja (the son of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan).<ref name="thedailystar3"/> Dhaka was home to an array of Mughal bureaucrats and military officials, as well as members of the imperial family. The city was guarded by Mughal artillery like the Bibi Mariam Cannon (Lady Mary Cannon).

Islam Khan I was the first Mughal governor to reside in the city.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Kraas |editor-first=Frauke |editor-last2=Aggarwal |editor-first2=Surinder |editor-last3=Coy |editor-first3=Martin |editor-last4=Mertins |editor-first4=Günter |year=2013 |title=Megacities: Our Global Urban Future |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TwHFBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA60 |publisher=Springer |page=60 |isbn=978-90-481-3417-5}}</ref> Khan named it "Jahangir Nagar" (''The City of Jahangir'') in honour of the Emperor Jahangir. The name was dropped soon after the English conquered. The main expansion of the city took place under Governor Shaista Khan. The city then measured {{convert|19|by|13|km}}, with a population of nearly one million.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dspace.bracu.ac.bd/bitstream/handle/10361/2055/SOC%20Report-%2005-07-12.pdf?sequence=1 |title=State of Cities: Urban Governance in Dhaka |date=May 2012 |website=BRAC University |access-date=16 February 2015 |archive-date=16 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216192205/http://dspace.bracu.ac.bd/bitstream/handle/10361/2055/SOC%20Report-%2005-07-12.pdf?sequence=1 |url-status=live}}</ref> Dhaka became home to one of the richest elites in Mughal India.<ref>{{cite web |last=Shay |first=Christopher |url=http://www.bbc.com/travel/feature/20110815-saving-dhakas-heritage |title=Travel – Saving Dhaka's heritage |work=BBC |access-date=18 February 2015 |archive-date=5 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205130440/http://www.bbc.com/travel/feature/20110815-saving-dhakas-heritage |url-status=live}}</ref>
The construction of Lalbagh Fort was commenced in 1678 by Prince Azam Shah, who was the governor of Bengal, a son of Emperor Aurangzeb and a future Mughal Emperor himself. The Lalbagh Fort was intended to be the viceregal residence of Mughal governors in eastern India. Before the fort's construction could be completed, the prince was recalled by Emperor Aurangzeb. The fort's construction was halted by Shaista Khan after the death of his daughter Pari Bibi, who is buried in a tomb in the centre of the unfinished fort. Pari Bibi, whose name means ''Fairy Lady'', was legendary for her beauty, engaged to Prince Azam Shah, and a potential future Mughal empress before her premature death.<ref>{{cite news |title=Legends of Lalbagh |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/heritage/legends-lalbagh-95554 |work=The Daily Star |date=12 June 2015 |access-date=24 October 2022 |archive-date=24 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024144002/https://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/heritage/legends-lalbagh-95554 |url-status=live }}</ref> Internal conflict in the Mughal court cut short Dhaka's growth as an imperial city. Prince Azam Shah's rivalry with Murshid Quli Khan resulted in Dhaka losing its status as the provincial capital. In 1717, the provincial capital was shifted to Murshidabad where Murshid Quli Khan declared himself as the Nawab of Bengal.

===Naib Nizamat===
[[File:Court of the Naib Nazim of Dhaka.jpg|thumb|Court of the Naib Nazim of Dhaka, the governor of Dhaka, Chittagong and Comilla under the Nawabs of Bengal]]
Under the Nawabs of Bengal, the Naib Nazim of Dhaka was in charge of the city. As the principal tax collector, the annual revenue of the Naib Nazim was 1 million rupees, which was a staggeringly high amount in that era.<ref name="Rabbani1997">{{cite book |author=Golam Rabbani |title=Dhaka: From Mughal Outpost to Metropolis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9YLjAAAAMAAJ |year=1997 |publisher=Upl |isbn=978-984-05-1374-1 |pages=14–19}}</ref> The Naib Nazim was the deputy governor of Bengal. He also dealt with the upkeep of the Mughal Navy. The Naib Nazim was in charge of the Dhaka Division, which included Dhaka, Comilla, and Chittagong. Dhaka Division was one of the four divisions under the Nawabs of Bengal. The Nawabs of Bengal allowed European trading companies to establish factories across Bengal. The region then became a hotbed for European rivalries. The British moved to oust the last independent Nawab of Bengal in 1757, who was allied with the French. Due to the defection of Nawab's army chief Mir Jafar to the British side, the last Nawab lost the Battle of Plassey.

After the Battle of Buxar in 1765, the Treaty of Allahabad allowed the British East India Company to become the tax collector in Bengal on behalf of the Mughal Emperor in Delhi. The Naib Nazim continued to function until 1793 when all his powers were transferred to the East India Company. The city formally passed to the control of the East India Company in 1793. British military raids damaged a lot of the city's infrastructure.<ref>Lloyd's Evening Post, 16–18 May 1764</ref> The military conflict caused a sharp decline in the urban population.<ref>Historical Background for the Establishment of Naib-Nazimship (Deputy Governorship for the four Divisions of Subah Bangla), Asiatic Society of Bangladesh</ref> Dhaka's fortunes received a boost with connections to the mercantile networks of the [[Place:British Empire|British Empire]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Srangio |first=Sebastian |date=1 October 2010 |title=Dhaka: Saving Old Dhaka's Landmarks |url=http://www.caravanmagazine.in/letters/dhaka-saving-old-dhaka’s-landmarks |magazine=The Caravan |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909110251/http://www.caravanmagazine.in/letters/dhaka-saving-old-dhaka%E2%80%99s-landmarks |archive-date=9 September 2015}}</ref> With the dawn of the [[History:Industrial Revolution|Industrial Revolution]] in {{wipe|United Kingdom}}, Dhaka became a leading centre of the [[Finance:Jute trade|jute trade]], as Bengal accounted for the largest share of the world's jute production.<ref name="worldviewcities.org">{{cite web|url=http://www.worldviewcities.org/dhaka/unconcealed.html|title=Worldview|access-date=14 August 2015|archive-date=13 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150413054048/http://worldviewcities.org/dhaka/unconcealed.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
But the British neglected Dhaka's industrial and urban development until the late 19th century. Income from the pre-colonial, proto-industrialized textile industry dried up. Bengali weavers went out of business after the imposition of a 75% tax on the export of cotton from Bengal,<ref>Taylor, James (1840). A Sketch of the Topography and Statistics of Dacca. Calcutta: G.H. Huttmann, Military Orphan Press. pp. 301–307.</ref> as well as the surge in imports of cheap, British-manufactured fabrics after the advent of the spinning mule and steam power. Many of the city's weavers starved to death during Bengal's great famines under British rule.<ref name="thedailystar1">{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/op-ed/politics/which-india-claiming-have-been-colonised-119284 |title=Which India is claiming to have been colonizsed? |work=The Daily Star |type=Op-ed |date=31 July 2015 |access-date=14 August 2015 |archive-date=28 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328220449/https://www.thedailystar.net/op-ed/politics/which-india-claiming-have-been-colonised-119284 |url-status=live}}</ref> The rapid growth of the colonial capital Calcutta contributed to the decline in Dhaka's population and economy in the early 1800s. In 1824, an Anglican bishop described Dhaka as a  "city of magnificent ruins".<ref>Lalbagh Kella (Lalbagh Fort) Dhaka Bangladesh 2011 54.JPG</ref>

===Trade and migration===
[[File:19th century porcelain rice dish of Old Dhaka family.jpg|thumb|China (porcelain) belonging to a family of Old Dhaka in the 1800s.]]
Dhaka hosted factories of the English East India Company, the Dutch East India Company,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/the-rise-and-fall-the-dutch-dhaka-1530046 |title=The rise and fall of the Dutch in Dhaka |work=The Daily Star |date=5 February 2018 |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164533/https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/the-rise-and-fall-the-dutch-dhaka-1530046 |url-status=live }}</ref> and French East India Company.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/French,_The |title=French, the |website=Banglapedia |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164533/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/French,_The |url-status=live }}</ref> The property of the Ahsan Manzil was initially bought by the French for their factory and later sold to the Dhaka Nawab Family. The Portuguese were reportedly responsible for introducing cheese.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://archive.dhakatribune.com/uncategorized/2014/01/24/voce-fala-bangla |title=Você fala Bangla? |work=Dhaka Tribune |date=24 January 2014 |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164533/https://archive.dhakatribune.com/uncategorized/2014/01/24/voce-fala-bangla |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://dailyasianage.com/news/241706/portuguese-influence-in-bengal |title=Portuguese influence in Bengal |work=The Asian Age |location=Bangladesh |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164531/https://dailyasianage.com/news/241706/portuguese-influence-in-bengal |url-status=live }}</ref> Dhaka saw an influx of migrants during the Mughal Empire. An Armenian community from the Safavid Empire settled in Dhaka and was involved in the city's textile trade, paying a 3.5% tax.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ali |first1=Ansar |last2=Chaudhury |first2=Sushil |last3=Islam |first3=Sirajul |year=2012 |chapter=Armenians, The |chapter-url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Armenians,_The |editor1-last=Islam |editor1-first=Sirajul |editor1-link=Sirajul Islam |editor2-last=Jamal |editor2-first=Ahmed A. |title=Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh |edition=Second |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=12 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612140831/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Armenians,_The |url-status=live }}</ref> The Armenians were very active in the city's social life. They opened the Pogose School. Marwaris were the Hindu trading community. Dhaka also became home to Jews and Greeks.<ref>{{cite news |title=The extraordinary story of the Bangladesh Jews |url=https://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/features/the-extraordinary-story-of-the-bangladesh-jews-1.58433 |work=The Jewish Chronicle |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164532/https://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/features/the-extraordinary-story-of-the-bangladesh-jews-1.58433 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/history-the-greek-community-dhaka-2025501 |title=History of the Greek community in Dhaka |work=The Daily Star |date=11 January 2021 |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164535/https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/history-the-greek-community-dhaka-2025501 |url-status=live }}</ref> The city has a Greek memorial. Several families of Dhaka's elite spoke Urdu and included Urdu poets. Persians also settled in the city to serve as administrators and military commanders of the Mughal government in Bengal.<ref>{{cite book |last=Karim |first=Abdul |year=2012 |chapter=Iranians, The |chapter-url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Iranians,_The |editor1-last=Islam |editor1-first=Sirajul |editor1-link=Sirajul Islam |editor2-last=Jamal |editor2-first=Ahmed A. |title=Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh |edition=Second |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=2 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180702011005/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Iranians,_The |url-status=live }}</ref> The legacy of cosmopolitan trading communities lives on in the names of neighbourhoods in Old Dhaka, including Farashganj (French Bazaar), Armanitola (Armenian Quarter) and Postogola (Portuguese Quarter).

According to those who lived in the historic city, "Dhaka was a courtly, genteel town – the very last flowering, in their telling, of Mughal etiquette and sensibility. It is this history that is today still reflected in the faded grandeur of the old city, now crumbling due to decades of neglect. The narrow, winding, high-walled lanes and alleyways, the old high-ceilinged houses with verandas and balconies, the old neighbourhoods, the graveyards and gardens, the mosques, the grand old mansions – these are all still there if one goes looking".<ref name="himalmag1">{{cite magazine |url=https://www.himalmag.com/zafar-sobhan-dhaka-bangladesh/ |title=Out of place, out of time |magazine=Himal Southasian |date=26 March 2019 |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164534/https://www.himalmag.com/zafar-sobhan-dhaka-bangladesh/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Railway stations, postal departments, civil service posts and river port stations were often staffed by Anglo-Indians.<ref>Railways, steamer services, postal departments and lower civil services</ref>

The city's hinterland supplied rice, jute, gunny sacks, turmeric, ginger, leather hides, silk, rugs, saltpeter,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Saltpetre |title=Saltpetre |website=Banglapedia |access-date=24 October 2022 |archive-date=24 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024151133/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Saltpetre |url-status=live }}</ref> salt,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Salt_Industry |title=Salt Industry |website=Banglapedia |access-date=24 October 2022 |archive-date=24 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024151131/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Salt_Industry |url-status=live }}</ref> sugar, [[Indigo|indigo]], cotton, and iron.<ref name="bp-americans">{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Americans,_The |title=Americans, The |website=Banglapedia |access-date=24 October 2022 |archive-date=24 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024151135/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Americans,_The |url-status=live }}</ref> British opium policy in Bengal contributed to the Opium Wars with {{wipe|China}}. American traders collected artwork, handicrafts, terracotta, sculptures, religious and literary texts, manuscripts, and military weapons from Bengal. Some objects from the region are on display in the Peabody Essex Museum.<ref name="bp-americans" /> The increase in international trade led to profits for many families in the city, allowing them to buy imported luxury goods.

===British Raj===
[[File:Race-course-dhaka-1890 2.jpg|thumb|left|A horse racing derby taking place in Dhaka in 1890.]]
[[File:Bengal gazetteer 1907-9.jpg|thumb|Dhaka was the capital of Eastern Bengal and Assam in the British Raj between 1905 and 1912]]
[[File:Lord Curzon at Ramna.jpg|thumb|left|Lord Curzon (standing far left) with early automobiles in Shahbag in 1904]]
[[File:DG 21 -08 HIGH COURT DHAKA IMG 3402.jpg|thumb|Old High Court Building, Dhaka ]]
During the Indian mutiny of 1857, the city witnessed revolts by the Bengal Army.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Rare-1857-reports-on-Bengal-uprisings/articleshow/4637780.cms |work=The Times of India |title=Rare 1857 reports on Bengal uprisings |access-date=14 August 2015 |archive-date=5 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170105205019/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Rare-1857-reports-on-Bengal-uprisings/articleshow/4637780.cms |url-status=live}}</ref> [[History:British Raj|Direct rule by the British crown]] was established following the successful quelling of the mutiny. It bestowed privileges on the Dhaka Nawab Family, which dominated the city's political and social elite. The Dhaka Cantonment was established as a base for the British Indian Army. The British developed the modern city around Ramna, Shahbag Garden, and Victoria Park. Dhaka got its own version of the hansom cab as public transport in 1856.<ref name=transport>{{cite news |date=24 September 2018 |title=From Elephants to Motor Cars |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/elephants-motor-cars-1637557 |access-date=9 June 2020 |work=The Daily Star |language=en |archive-date=9 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200609060318/https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/elephants-motor-cars-1637557 |url-status=live }}</ref> The number of carriages increased from 60 in 1867 to 600 in 1889.<ref name=transport/>

A modern civic water system was introduced in 1874.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dwasa.org.bd/index.php/home/history |title=Dhaka WASA |publisher=Dwasa.org.bd |access-date=18 February 2015 |archive-date=6 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150206090551/http://dwasa.org.bd/index.php/home/history/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1885, the Dhaka State Railway was opened with a 144&nbsp;km metre gauge (1000&nbsp;mm) rail line connecting Mymensingh and the Port of Narayanganj through Dhaka.<ref name="en.banglapedia.org">{{cite web |url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Railway |title=Railway |access-date=11 February 2018 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010143242/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Railway |url-status=live}}</ref> The city later became a hub of the Eastern Bengal State Railway.<ref name="en.banglapedia.org"/> The first film shown in Dhaka was screened on the Riverfront Crown Theatre on 17 April 1898.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web |url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Film,_Feature |title=Film, Feature |access-date=11 February 2018 |archive-date=26 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926202745/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Film,_Feature |url-status=live}}</ref> The film show was organized by the Bedford Bioscope Company.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> The electricity supply began in 1901.<ref name="tusher.kobiraj.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.tusher.kobiraj.com/history-electricity-bangladesh.html |title=History of Electricity in Bangladesh &#124; Thcapriciousboy |publisher=Tusher.kobiraj.com |date=18 July 2013 |access-date=18 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216195149/http://www.tusher.kobiraj.com/history-electricity-bangladesh.html |archive-date=16 February 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

This period is described as being "the colonial-era part of Dhaka, developed by the British during the early 20th century. Similar to colonial boroughs the length and breadth of the Subcontinent, this development was typified by stately government buildings, spacious tree-lined avenues, and sturdy white-washed bungalows set amidst always overgrown (the British never did manage to fully tame the landscape) gardens. Once upon a time, this was the new city; and even though it is today far from the ritziest part of town, the streets here are still wider and the trees more abundant and the greenery more evident than in any other part".<ref name="himalmag1"/>

Some of the early educational institutions established during the period of British rule include the Dhaka College, the Dhaka Medical School, the Eden College, St. Gregory's School, the Mohsinia Madrasa, Jagannath College and the Ahsanullah School of Engineering. Horse racing was a favourite pastime for elite residents in the city's Ramna Race Course beside the Dhaka Club.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Ramna_Racecourse |title=Ramna Racecourse |website=Banglapedia |access-date=1 October 2022 |archive-date=1 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221001145756/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Ramna_Racecourse |url-status=live }}</ref> The Viceroy of India would often dine and entertain with Bengali aristocrats in the city. Automobiles began appearing after the turn of the century. A 1937 [[Engineering:Sunbeam-Talbot Ten|Sunbeam-Talbot Ten]] was preserved in the Liberation War Museum. The Nawabs of Dhaka owned [[Company:Rolls-Royce Limited|Rolls-Royce]]s. [[Company:Austin Motor Company|Austin]] cars were widely used. Beauty Boarding was a popular inn and restaurant.

Dhaka's fortunes changed in the early 20th century. British neglect of Dhaka's urban development was overturned with the first partition of Bengal in 1905, which restored Dhaka's status as a regional capital. The city became the seat of government for Eastern Bengal and Assam, with a jurisdiction covering most of modern-day Bangladesh and all of what is now Northeast India. The partition was the brainchild of Lord Curzon, who finally acted on British ideas for partitioning Bengal to improve administration, education, and business. Dhaka became the seat of the Eastern Bengal and Assam Legislative Council. While Dhaka was the main capital throughout the year, Shillong acted as the summer retreat of the administration. Lieutenant Governors were in charge of the province. They resided in Dhaka. The Lt Governors included Sir Bampfylde Fuller (1905-1906), Sir Lancelot Hare (1906-1911), and Sir Charles Stuart Bayley (1911-1912). Their legacy lives on in the names of three major thoroughfares in modern Dhaka, including Hare Road,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/dhaka-through-its-streets-10591 |title=Dhaka through its streets |date=11 February 2014 |first1=Abida |last1=Rahman Chowdhury |work=The Daily Star (Bangladesh) |access-date=29 September 2022 |archive-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929125945/https://www.thedailystar.net/dhaka-through-its-streets-10591 |url-status=live }}</ref> Bayley Road, and Fuller Road.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/literature/short-winding-and-legendary-dhaka-road-1601140 |title=A Short, Winding and Legendary Dhaka Road |date=7 July 2018 |work=The Daily Star (Bangladesh) |access-date=29 September 2022 |archive-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929125942/https://www.thedailystar.net/literature/short-winding-and-legendary-dhaka-road-1601140 |url-status=live }}</ref> The period saw the construction of stately buildings, including the High Court and Curzon Hall. The city was home to diverse groups of people, including Armenians, Jews,<ref>{{cite news |title=The extraordinary story of the Bangladesh Jews |url=https://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/features/the-extraordinary-story-of-the-bangladesh-jews-1.58433 |work=The Jewish Chronicle |date=17 September 2015 |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164532/https://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/features/the-extraordinary-story-of-the-bangladesh-jews-1.58433 |url-status=live }}</ref> Anglo-Indians and Hindus. The Hindus included both Marwaris and Bengali Hindus, with a plurality emerging by 1941 and engaged in professions like teaching, medicine, law, and business.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rahman |first=Mohammad Afzalur |date=2 December 2022 |title=Dhaka before and after Partition |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/views/news/dhaka-and-after-partition-3185521 |work=The Daily Star |type=Opinion |access-date=16 April 2023 |archive-date=16 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416162455/https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/views/news/dhaka-and-after-partition-3185521 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Panorama of Dacca 19th century 1.jpg|thumb|center|800px|Panorama of the Dhaka waterfront in 1847]]
Dhaka was the seat of government for 4 administrative divisions, including the Assam Valley Division, Chittagong Division, Dacca Division, Rajshahi Division, and the Surma Valley Division. There were a total of 30 districts in Eastern Bengal and Assam, including Dacca, Mymensingh, Faridpur and Backergunge in Dacca Division; Tippera, Noakhali, Chittagong and the Hill Tracts in Chittagong Division; Rajshahi, Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri, Rangpur, Bogra, Pabna and Malda in Rajshahi Division; Sylhet, Cachar, the Khasi and Jaintia Hills, the Naga Hills and the Lushai Hills in Surma Valley Division; and Goalpara, Kamrup, the Garo Hills, Darrang, Nowgong, Sibsagar and Lakhimpur in Assam Valley Division.<ref>{{cite web |title=Eastern Bengal and Assam - Encyclopedia |url=https://theodora.com/encyclopedia/e/eastern_bengal_and_assam.html |access-date=23 October 2022 |website=theodora.com |language=en |archive-date=23 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023123814/https://www.theodora.com/encyclopedia/e/eastern_bengal_and_assam.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The province was bordered by Cooch Behar State, Hill Tipperah and the Kingdom of Bhutan.

On the political front, partition allowed Dhaka to project itself as the standard-bearer of Muslim communities in [[History:British Raj|British India]]; as opposed to the heavily Hindu-dominated city of Calcutta.<ref name="worldviewcities.org"/> In 1906, the All India Muslim League was founded in the city during a conference on liberal education hosted by the Nawab of Dhaka and the Aga Khan III. The Muslim population in Dhaka and eastern Bengal generally favoured partition in the hopes of getting better jobs and educational opportunities. Many Bengalis, however, opposed the bifurcation of the ethnolinguistic region. The partition was annulled by an announcement from King George V during the Delhi Durbar in 1911. The British decided to reunite Bengal while the capital of India was shifted to [[Place:New Delhi|New Delhi]] from Calcutta.

As a "splendid compensation" for the annulment of partition,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/dhaka-university-and-the-partitioning-bengal-1453546 |title=University of Dhaka and the partitioning of Bengal |work=The Daily Star |date=25 August 2017 |access-date=29 September 2022 |archive-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929125945/https://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/dhaka-university-and-the-partitioning-bengal-1453546 |url-status=live }}</ref> the British gave the city a newly formed university in the 1920s. The University of Dhaka was initially modelled on the residential style of the [[Organization:University of Oxford|University of Oxford]]. It became known as the Oxford of the East because of its residential character. Like Oxford, students in Dhaka were affiliated with their halls of residence instead of their academic departments (this system was dropped after 1947 and students are now affiliated with academic departments).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/was-dhaka-university-ever-the-oxford-of-the-east-57343 |title=Was Dhaka University ever the "Oxford of the East"? |work=The Daily Star |date=28 December 2014 |access-date=29 September 2022 |archive-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929125941/https://www.thedailystar.net/was-dhaka-university-ever-the-oxford-of-the-east-57343 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="newagebd1">{{cite news |url=https://www.newagebd.net/article/156210/oxford-of-the-east-or-the-mecca-university |title='Oxford of the East' or the 'Mecca University'? |work=New Age |access-date=29 September 2022 |archive-date=29 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929125943/https://www.newagebd.net/article/156210/oxford-of-the-east-or-the-mecca-university |url-status=live }}</ref> The university's faculty included scientist [[Biography:Satyendra Nath Bose|Satyendra Nath Bose]] (who is the namesake of the [[Physics:Higgs boson|Higgs boson]]); linguist Muhammad Shahidullah, Sir A F Rahman (the first Bengali vice-chancellor of the university); and historian R. C. Majumdar.<ref name="newagebd1"/> The university was established in 1921 by the Imperial Legislative Council. It started with three faculties and 12 departments, covering the subjects of Sanskrit, Bengali, English, liberal arts, history, Arabic, Islamic Studies, Persian, Urdu, philosophy, economics, politics, physics, chemistry, mathematics, and law.

The East Bengal Cinematograph Company produced the first full-length silent movies in Dhaka during the 1920s, including ''Sukumari'' and ''The Last Kiss''.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> DEVCO, a subsidiary of the Occtavian Steel Company, began widescale [[Physics:Electric power|power]] distribution in 1930.<ref name="tusher.kobiraj.com"/> The Tejgaon Airport was constructed during [[Social:World War II|World War II]] as a base for Allied Forces. The Dhaka Medical College was established in 1946.

At the time of the partition of India, many rich Hindu families relocated to West Bengal. Their properties were seized by the state under laws that eventually became known as the [[Social:Vested Property Act (Bangladesh)|Vested Property Act]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Roy |first=Dipanwita |date=21 April 2007 |title=Vested Property Act: A story of deprivation and exploitation |url=https://archive.thedailystar.net/law/2007/04/03/rights.htm |magazine=Law & Our Rights |publisher=The Daily Star |access-date=16 April 2023 |archive-date=16 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416164939/https://archive.thedailystar.net/law/2007/04/03/rights.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Metropolitan Dhaka===
[[File:A002323.webmhd.webm|thumb|NASA animation showing the urban growth of Dhaka from 1972 to 2001.]]
[[File:Motijheel, Dhaka, 1980s.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of Dhaka's main CBD in the 1980s]]
[[File:Gulshan, Dhaka, 1980s.jpg|thumb|A typical residential neighbourhood in the 1980s]]
The development of the "real city" began after the partition of India.<ref name="himalmag1"/> After partition, Dhaka became known as the ''second capital'' of {{wipe|Pakistan}}.<ref name="himalmag1"/><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news/opinion/the-grudging-urbanist/how-politics-and-architecture-blended-dhaka-1623103 |title=How politics and architecture blended in Dhaka |work=The Daily Star |date=20 August 2018 |type=Opinion |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164532/https://www.thedailystar.net/news/opinion/the-grudging-urbanist/how-politics-and-architecture-blended-dhaka-1623103 |url-status=live }}</ref> This was formalized in 1962 when Ayub Khan declared the city as the legislative capital under the 1962 constitution. New neighbourhoods began to spring up in formerly barren and agrarian areas. These included Dhanmondi (rice granary), Katabon (thorn forest), Kathalbagan (jackfruit grove), Kalabagan (banana grove), and Gulshan (flower garden).<ref name="himalmag1"/> Living standards rapidly improved from the pre-partition standards.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/16/opinion/bangladesh-bengali-muslims-partition.html |title=Opinion &#124; Why do Bangladeshis Seem Indifferent to Partition? |newspaper=The New York Times |date=16 August 2017 |last1=Ahmed |first1=K. Anis |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=29 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829170711/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/16/opinion/bangladesh-bengali-muslims-partition.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The economy began to industrialize. On the outskirts of the city, the world's largest jute mill was built. The mill produced jute goods which were in high demand during the Korean War.<ref>{{cite news |title=Unthreading Partition: The politics of jute sharing between two Bengals |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/unthreading-partition-the-politics-jute-sharing-between-two-bengals-1778560 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=24 October 2022 |archive-date=6 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221106084737/https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/news/unthreading-partition-the-politics-jute-sharing-between-two-bengals-1778560 |url-status=live }}</ref> People began building duplex houses. In 1961, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip witnessed the improved living standards of Dhaka's residents.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_sS-WU9yWc |title=Queen Elizabeth II in Bangladesh (1961) |website=[[Company:YouTube|YouTube]] |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928164532/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_sS-WU9yWc&gl=US&hl=en |url-status=live }}</ref> The Intercontinental hotel, designed by William B. Tabler, was opened in 1966. Estonian-American architect Louis I. Kahn was enlisted to design the Dhaka Assembly, which was originally intended to be the federal parliament of Pakistan and later became independent Bangladesh's parliament. The East Pakistan Helicopter Service connected the city to regional towns.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange was opened on 28 April 1954. The first local airline Orient Airways began flights between Dhaka and [[Place:Karachi|Karachi]] on 6 June 1954. The Dhaka Improvement Trust was established in 1956 to coordinate the city's development. The first master plan for the city was drawn up in 1959.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://open_jicareport.jica.go.jp/pdf/11996774_06.pdf |title=Part II: Formulation of Urban and Transport Plan |access-date=11 February 2018 |archive-date=12 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180212084236/http://open_jicareport.jica.go.jp/pdf/11996774_06.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization established a medical research centre (now called [[Organization:ICDDR,B|ICDDR,B]]) in the city in 1960.

The early period of political turbulence was seen between 1947 and 1952, particularly the Bengali Language Movement. From the mid-1960s, the Awami League's 6-point autonomy demands began giving rise to pro-independence aspirations across East Pakistan. In 1969, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was released from prison amid a mass upsurge which led to the resignation of Ayub Khan in 1970. The city had an influential press with prominent newspapers like the ''Pakistan Observer'', ''Ittefaq,'' ''Forum'', and the ''Weekly Holiday''. During the political and constitutional crisis in 1971, the [[Social:Military junta|military junta]] led by Yahya Khan refused to transfer power to the newly elected National Assembly, causing mass riots, civil disobedience, and a movement for [[Social:Self-determination|self-determination]]. On 7 March 1971, [[Social:Awami League|Awami League]] leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman addressed a massive public gathering at the Ramna Race Course Maidan in Dhaka, in which he warned of an independence struggle.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.virtualbangladesh.com/culture/people-of-bangladesh/sheikh-mujibur-rahman/ |title=Sheikh Mujibur Rahman |publisher=Virtual Bangladesh |access-date=18 February 2015 |archive-date=16 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216193211/http://www.virtualbangladesh.com/culture/people-of-bangladesh/sheikh-mujibur-rahman/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Richards2003">{{Cite journal |last=Richards |first=John |date=July–September 2003 |title=Calcutta and Dhaka: A Tale of Two Cities |url=http://www.cdrb.org/journal/2003/3/3.pdf |journal=Asian Affairs |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=49–57 |access-date=1 March 2015 |archive-date=16 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216201250/http://www.cdrb.org/journal/2003/3/3.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> Subsequently, East Pakistan came under a non-co-operation movement against the Pakistani state. On Pakistan's Republic Day (23 March 1971), Bangladeshi flags were hoisted throughout Dhaka in a show of resistance.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Thorpe |first1=Edgar |year=2012 |title=The Pearson General Knowledge Manual 2012 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I9OyQ9mEpxkC&pg=SL1-PA125 |page=A.125 |publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=978-81-317-6190-8 |access-date=18 February 2015 |archive-date=18 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118102206/https://books.google.com/books?id=I9OyQ9mEpxkC&pg=SL1-PA125&lpg=SL1-PA125&q=23+march+1971+republic+day+east+pakistan |url-status=live}}</ref>

On 25 March 1971, the Pakistan Army launched military operations under Operation Searchlight against the population of East Pakistan.<ref name="books.google.com.bd">{{cite book |last1=Jahan |first1=Rounaq |chapter=Genocide in Bangladesh |year=2013 |editor-last1=Totten |editor-first1=Samuel |editor-last2=Parsons |editor-first2=William Spencer |title=Centuries of Genocide: Essays and Eyewitness Accounts |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6XYp-z5aP4MC&pg=PA254 |edition=4th |page=254 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-87191-4 |access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref> Dhaka bore the brunt of the army's atrocities, witnessing a genocide and a campaign of wide-scale repression, with the arrest, torture, and murder of the city's civilians, students, intelligentsia, political activists and religious minorities. The army faced mutinies from the East Pakistan Rifles and the Bengali police.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nandi |first1=Bibhuti Bhusan |year=2007 |chapter=Low-Intensity War |editor-last1=Gupta |editor-first1=Jyoti Bhusan Das |title=Science, Technology, Imperialism, and War |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EJuM4FylchwC&pg=PA732 |page=732 |publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=978-81-317-0851-4 |access-date=18 February 2015}}</ref> Large parts of the city were burnt and destroyed, including Hindu neighbourhoods.<ref name="books.google.com.bd"/> Much of the city's population was either displaced or forced to flee to the countryside.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1151151 |title=Fall of Dhaka: Memories of a bloody December – Pakistan |work=Dawn |date=16 December 2014 |location=Pakistan |access-date=18 February 2015 |archive-date=30 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150130124156/http://www.dawn.com/news/1151151 |url-status=live}}</ref> Dhaka was struck with numerous air raids by the {{wipe|Indian Air Force}} in December.<ref>{{cite book |last=Salik |first=Siddiq |author-link=Siddique Salik |year=1977 |title=Witness to Surrender |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=195 |isbn=0-19-577257-1}}</ref> The Pakistan Eastern Command surrendered to Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora at the Ramna Race Course in Dhaka on 16 December 1971.<ref>{{cite book |last=Jacob |first=J. F. R. |author-link=J. F. R. Jacob |year=1997 |title=Surrender at Dacca: Birth of a Nation |publisher=Manohar |pages=146–147 |isbn=81-7304-189-X}}</ref>

After independence, Dhaka's population grew from several hundred thousand to several million in five decades. Dhaka was declared the national capital by the Constituent Assembly of Bangladesh in 1972. The post-independence period witnessed rapid growth as Dhaka attracted migrant workers from across rural Bangladesh. 60% of population growth has been due to rural migration.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/dhaka-population/ |title=Dhaka Population 2020 |access-date=30 January 2017 |archive-date=31 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731001426/http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/dhaka-population/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The city endured socialist unrest in the early 1970s, followed by a few years of martial law. The stock exchange and [[Social:Free market|free market]] were restored in the late 1970s. In the 1980s, Dhaka saw the inauguration of the National Parliament House (which won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture), a new international airport and the [[Biology:Bangladesh National Museum|Bangladesh National Museum]]. Bangladesh pioneered the formation of the [[Organization:South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation|South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation]] (SAARC) and hosted its first summit in Dhaka in 1985.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.saarc-sec.org/userfiles/01-Dhaka-1stSummit1985.pdf |title=Dhaka Declaration |access-date=17 February 2015 |archive-date=7 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160607131812/http://www.saarc-sec.org/userfiles/01-Dhaka-1stSummit1985.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> A mass uprising in 1990 led to the return of parliamentary democracy. Dhaka hosted a trilateral summit between India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh in 1998;<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Habib |first=Haroon |date=24 January 1998 |title=An economic initiative |url=http://www.frontline.in/static/html/fl1502/15020520.htm |magazine=Frontline |access-date=11 February 2018 |archive-date=18 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118102213/https://frontline.thehindu.com/magazine/issue/vol15-02/ |url-status=live}}</ref> the summit of the [[Organization:D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation|D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation]] in 1999 and conferences of the [[Organization:Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]], SAARC, the OIC and {{wipe|United Nations}} agencies during various years.

In the 1990s and 2000s, Dhaka experienced improved economic growth and the emergence of affluent business districts and satellite towns.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Hossain |first=Shahadat |date=January 2008 |title=Rapid Urban Growth and Poverty in Dhaka City |url=http://www.bangladeshsociology.org/BEJS%205.1%20Rapid%20Urban%20Growth%20and%20Poverty%20final.pdf?q=dhaka |journal=Bangladesh e-Journal of Sociology |volume=5 |issue=1 |access-date=24 September 2016 |archive-date=18 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818115752/http://www.bangladeshsociology.org/BEJS%205.1%20Rapid%20Urban%20Growth%20and%20Poverty%20final.pdf?q=dhaka |url-status=live}}</ref> Between 1990 and 2005, the city's population doubled from 6&nbsp;million to 12&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dhaka: fastest growing megacity in the world |url=https://theworld.org/stories/2010-09-08/dhaka-fastest-growing-megacity-world |access-date=19 January 2022 |website=The World from PRX |language=en |archive-date=19 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119194102/https://theworld.org/stories/2010-09-08/dhaka-fastest-growing-megacity-world |url-status=live }}</ref> There has been increased [[Finance:Foreign direct investment|foreign investment]] in the city, particularly in the financial and textile manufacturing sectors. Between 2008 and 2011, the government of Bangladesh organized three years of celebrations to mark 400 years since Dhaka's founding as an early modern city.<ref name="ReferenceB"/><ref name="voabangla.com"/><ref name="ReferenceC"/> But frequent hartals by political parties have greatly hampered the city's economy.<ref>{{Cite book |date=March 2005 |title=Beyond Hartals: Towards Democratic Dialogue in Bangladesh |url=http://www.un-bd.org/Docs/Publication/Beyond%20Hartals.pdf |url-status=dead |publisher=United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Bangladesh |isbn=984-32-1424-2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305063333/http://www.un-bd.org/Docs/Publication/Beyond%20Hartals.pdf |archive-date=5 March 2018 |access-date=4 March 2018}}</ref> The hartal rate has declined since 2014. In some years, the city experienced a widespread [[Earth:Flash flood|flash flood]] during the monsoon.

Dhaka is one of the fastest-growing megacities in the world.<ref name="content.time.com">{{Cite magazine |last=Carbone |first=Nick |date=26 October 2011 |title=The 10 Fastest-Growing Cities of Tomorrow: 2. Dhaka, Bangladesh |magazine={{wipe|Time (magazine)}} |url=http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2097720_2097718_2097713,00.html |access-date=19 January 2022 |issn=0040-781X |archive-date=8 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170708134803/http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2097720_2097718_2097713,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It is predicted to be one of the world's largest metropolises by 2025, along with [[Place:Tokyo|Tokyo]], [[Place:Mexico City|Mexico City]], [[Place:Shanghai|Shanghai]], [[Place:Beijing|Beijing]] and {{wipe|New York City}}.<ref name="CBSN">{{cite news |title=Dhaka, Bangladesh: Fastest Growing City in the World |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dhaka-bangladesh-fastest-growing-city-in-the-world/ |work=CBS News |access-date=22 February 2019 |archive-date=17 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180917105225/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dhaka-bangladesh-fastest-growing-city-in-the-world/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Most of its population are rural migrants, including climate refugees.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://resilient-cities.iclei.org/fileadmin/sites/resilient-cities/files/docs/B4-Bonn2010-Hamidul.pdf |title=A Short City Profile on Dhaka City: Adaptation Issues for Climate Change?? |access-date=4 March 2018 |archive-date=11 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411211112/http://resilient-cities.iclei.org/fileadmin/sites/resilient-cities/files/docs/B4-Bonn2010-Hamidul.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> Blue-collar workers are often housed in slums. Congestion is one of the most prominent features of modern Dhaka. In 2014, it was reported that only 7% of the city was covered by roads.<ref name="TNR">{{cite magazine |title=Welcome to the Traffic Capital of the World |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/118416/what-dhaka-bangladesh-traffic-capital-world-can-teach-us |magazine=The New Republic |access-date=22 February 2019 |archive-date=17 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180917143131/https://newrepublic.com/article/118416/what-dhaka-bangladesh-traffic-capital-world-can-teach-us |url-status=live}}</ref> The first phase of Dhaka Metro Rail from Uttara to Agargaon was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on 28 December 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/special-events/dhaka-metro-rail-opening/news/pm-opens-countrys-first-metro-rail-3207081 |title=PM opens country's first metro rail |date=2022-12-28 |access-date=2023-01-15 |work=The Daily Star |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230115043453/https://www.thedailystar.net/special-events/dhaka-metro-rail-opening/news/pm-opens-countrys-first-metro-rail-3207081 |archive-date=2023-01-15 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Geography ==

===Topography===
{{multiple image
| direction         = horizontal
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| image1            = Dhaka, Bangladesh.jpg
| image2            = 
| caption1          = View of Dhaka from the [[Astronomy:International Space Station|International Space Station]]
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| image3            = Dhaka oli 202279 lrg.jpg
| caption3          = Satellite view of Greater Dhaka metropolitan area
}}

Dhaka is located in central Bangladesh at {{Coord|23|42|N|90|22|E|type:city_region:BD|display=inline}}, on the eastern banks of the Buriganga River. The city lies on the lower reaches of the Ganges Delta and covers a total area of {{convert|270|km2|sqmi}}.  Tropical vegetation and moist soils characterize the land, which is flat and close to sea level. This leaves Dhaka susceptible to flooding during the [[Earth:Monsoon|monsoon]] seasons owing to heavy rainfall and [[Physics:Cyclone|cyclone]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hough |first=Michael |title=Cities and natural process |publisher=Routledge |year=2004 |pages=64–65 |isbn=0-415-29855-5}}</ref> Due to its location on the lowland plain of the Ganges Delta, the city is fringed by extensive mangroves and tidal flat ecosystems.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Murray |first1=N.J. |last2=Clemens |first2=R.S. |last3=Phinn |first3=S.R. |last4=Possingham |first4=H.P. |last5=Fuller |first5=R.A. |title=Tracking the rapid loss of tidal wetlands in the Yellow Sea |journal=Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment |date=2014 |volume=12 |issue=5 |pages=267–272 |doi=10.1890/130260 |bibcode=2014FrEE...12..267M |url=https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/60169/1/130260.pdf |access-date=11 August 2021 |archive-date=7 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207073933/https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/60169/1/130260.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Dhaka District is bounded by the districts of Gazipur, Tangail, Munshiganj, Rajbari, Narayanganj, and Manikganj.

=== Cityscape ===
[[File:Gulshan 1 skyline.jpg|thumb|Sunset in North Dhaka in December 2022]]
[[File:Kemal Ataturk Avenue 2023 Nov.jpg|thumb|left|Office blocks on Kamal Ataturk Avenue]]
[[File:Janata Bank Tower and City Centre in Motijheel.jpg|thumb|Janata Bank Bhaban and City Centre Dhaka in South Dhaka]]
Except Old Dhaka, which is an old bazaar-style neighbourhood, the layout of the city follows a grid pattern with organic development influenced by traditional South Asian as well as Middle Eastern and Western patterns. Growth of the city is largely unplanned and is focused on the northern regions and around the city centre, where many of the more affluent neighbourhoods may be found.<ref name="Sohn Moudon Lee pp. 115–128">{{cite journal |last1=Sohn |first1=Dong Wook |last2=Moudon |first2=Anne Vernez |last3=Lee |first3=Jeasun |title=The economic value of walkable neighborhoods |journal=Urban Design International |publisher=Springer Science and Business Media LLC |volume=17 |issue=2 |date=4 April 2012 |issn=1357-5317 |doi=10.1057/udi.2012.1 |pages=115–128 |s2cid=109091026}}</ref> Most of the construction in the city consists of concrete high-rise buildings. Middle-class and upper-class housing, along with commercial and industrial areas, occupy most of the city; slums may be found in the outskirts and in less-visible areas such as alleyways. The most significant area of slums is found near the Buriganga River covering Kamrangirchar Thana.<ref name="Gruebner Sachs Nockert Frings pp. 1–7">{{cite journal |last1=Gruebner |first1=Oliver |last2=Sachs |first2=Jonathan |last3=Nockert |first3=Anika |last4=Frings |first4=Michael |last5=Khan |first5=Md. Mobarak Hossain |last6=Lakes |first6=Tobia |last7=Hostert |first7=Patrick |title=Mapping the Slums of Dhaka from 2006 to 2010 |journal=Dataset Papers in Science |publisher=Hindawi Limited |volume=2014 |date=25 June 2014 |issn=2314-8497 |doi=10.1155/2014/172182 |pages=1–7 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="Sohn Moudon Lee pp. 115–128" />

Dhaka does not have a well-defined central business district. Old Dhaka is the historic commercial centre, but most development has moved to the north. In 1985, the area around Motijheel was considered the "modern" CBD, while by 2005 Gulshan was considered the "newest" part of the CBD. Many Bangladeshi government institutions can be found in Motijheel, Segunbagicha, Tejgaon, Karwan Bazar, and Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.<ref name="Siddiqui2010">{{cite book |last1=Siddiqui |first1=K. |last2=Ahmed |first2=J. |last3=Siddique |first3=K. |last4=Huq |first4=S. |last5=Hossain |first5=A. |last6=Nazimud-Doula |first6=S. |last7=Rezawana |first7=N. |title=Social Formation in Dhaka, 1985-2005: A Longitudinal Study of Society in a Third World Megacity |publisher=Routledge |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-317-05400-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xqTeCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT32 |access-date=3 February 2022 |pages=6, 12}}</ref>

Dhaka is among the most congested cities in the world, and traffic was estimated to cost the local economy US$3.9 billion per year in 2013. The average speed of a car travelling in Dhaka is estimated to be around  {{convert|20|km/h|mph}}.<ref name="Haider Papri pp. 287–299">{{cite journal |last1=Haider |first1=Mohammed Ziaul |last2=Papri |first2=Rabeya Sultana |title=Cost of traffic congestion in Dhaka Metropolitan City |journal=Public Transport |publisher=Springer Science and Business Media LLC |volume=13 |issue=2 |date=11 May 2021 |issn=1866-749X |doi=10.1007/s12469-021-00270-4 |pages=287–299 |s2cid=236563476}}</ref> Most residents travel by rickshaw and green-coloured [[Engineering:Auto rickshaw|auto rickshaw]]s powered by [[Chemistry:Compressed natural gas|compressed natural gas]], often referred to by locals as "CNGs". Much activity is centred around a few large roads, where road laws are rarely obeyed and street vendors and beggars are frequently encountered.<ref name="Sohn Moudon Lee pp. 115–128" /><ref name="Hossain pp. 1418–1431">{{cite journal |last=Hossain |first=Adnan |title=The paradox of recognition: hijra, third gender and sexual rights in Bangladesh |journal=Culture, Health & Sexuality |publisher=Informa UK Limited |volume=19 |issue=12 |date=12 May 2017 |issn=1369-1058 |doi=10.1080/13691058.2017.1317831 |pages=1418–1431 |pmid=28498049 |s2cid=5372595|doi-access=free |url=https://pure.uva.nl/ws/files/22203756/13691058.2017.pdf }}</ref><ref name="Kalabamu 1987 pp. 123–131">{{cite journal |last=Kalabamu |first=Faustin T. |title=Rickshaws and the traffic problems of Dhaka |journal=Habitat International |publisher=Elsevier BV |volume=11 |issue=2 |year=1987 |issn=0197-3975 |doi=10.1016/0197-3975(87)90063-4 |pages=123–131}}</ref>

=== Climate ===
[[File:Dhaka Cantonment (25967499904).jpg|thumb|282x282px|Spring in Dhaka]]
Under the [[Earth:Köppen climate classification|Köppen climate classification]], Dhaka has a [[Earth:Tropical savanna climate|tropical savanna climate]] ([[Earth:Köppen climate classification|Köppen]] ''Aw''). The city has a distinct monsoonal season, with an annual average temperature of {{convert|26|C|F|abbr=on}} and monthly means varying between {{convert|19|C|F|abbr=on}} in January and {{convert|29|C|F|abbr=on}} in May.<ref name="weather1">{{cite web |url=http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather.php3?s=032914&refer=/ |title=Weatherbase: Historical Weather for Dhaka, Bangladesh |access-date=15 December 2008 |publisher=weatherbase.com |archive-date=23 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151123042049/http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather.php3?s=032914&refer=%2F |url-status=live}}</ref> Approximately 87% of the average annual rainfall of {{convert|2123|mm|in|abbr=off}} occurs between May and October.<ref name="weather1" /> Increasing air and water pollution emanating from traffic congestion and industrial waste are serious problems affecting public health and the quality of life in the city.<ref name="Geo2" /> Water bodies and [[Earth:Wetland|wetland]]s around Dhaka are facing destruction as these are being filled up to construct multi-storied buildings and other real estate developments. Coupled with pollution, such erosion of natural habitats threatens to destroy much of the regional biodiversity.<ref name="Geo2">{{cite news |last=Mondal |first=M. Abdul Latif |date=27 September 2006 |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2006/15thanniv/ourcities/ourcities28.htm |title=Our Cities: 15th Anniversary Special |work=The Daily Star |access-date=27 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302043917/http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2006/15thanniv/ourcities/ourcities28.htm |archive-date=2 March 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
Due to the unregulated manufacturing of brick and other causes, Dhaka is one of the most polluted [[Global city|world cities]] with very high levels of PM2.5 air pollution.<ref name="UD9518">{{cite news |author1=Sohara Mehroze Shachi |title=Bangladesh's Air Pollution Problem Grows, Brick by Brick |url=https://undark.org/article/air-pollution-dhaka/ |access-date=7 September 2018 |work=Undark |date=5 September 2018 |quote=The kiln operations alone – while representing just 1 percent of the country's GDP – generate nearly 60 percent of the particulate pollution in Dhaka, according to Bangladesh's Department of Environment (DOE). |archive-date=7 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180907141106/https://undark.org/article/air-pollution-dhaka/ |url-status=live}}</ref>


=== Parks and greenery ===
There are many parks within Dhaka City, including Ramna Park, Suhrawardy Udyan, Shishu Park, National Botanical Garden, Baldha Garden, Chandrima Uddan, Gulshan Park and Dhaka Zoo. There are lakes within the city, such as Crescent Lake, Dhanmondi Lake, Baridhara-Gulshan Lake, Banani lake, Uttara Lake, Hatirjheel-Begunbari Lake and 300 Feet Road Prionty lake.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://mybangla24.com/best-places-to-visit-in-dhaka-division |title=20 Best Places to Visit in Dhaka Division |date=9 October 2020 |access-date=25 October 2020 |archive-date=29 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029125856/https://mybangla24.com/best-places-to-visit-in-dhaka-division |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Government==

===Capital city===
[[File:1.জাতীয় সংসদ ভবন.jpg|thumb|300px|The National Parliament House complex is surrounded by 200 acres of gardens in the centre of the city]]
As the capital of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Dhaka is home to numerous state and diplomatic institutions. The Bangabhaban is the official residence and workplace of the President of Bangladesh, who is the ceremonial head of state under the constitution. The National Parliament House is located in the modernist capital complex designed by Louis Kahn in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar. The Ganabhaban, the official residence of the Prime Minister, is situated on the north side of Parliament. The Prime Minister's Office is located in Tejgaon. Most ministries of the Government of Bangladesh are housed in the Bangladesh Secretariat.<ref name=cabinet>{{cite web |url=http://www.cabinet.gov.bd/site/page/55bcf4d6-dd85-45c1-94b6-bcb06e4b1b12/45/%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%A3%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B2%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC-%E0%A6%93-%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AD%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%97%E0%A6%B8%E0%A6%AE%E0%A7%82%E0%A6%B9 |title=List of Ministries and Divisions |date=20 November 2016 |publisher=Cabinet Division |access-date=27 November 2016 |archive-date=19 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119141454/http://cabinet.gov.bd/site/page/55bcf4d6-dd85-45c1-94b6-bcb06e4b1b12/45/%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%A3%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B2%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC-%E0%A6%93-%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AD%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%97%E0%A6%B8%E0%A6%AE%E0%A7%82%E0%A6%B9 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Supreme Court, the Dhaka High Court and the Foreign Ministry are located in the Segunbagicha-Shahbagh area. The Defence Ministry and the Ministry of Planning are located in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.<ref name=cabinet/> The Armed Forces Division of the government of Bangladesh and the army, navy and air force HQs of the Bangladesh Armed Forces are located in Dhaka Cantonment.<ref name=cabinet/> Several important installations of the Bangladesh Army are also situated in Dhaka and Mirpur Cantonments. The Bangladesh Navy's principal administrative and logistics base, BNS Haji Mohshin, is located in Dhaka.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.mil.bd/bases.php |title=Navy Bases |publisher=Bangladesh Navy |access-date=30 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527111317/http://www.navy.mil.bd/bases.php |archive-date=27 May 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The {{wipe|Bangladesh Air Force}} maintains the BAF Bangabandhu Air Base and BAF Khademul Bashar Air Base in Dhaka.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.joinbangladeshairforce.mil.bd/index.php/main_controll/location_baf?1=1&pagemenu=location_baf&submenu=0&leafsub=0 |title=Locations of Bangladesh Air Force Bases |publisher=Join Bangladesh Air Force |access-date=30 January 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170119095215/http://www.joinbangladeshairforce.mil.bd/index.php/main_controll/location_baf?1=1&pagemenu=location_baf&submenu=0&leafsub=0 |archive-date=19 January 2017}}</ref>

Dhaka hosts 54 resident embassies and high commissions and numerous international organizations. Most diplomatic missions are located in the Gulshan and Baridhara areas of the city. The Agargaon area near Parliament is home to the country offices of the {{wipe|United Nations}}, the [[Organization:World Bank|World Bank]], the Asian Development Bank, and the Islamic Development Bank.

===Civic administration===
[[File:DG 81 - 09 NAGAR BHABAN ANCIENT DHAKA IMG 1655.jpg|thumb|Nagar Bhaban is the seat of the Dhaka South City Corporation]]

====History====
The municipality of Dhaka was founded on 1 August 1864 and upgraded to "[[Finance:Municipal corporation|Metropolitan]]" status in 1978. In 1983, the Dhaka City Corporation was created as a self-governing entity to govern Dhaka.<ref name=star052015>{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/heritage/reminiscing-dhakas-legacy-80994 |title=Reminiscing Dhaka's Legacy |work=The Daily Star |date=8 May 2015 |author=Md Shahnawaz Khan Chandan |access-date=22 June 2017 |archive-date=1 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201030749/http://www.thedailystar.net/star-weekend/heritage/reminiscing-dhakas-legacy-80994 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Under a new act in 1993, an election was held in 1994 for the first elected Mayor of Dhaka.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=163943 |title=Mayor Hanif's death anniversary today |date=28 November 2010 |access-date=12 February 2015 |work=The Daily Star |archive-date=12 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212231852/http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=163943 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Dhaka City Corporation ran the affairs of the city until November 2011.<ref name=sum>{{cite news |title=Don't split Dhaka, Khoka urges govt |url=http://www.unbconnect.com/component/news/task-show/id-64245 |access-date=12 September 2012 |newspaper=UNBConnect |date=12 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405174018/http://www.unbconnect.com/component/news/task-show/id-64245 |archive-date=5 April 2012}}</ref>

====Municipal government====
In 2011, Dhaka City Corporation was split into two separate corporations – Dhaka North City Corporation and Dhaka South City Corporation to ensure better civic facilities.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=206982 |title=Dhaka set to split into two |work=The Daily Star |date=18 October 2011 |access-date=12 February 2015 |author=Hasan Jahid Tusher |archive-date=13 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150213005705/http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=206982 |url-status=live}}</ref> These two corporations are headed by two mayors, who are elected by direct vote of the citizen for 5 years. The area within city corporations was divided into several wards, each having an elected commissioner. In total, the city has 130 wards and 725 ''mohallas''.
* RAJUK is responsible for coordinating [[Engineering:Urban planning|urban development]] in the Greater Dhaka area.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Islam |first1=Md Asraful |title=Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha |url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Rajdhani_Unnayan_Kartripakkha |website=Banglapedia |access-date=26 July 2015 |archive-date=7 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507105228/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Rajdhani_Unnayan_Kartripakkha |url-status=live}}</ref>
* DMP is responsible for maintaining law and order within the metro area. It was established in 1976. DMP has 56 police stations as administrative units.<ref name="A">{{cite web|title=History of the DMP|url=http://www.dmp.gov.bd/application/index/page/history|publisher=Dhaka Metropolitan Police|access-date=18 October 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019123329/http://www.dmp.gov.bd/application/index/page/history|archive-date=19 October 2013}}</ref><ref name="Z">{{cite web|title=DMP&nbsp;– New Initiatives|url=http://www.dmp.gov.bd/static/new_initiative.php|publisher=Dhaka Metropolitan Police|access-date=30 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100916060427/http://www.dmp.gov.bd/static/new_initiative.php |archive-date=16 September 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Administrative agencies===
Unlike other megacities worldwide, Dhaka is serviced by over two dozen government organizations under different ministries. Lack of coordination among them and centralization of all powers by the Government of Bangladesh keeps the development and maintenance of the city in a chaotic situation.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/what-should-we-do-better-civic-services-205963|title=What should we do for better civic services|work=The Daily Star|date=23 January 2016|access-date=18 June 2016|archive-date=30 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630121655/http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/what-should-we-do-better-civic-services-205963|url-status=live}}</ref>
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Agency!!Service!!Parent agency
|-
|Dhaka North City Corporation<br />Dhaka South City Corporation
|[[Social:Public service|Public service]]
|Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives<br />&nbsp;∟ Local Government Division
|-
|Dhaka Metropolitan Police
|Law enforcement
|Ministry of Home Affairs<br />&nbsp;∟ Bangladesh Police
|-
|RAJUK
|[[Engineering:Urban planning|Urban planning]]
|Ministry of Housing and Public Works
|-
|Dhaka Electric Supply Company Limited<br />Dhaka Power Distribution Company Limited
|Power distribution
|Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources<br />&nbsp;∟ Power Division
|-
|Dhaka WASA
|Water supply
|Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives<br />&nbsp;∟ Local Government Division
|-
|Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority
|Transport
|Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges<br />&nbsp;∟Road Transport and Highways Division
|}

== Economy ==
[[File:Gulshan Avenue.jpg|thumb|Gulshan Avenue]][[File:Janata Bank Tower.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Janata Bank Tower]]
[[File:Panthakunja with the Basundhara City.jpg|thumb|Kawran Bazar]]
[[File:Bangladesh Bank Building.jpg|thumb|Bangladesh Bank Building]]
[[File:Uttara, Dhaka (33064531056).jpg|thumb|Uttara]]
[[File:Kamal Ataturk Avenue 2.jpg|thumb|Kamal Ataturk Avenue]]
As the most densely industrialized region of the country, the Greater Dhaka Area accounts for 35% of Bangladesh's economy.<ref name="Rezaul Karim">{{cite news |author=Rezaul Karim |date=24 February 2017 |title=Dhaka's economic activities unplanned: analysts |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/business/dhakas-economic-activities-unplanned-analysts-1366252 |newspaper=The Daily Star |access-date=13 July 2019 |archive-date=13 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190713203402/https://www.thedailystar.net/business/dhakas-economic-activities-unplanned-analysts-1366252 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Organization:Globalization and World Cities Research Network|Globalization and World Cities Research Network]] ranks Dhaka as a [[Global city|beta− global city]], in other words, one that is instrumental in linking their region into the world economy.<ref>{{cite web |title=The World According to GaWC 2020 |url=https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2020t.html |website=Globalization and World Cities |access-date=22 March 2021 |archive-date=24 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200824031341/https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2020t.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Major industrial areas are Tejgaon, Shyampur and Hazaribagh.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rrcap.unep.org/reports/soe/dhaka-soe-05/3-4dhaka-noise.pdf |title=Dhaka City State of Environment |year=2005 |publisher=Regional Resource centre for Asia and the Pacific, [[Organization:United Nations Environment Programme|United Nations Environment Programme]] |access-date=24 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207025410/http://www.rrcap.unep.org/reports/soe/dhaka-soe-05/3-4dhaka-noise.pdf |archive-date=7 February 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The city has a growing middle class, driving the market for modern consumer and luxury goods.<ref name="banglapedia" /><ref name="CiE" /> Shopping malls serve as vital elements in the city's economy.
The city has historically attracted numerous migrant workers.<ref name="EDemo1">{{cite web |last=McGee |first=Terry |date=27 September 2006 |url=http://www.prb.org/Articles/2001/UrbanizationTakesonNewDimensionsinAsiasPopulationGiants.aspx |title=Urbanization Takes on New Dimensions in Asia's Population Giants |publisher=Population Reference Bureau |access-date=27 September 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214234539/http://www.prb.org/Articles/2001/UrbanizationTakesonNewDimensionsinAsiasPopulationGiants.aspx |archive-date=14 February 2008}}</ref> Hawkers, peddlers, small shops, rickshaw transport, roadside vendors and stalls employ a large segment of the population<ref name="EDemo1"/><ref name="Rick">{{cite news |date=20 July 1998 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/136074.stm |title=Does Dhaka need rickshaws? |work=BBC News |access-date=27 September 2006 |archive-date=8 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308190144/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/136074.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> – rickshaw drivers alone number as many as 400,000.<ref>{{cite book |author=Robert Cervero |title=Informal Transport in the Developing World |page=39 |publisher=UN-HABITAT |year=2000 |isbn=92-1-131453-4}}</ref> Half the workforce is employed in household and unorganised labour, while about 800,000 work in the textile industry. The unemployment rate in Dhaka was 23% in 2013.<ref>{{cite web |author=Dhaka City Corporation |url=http://www.dhakacity.org/Page/Search_item_details/Search/Item_id/31/Item/employment/Dhaka_City_At_a_Glance |title=Dhaka City at a Glance |access-date=1 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115171206/http://www.dhakacity.org/Page/Search_item_details/Search/Item_id/31/Item/employment/Dhaka_City_At_a_Glance |archive-date=15 January 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Almost all large local conglomerates have their corporate offices located in Dhaka. [[Finance:Microcredit|Microcredit]] also began here and the offices of the Nobel Prize-winning [[Company:Grameen Bank|Grameen Bank]]<ref>{{cite news |title=Poverty Alleviation: Yunus calls for major reforms in World Bank |newspaper=The Daily Star |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=10351 |date=5 November 2007 |access-date=17 December 2008 |archive-date=5 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080305083011/http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=10351 |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Organization:BRAC|BRAC]] (the largest non-governmental development organisation in the world) are based in Dhaka.<ref>{{cite news |title=Blind eye to urban poor to spell social disaster:Conference on the poor told |newspaper=The Daily Star |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/12/05/d61205011711.htm |date=5 December 2007 |access-date=17 December 2008 |archive-date=23 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723203409/http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/12/05/d61205011711.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> Urban developments have sparked a widespread construction boom; new high-rise buildings and [[Engineering:Skyscraper|skyscraper]]s have changed the city's landscape.<ref name = "CiE"/> Growth has been especially strong in the finance, banking, manufacturing, telecommunications, and service sectors, while tourism, hotels, and restaurants continue as important elements of the Dhaka economy.<ref name="EDemo1"/>

Dhaka has rising traffic congestion and inadequate infrastructure; the national government has recently implemented a policy for rapid urbanization of surrounding areas and beyond by the introduction of a ten-year relief on income tax for new construction of facilities and buildings outside Dhaka.<ref name=townplan>{{cite news |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=62337 |title=Town planning for Bangladesh: Vision 2020 |date=8 November 2008 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=15 December 2008 |archive-date=19 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219005519/http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=62337 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===CBDs===
The Dhaka metropolitan area boasts of several central business districts (CBDs). In the southern part of the city, the riverfront of Old Dhaka is home to many small businesses, factories, and trading companies. Near Old Dhaka lies Motijheel, which is the biggest CBD in Bangladesh. The Motijheel area developed in the 1960s. Motijheel is home to the Bangladesh Bank, the nation's central bank; as well as the headquarters of the largest state-owned banks, including Janata Bank, Pubali Bank, Sonali Bank and Rupali Bank. By the 1990s, the affluent residential neighbourhoods of Gulshan, Banani and Uttara in the northern part of the city became major business centres and now hosts many international companies operating in Bangladesh. The Purbachal New Town Project is planned as the city's future CBD.

The following is a list of the main CBDs in Dhaka.
* Motijheel
* Kawran Bazar
* Paltan
* Dhanmondi
* Gulshan
* Banani
* Uttara
* Mirpur
* Bashundhara Residential Area
* Panthapath
* Maghbazar
* Mohakhali

===Industrial areas===
* Tejgaon
* Old Dhaka

===Trade associations===
Major trade associations based in the city include:
* Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce & Industries (FBCCI)
* Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI)
* Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI)
* Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA)
* Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA)
* Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (NOAB)
* Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB)

===Stock market===
The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) had a [[Social:Market capitalization|market capitalization]] of BDT 5,136,979.000 million in 2021.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ceicdata.com/en/bangladesh/dhaka-stock-exchange-market-capitalization |title=Bangladesh Dhaka Stock Exchange: Market Capitalization |website=CEIC Data |access-date=3 March 2022 |archive-date=3 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303084751/https://www.ceicdata.com/en/bangladesh/dhaka-stock-exchange-market-capitalization |url-status=live }}</ref> Some of the largest companies listed on the DSE include:<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dsebd.org/dse30_share.php |title=DS30 Index |website=Dhaka Stock Exchange |date= |access-date=4 March 2022 |archive-date=2 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211102131439/https://www.dsebd.org/dse30_share.php |url-status=live }}</ref>
* Grameenphone
* BEXIMCO
* BSRM
* Titas Gas
* Summit Group
* The City Bank
* BRAC Bank
* IDLC Finance Limited
* [[Company:Square Pharmaceuticals|Square Pharmaceuticals]]
* Eastern Bank Limited
* Orion Group

== Demographics ==
{{Historical populations
|align=right
|footnote=for Dhaka Agglomeration:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/dhaka-population/ |title=Dhaka population |website=World Population Review |access-date=30 January 2017 |archive-date=31 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731001426/http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/dhaka-population/ |url-status=live}}</ref>
|1951|335,760
|1961|507,921
|1971|1,373,718
|1981|3,265,663
|1991|6,620,697
|2001|10,284,947
|2011|14,730,537
|2022|22,478,116
}}

The city, in combination with localities forming the wider metropolitan area, is home to over 22&nbsp;million {{as of|2022|lc=on}}.<ref name="city population">{{cite web |title=Dhaka Population 2022 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs) |url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/dhaka-population |website=worldpopulationreview.com |access-date=18 February 2022 |archive-date=18 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218072147/https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/dhaka-population |url-status=live }}</ref> The population is growing by an estimated 3.3% per year,<ref name="city population"/> one of the highest rates among Asian cities.<ref name="EDemo1"/> The continuing growth reflects ongoing migration from rural areas to the Dhaka urban region, which accounted for 60% of the city's growth in the 1960s and 1970s. More recently, the city's population has also grown with the expansion of city boundaries, a process that added more than a million people to the city in the 1980s.<ref name="EDemo1"/> According to the ''Far Eastern Economic Review'', Dhaka will be home to 25&nbsp;million people by the end of 2025.<ref>{{cite news |author=Pepe Escobar |date=20 May 2006 |title=The accumulation of the wretched |url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/HE20Aa01.html |work=Asia Times |type=Book review |access-date=8 May 2010 |archive-date=31 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101031210457/http://atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/HE20Aa01.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Ethnicity===
The city population is composed of people from virtually every region of Bangladesh. The long-standing inhabitants of the old city are known as Dhakaite and have a distinctive Bengali dialect and culture. Dhaka is also home to a large number of Bihari refugees, who are descendants of migrant [[Religion:Muslims|Muslims]] from eastern India during 1947 and settled down in East Pakistan. The correct population of Biharis living in the city is ambiguous, but it is estimated that there are at least 300,000 Urdu-speakers in all of Bangladesh, mostly residing in old Dhaka and in refugee camps in Dhaka, although official figures estimate only 40,000.<ref name=fe>{{cite news |title=Govt ready to offer nationality to Urdu-speaking people: Moni |url=http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=110539 |access-date=12 April 2011 |newspaper=The Financial Express |location=Dhaka |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111104171314/http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=110539 |archive-date=4 November 2011}}</ref><ref name=dw>{{cite web |title=Socio-economic Problems of the Urdu Speaking Residents at Mohammadpur |url=http://www.dwatch-bd.org/ggtp/Research%20Reports/research3.pdf |publisher=Democracy Watch |access-date=12 April 2011 |archive-date=12 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612081936/http://www.dwatch-bd.org/ggtp/Research%20Reports/research3.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=ju>{{cite web |author=Tasmia Persoob |title=The Forgotten Community: Camp Based Urdu Speaking People in Bangladesh |url=http://akira-foundation.org/Documents/fellow%20product%20%28Tasmia%29.pdf |publisher=Jahangirnagar University |access-date=12 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322152732/http://akira-foundation.org/Documents/fellow%20product%20%28Tasmia%29.pdf |archive-date=22 March 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Between 15,000 and 20,000 of the Rohingya, Santal, Khasi, Garo, Chakma and Mandi tribal peoples reside in the city.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2006/15thanniv/ourcities/ourcities06.htm |title=::Our Cities::15th Anniversary Special |work=The Daily Star |access-date=8 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302043551/http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2006/15thanniv/ourcities/ourcities06.htm |archive-date=2 March 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Language===
{{Pie chart
|caption=Language in Dhaka (2011)
|label1=[[Social:Bengali language|Bengali]] |value1=98 |color1=Blue
|label2=[[Social:Urdu|Urdu]]|value2=1 |color2=Green
|label3=Others|value3=1 |color3=Orange}}
Most residents of Dhaka speak [[Social:Bengali language|Bengali]], the national language. Many distinctive Bengali dialects such as Dhakaiya Kutti, [[Social:Chittagonian language|Chittagonian]] and Sylheti are also spoken by segments of the population.  English is spoken by a large segment of the population, especially for business purposes. The city has both Bengali and English newspapers. [[Social:Urdu|Urdu]], including Dhakaiya Urdu, is spoken by members of several non-Bengali communities, including the Biharis.<ref>{{cite book |author=Sanghamitra Saha |title=A Linguist Visits Bangladesh: A Travelogue |page=8 |publisher=International School of Dravidian Linguistics |year=2001 |isbn=978-81-85692-30-2}}</ref>

===Literacy===
The literacy rate in Dhaka is also increasing quickly. It was estimated at 69.2% in 2001. The literacy rate had gone up to 74.6% by 2011<ref name="District Statistics 2011, Dhaka"/> which is significantly higher than the national average of 72%.<ref name="bangladesh1">{{cite web |url=http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/SubjectMatterDataIndex/YB-2012.pdf |title=Statistical Yearbook of Bangladesh 2012, Page 35 |publisher=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics |access-date=14 May 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150807103320/http://www.bbs.gov.bd/WebTestApplication/userfiles/Image/SubjectMatterDataIndex/YB-2012.pdf |archive-date=7 August 2015}}</ref>

===Religion===
{{bar box
|title = Religion in Dhaka City (2011)<ref name="census2011" />
|titlebar=#Fcd116
|left1=Religion
|right1=Percent
|float = right
|bars =
{{bar percent|Islam|green|95.72}}
{{bar percent|Hinduism|darkorange|3.60}}
{{bar percent|Christianity|blue|0.55}}
{{bar percent|Other or not stated|gray|0.13}}
}}

Islam is the dominant religion of the city, with 19.3 million of the city's population being Muslim, and a majority belonging to the Sunni sect. There is also a small Shia sect, and an Ahmadiya community. Hinduism is the second-largest religion numbering around 1.47 million adherents. Smaller segments represent 1% and practise Christianity and Buddhism. In the city proper, over 8.5 million of the 8.9 million residents are Muslims, while 320,000 are Hindu and nearly 50,000 Christian.<ref name="Dhaka - Banglapedia">{{cite web |url=https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Dhaka |title=Dhaka |website=Banglapedia |access-date=17 June 2021 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624200253/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Dhaka |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="census2011">{{cite web |url=http://www.bbs.gov.bd/Census2011/Dhaka/Dhaka/Dhaka_C13.pdf |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20141113213203/http://www.bbs.gov.bd/Census2011/Dhaka/Dhaka/Dhaka_C13.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 November 2014 |title=Population Census 2011: Dhaka Table C-13 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |website=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics |access-date=11 July 2014}}</ref>

== Culture ==

===Literature===
Dhaka is a major centre for Bengali literature. It has been the hub of Bengali Muslim literature for more than a century. Its heritage also includes historic [[Social:Urdu|Urdu]] and [[Social:Persian language|Persian]] literary traditions. ''The Soldier in the Attic'' by Akhteruzzaman Elias is considered to be one of the best depictions of life in Old Dhaka and is set during Bengali uprisings in 1969. ''A Golden Age'' by Tahmima Anam is also set in Dhaka during the Bangladeshi War of Independence and includes references to the Dhaka Club, the Dhaka University and the Dhanmondi area. The ''Dark Diamond'' by Shazia Omar traverses through Dhaka's history, beginning with the rule of Shaista Khan in the Mughal period.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/books/story/20161017-dark-diamond-shazia-omar-mughal-era-book-review-829668-2016-10-06 |title=Mughal noir |magazine=India Today |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928194352/https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/books/story/20161017-dark-diamond-shazia-omar-mughal-era-book-review-829668-2016-10-06 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Festivals===
{{multiple image
 | direction     = horizontal
 | total_width   = 400
 | caption_align = centre
 | image1        = Shaheed Minar.JPG
 | image2        = Mangal Shobhajatra in Dhaka.jpg
 | caption1      = The Central Shaheed Minar on Language Movement Day
 | caption2      = Dhaka's annual Mangal Shobhajatra during the Bengali New Year is recognized by [[Organization:UNESCO|UNESCO]] as an [[Social:Intangible cultural heritage|intangible cultural heritage]] of humanity
}}
Annual celebrations for Language Martyrs' Day (21 February), Independence Day (26 March), and Victory Day (16 December) are prominently celebrated across the city. Dhaka's people congregate at the Shaheed Minar and the Jatiyo Smriti Soudho to remember the national heroes of the liberation war. These occasions are observed with public ceremonies and rallies on public grounds. Many schools and colleges organise fairs, festivals, and concerts in which citizens from all levels of society participate.<ref name = "Cul"/>
''Pohela Baishakh'', the Bengali New Year, falls annually on 14 April and is popularly celebrated across the city.<ref name="Cul">{{cite news |last=Ahmed |first=Nizamuddin |date=27 September 2006 |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2006/15thanniv/ourcities/ourcities01.htm |title=Happy 400th anniversary, Dhaka! |work=The Daily Star |access-date=27 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302091655/http://www.thedailystar.net/suppliments/2006/15thanniv/ourcities/ourcities01.htm |archive-date=2 March 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Large crowds of people gather on the streets of Shahbag, Ramna Park and the campus of the University of Dhaka for celebrations. ''Pahela Falgun'', the first day of spring of the month Falgun in the Bengali calendar, is also festively celebrated in the city.<ref name=history>{{cite news |title=Pohela Falgun celebrated |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=174151/ |newspaper=The Daily Star |date=14 February 2011 |access-date=18 January 2021 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304074436/http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=174151%2F |url-status=live}}</ref> This day is marked with colourful celebration and traditionally, women wear yellow saris to celebrate this day. This celebration is also known as ''Basanta Utsab'' (Spring Festival). Nabanna is a harvest celebration, usually celebrated with food and dance, and music on the 1st day of the month of Agrahayan of the Bengali year.  Birthdays of Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam are observed respectively as Rabindra Jayanti and Nazrul Jayanti. The Ekushey Book Fair, which is arranged each year by Bangla Academy, takes place for the whole month of February. This event is dedicated to the martyrs who died on 21 February 1952 in a demonstration calling for the establishment of Bengali as one of the state languages of former East Pakistan. Shakrain Festival is an annual celebration observed with the flying of kites.<ref name=dstar>{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=170574 |title=Shakrain festival |work=The Daily Star |date=19 January 2011 |access-date=14 January 2019 |archive-date=18 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118102208/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-170574 |url-status=live}}</ref> It is usually observed in the old part of the city at the end of Poush, the ninth month of the Bengali calendar (14 or 15 January in the [[Gregorian calendar]]).

The Islamic festivals of Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha, [[Religion:Mawlid|Eid-E-Miladunnabi]] and [[Religion:Muharram|Muharram]]; the Hindu festival of [[Religion:Durga Puja|Durga Puja]]; the Buddhist festival of Buddha Purnima; and the Christian festival of Christmas witness widespread celebrations across the city.

Despite the growing popularity of music groups and rock bands, traditional folk music remains widely popular.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Siddiqui |first=Kamal |chapter=Dhaka |editor=Lothar Beckel |title=Mega Cities |page=130 |publisher=GEOSPACE Verlag |year=2001 |isbn=3-85313-051-8}}</ref> The works of the national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam, national anthem writer [[Biography:Rabindranath Tagore|Rabindranath Tagore]] and mystic saint songwriter Lalon have a widespread following across Dhaka.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Arnold |first=Alison |title=The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: The Indian Subcontinent |pages=858–859 |publisher=Routledge |year=1999 |isbn=0-8240-4946-2}}</ref> Bailey Road is known as ''natak para'' (drama neighbourhood) for its two theatre halls.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Hoque |first=Mofidul |editor-last1=Herbert |editor-first1=Ian |editor-last2=Leclercq |editor-first2=Nicole |encyclopedia=The World of Theatre |title=Bangladesh |edition=2000 |year=2000 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0-415-23866-8 |page=12}}</ref>

For much of recent history, Dhaka was characterized by roadside markets and small shops that sold a wide variety of goods.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Seabrook |first=Jeremy |title=In the Cities of the South: Scenes from a Developing World |page=[https://archive.org/details/incitiesofsouths0004seab/page/221 221] |publisher=Verso Books |year=1996 |isbn=1-85984-081-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/incitiesofsouths0004seab/page/221}}</ref> Recent years have seen the widespread construction of shopping malls.<ref>{{Cite book |title=World and Its Peoples |page=489 |publisher=Marshall Cavendish Corporation |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7614-7631-3}}</ref> Two of the largest shopping malls in the city and the wider South Asian region are the Jamuna Future Park and Bashundhara City.
[[File:Grave - Kazi Nazrul Islam - University of Dhaka Campus - Dhaka 2015-05-31 2306-2307.tif|thumb|Tomb of Kazi Nazrul Islam]]
[[File:Ekushey Book Fair 2018 (24).jpg|thumb|A Bengali book stall at the Ekushey Book Fair]]

===Cultural institutions===
* Bengal Foundation
* Chhayanaut
* Institute of Fine Arts
* Nazrul Institute
* Samdani Art Foundation
* Shilpakala Academy

===Annual and biennial cultural events===
* Bengal Classical Music Festival
* Chobi Mela International Photography Festival
* Dhaka Art Summit
* Dhaka Lit Fest
* Dhaka World Music Festival
* Dhaka International Book Fair
* Dhaka International Trade Fair
* Ekushey Book Fair

===Cuisine===
[[File:Kacchi Biriyani.jpg|thumb|Dhaka has a popular style of mutton and potato biryani, known as the ''Kachi Biryani''.]]
[[File:Bakorkhani.jpg|thumb|Bakarkhani]]
Historically, Dhaka has been the culinary capital of Bengal in terms of Mughlai cuisine. A distinct variant of Bengali-Mughlai cuisine evolved in the city. Chefs from Dhaka, the former Mughal provincial capital, served in the kitchens of the Nawabs of Bengal in Murshidabad. They invented the ''kacchi biryani'', which is a variant of biryani with mutton steaks and potatoes. One of the longest surviving outlets serving authentic ''kacchi biryani'' is Fakhruddin's.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2021/01/26/from-a-school-kitchen-to-a-household-name-the-history-of-fakhruddin-biryani |title=From a school kitchen to a household name, the history of Fakhruddin Biryani |work=Dhaka Tribune |date=26 January 2021 |access-date=30 September 2022 |archive-date=3 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003020923/https://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2021/01/26/from-a-school-kitchen-to-a-household-name-the-history-of-fakhruddin-biryani |url-status=live }}</ref> ''Kachi biryani'' is highly popular in Bangladeshi cuisine, with food critic and former MasterChef Australia judge Matt Preston praising its use of potatoes.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://bdnews24.com/lifestyle/2016/03/28/dhakas-biryani-can-be-unesco-world-heritage-says-food-critic-matt-preston |title=Dhaka's biryani can be UNESCO world heritage, says food critic Matt Preston |work=bdnews24.com |date=28 March 2016 |access-date=4 March 2022 |archive-date=3 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303152250/https://bdnews24.com/lifestyle/2016/03/28/dhakas-biryani-can-be-unesco-world-heritage-says-food-critic-matt-preston |url-status=live }}</ref> Borhani is served as a drink alongside biryani. The Nawabi cuisine of Dhaka was notable for its ''patishapta'' dessert and the ''Kubali pulao''. The korma recipe of the Nawab family was included by Madhur Jaffrey in her cookbook "Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nawabbari.com/main_food.html?string=food.html|title=The official web site of the Dhaka Nawab Family: Things You Should Know...|website=www.nawabbari.com|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=8 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230608122520/http://nawabbari.com/main_food.html?string=food.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Bakarkhani breads from Dhaka were served in the courts of Mughal rulers.<ref>{{Cite book |author=Melvin Ember, Carol R. Ember |title=Encyclopedia of Urban Cultures : Cayenne-Kyoto: Cities and Cultures Around the World |page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofur0000unse/page/147 147] |publisher=Grolier |year=2002 |isbn=0-7172-5698-7 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofur0000unse/page/147}}</ref>

Since 1939, Haji biryani has been a leading biryani restaurant in the city. Dhaka also has a style of ''Murg Pulao'' (chicken biryani) which uses [[Biology:Turmeric|turmeric]] and ''malai'' (cream of milk) together.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/living-and-lifestyle/treasures-bangladeshi-cuisine-1366105 |title=Treasures of Bangladeshi cuisine |date=24 February 2017 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=1 March 2017 |archive-date=28 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228153936/http://www.thedailystar.net/living-and-lifestyle/treasures-bangladeshi-cuisine-1366105 |url-status=live}}</ref> Local kebabs are widely eaten when dining out. The seekh kebab and chicken tikka are the most popular dishes in kebab restaurants, which are eaten with either naan or paratha. Star Kabab is the most popular kebab chain in the city, alongside other chains and gourmet restaurants.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.tbsnews.net/feature/food/5-best-kabab-places-dhaka-148747 | title=5 best Kabab places in Dhaka | work=The Business News | date=23 October 2020 | access-date=25 June 2023 | archive-date=25 June 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625205053/https://www.tbsnews.net/feature/food/5-best-kabab-places-dhaka-148747 | url-status=live }}</ref> Along with South Asian cuisine, a large variety of Western and Chinese cuisine is served at numerous restaurants and food courts.<ref name="CiE">{{cite news |last=Lawson |first=Alistair |date=1 June 2002 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2018535.stm |title=Good times for bourgeois Bangladeshis |work=BBC News |access-date=2 October 2006 |archive-date=24 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324150041/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2018535.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> Upmarket areas include many Thai, Japanese and Korean restaurants.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://theculturetrip.com/asia/bangladesh/articles/bangladesh-s-10-best-cultural-restaurants-a-world-of-inspiration/ |title=A World of Inspiration at Bangladesh's 10 Best Restaurants |date=20 January 2014 |access-date=30 September 2022 |archive-date=30 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930225733/https://theculturetrip.com/asia/bangladesh/articles/bangladesh-s-10-best-cultural-restaurants-a-world-of-inspiration/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Italian food is also very popular in Dhaka, especially in upmarket areas.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.tbsnews.net/features/food/top-five-lasagnas-dhaka-328642 | title=Top five lasagnas in Dhaka | work=The Business Standard | date=12 November 2021 | access-date=3 July 2023 | archive-date=3 July 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703211919/https://www.tbsnews.net/features/food/top-five-lasagnas-dhaka-328642 | url-status=live }}</ref>

During [[Religion:Ramadan|Ramadan]], Chowkbazaar becomes a busy marketplace for ''[[Religion:Iftar|iftar]]'' items. The ''jilapi'' of Dhaka are much thicker than counterparts in India and Pakistan.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://archive.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2021/04/27/op-ed-jilapi-vs-jalebi |title=OP-ED: 'Jilapi' vs 'Jalebi' |work=Dhaka Tribune |date=26 April 2021 |access-date=30 September 2022 |archive-date=30 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930225733/https://archive.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2021/04/27/op-ed-jilapi-vs-jalebi |url-status=live }}</ref> The Shahi jilapi (king's jilapi) is one of the thickest jilapi produced. The ''phuchka'' and ''jhalmuri'' are popular street food. Dhaka hosts an array of Bengali dessert chains that sell a wide variety of sweets. Samosas and ''shingaras'' are also widely eaten traditional snacks. In recent years, the number of Bangladeshi-owned burger outlets has increased across the city. Notable bakeries include the Prince of Wales bakery in Old Dhaka and the Cooper's chain.

===Architecture===
{{multiple image|perrow=2|total_width=400
| align = right
| image_style = border:none;
| title =
| image1 = Haturia House - Khanka E Aliya - Dhaka by NKS.jpg
| caption1 = Haturia House was built in the Anglo-Mughal style in 1920
| image2 = বায়তুর রউফ মসজিদ.jpg
| caption2 = Bait Ur Rouf Mosque was built in the modernist style in 2012
}}
The architectural history of Dhaka can be subdivided into the Mughal, British, and modern periods. As a result, Dhaka has landmarks of Mughal architecture, Indo-Saracenic architecture, and modernist architecture. The oldest brick structure in the city is the Binat Bibi Mosque, which was built in 1454 in the Narinda area of Dhaka during the reign of the Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah (r. 1435 – 1459) of the Bengal Sultanate.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.tcl?site_id=7368 |title=Binat Bibi Mosque |publisher=ArchNet Digital Library |access-date=18 September 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060301041726/http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.tcl?site_id=7368 |archive-date=1 March 2006}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/forum/2008/august/jahangirnagar.htm |title=''From Jahangirnagar to Dhaka'' by Faruque Hasan in ''The Daily Star'' |access-date=22 June 2017 |archive-date=25 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025233001/http://www.thedailystar.net/forum/2008/august/jahangirnagar.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> Old Dhaka is home to over 2000 buildings built between the 16th and 19th centuries, which form an integral part of Dhaka's cultural heritage. Modern Dhaka is often criticized as a concrete jungle.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/editorial/greening-the-concrete-jungle-1578413306 |title=Greening the concrete jungle |work=The Financial Express |location=Dhaka |access-date=2 October 2022 |archive-date=2 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204203/https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/editorial/greening-the-concrete-jungle-1578413306 |url-status=live }}</ref> But there are hidden gems in the concrete jungle, including traces of Dhaka's Mughal and colonial past; as well as landmarks of modernist architecture.

In the old part of the city, the fading grandeur of the Mughal era is evident in the crumbling, neglected caravanserai like Bara Katra and Choto Katra. Some structures like the Nimtali arch have been restored. The old city features narrow alleyways with high-walled lanes and houses with indoor courtyards.<ref name="himalmag1"/> The early 20th century government quarter in Ramna includes stately colonial buildings set amidst gardens and parks.<ref name="himalmag1"/> Among colonial buildings, the Curzon Hall stands out for "synthesizing imperial grandiosity with sporadic Mughal motifs, the imposing building symbolizes how the colonial administration sought to include elements of 'local' architecture as a way to show its sensitivity to native culture, which they hoped would counter growing nationalist sentiments among the natives".<ref name="25Buildings">{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/the-story-dhaka-told-through-25-buildings-1589212 |title=The story of Dhaka, as told through 25 buildings |date=11 June 2018 |work=The Daily Star (Bangladesh) |access-date=2 October 2022 |archive-date=2 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204157/https://www.thedailystar.net/in-focus/the-story-dhaka-told-through-25-buildings-1589212 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Amongst modernist buildings, the Grameenphone headquarters is described as "a paradigm setter for corporate Bangladesh".<ref name="25Buildings"/> The Museum of Independence and its attached national monument were inspired by the "land-water mysticism of deltaic Bengal" and the "evocative expansiveness of a Roman forum or the geographical assemblage of an Egyptian ''mastaba'' sanctuary".<ref name="25Buildings"/> Dhaka's Art Institute, designed by Muzharul Islam, was the pioneering building of Bengali regional modernism.<ref name="25Buildings"/> The vast expanse of the national parliament complex was designed by Louis Kahn. It is celebrated as Dhaka's pre-eminent civic space.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://bengal.institute/news/is-there-good-architecture-in-dhaka/|title=Is There Good Architecture in Dhaka?|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=19 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119100053/https://bengal.institute/news/is-there-good-architecture-in-dhaka/|url-status=live}}</ref> The national parliament complex comprises 200&nbsp;acres (800,000&nbsp;m<sup>2</sup>) in the heart of the city.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ali |first1=Meer Mobashsher |last2=Rouf |first2=Md Abdur |year=2012 |chapter=Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban |chapter-url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Jatiya_Sangsad_Bhaban |editor1-last=Islam |editor1-first=Sirajul |editor1-link=Sirajul Islam |editor2-last=Jamal |editor2-first=Ahmed A. |title=Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh |edition=Second |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |access-date=27 June 2017 |archive-date=4 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804173557/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Jatiya_Sangsad_Bhaban |url-status=live}}</ref> The  Kamalapur railway station was designed by American architect Robert Boughey.<ref name="Morshed"/> In the last few decades, Bangladesh's new wave of cultural architecture has been influenced by Bengali aesthetics and the environment.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://architizer.com/blog/inspiration/stories/new-bangladesh-shatotto/ |title=New Bangladesh: How Shatotto is Reimagining Architecture in Dhaka - Architizer Journal |date=2 December 2019 |access-date=2 October 2022 |archive-date=2 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221002204203/https://architizer.com/blog/inspiration/stories/new-bangladesh-shatotto/ |url-status=live }}</ref> City Centre Bangladesh is currently the tallest building in the city.

===Publishing and media===
{{multiple image|perrow=2|total_width=400
| align = right
| image_style = border:none;
| title =
| image1 = Collection of Bangladesh Newspapers.jpg
| caption1 = Major titles of the Bengali press 
| image2 = Collection of Bangladesh English Newspapers.jpg
| caption2 = Dhaka's English language newspapers  
}}
In 1849, the Kattra Press became the first printing press in the city. The name eludes to the ''katra'', the Bengali word for caravanserai. In 1856, ''Dacca News'' became the first English-language newspaper in the city. The Dacca News Press was the first commercial printing press in the city. Books published in Dhaka stirred discourse in the social and literary circles of Bengal. The Bengal Library Catalogue records the expansion of the publishing industry during the 1860s. Between 1877 and 1895, there were 45 printing presses in Dhaka. Between 1863 and 1900, more than a hundred Islamic puthi were published in Dhaka. Bookshops sprang up in Chowkbazaar, Islampur, Mughaltuli, and Patuatuli. Albert Library was a den for leftwing activists.<ref name="thedailystar2">{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/daily-star-books/news/how-partition-impacted-the-dhaka-book-trade-3098506 |title=How Partition impacted the Dhaka book trade |date=19 August 2022 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=31 August 2022 |archive-date=31 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220831145925/https://www.thedailystar.net/daily-star-books/news/how-partition-impacted-the-dhaka-book-trade-3098506 |url-status=live }}</ref> After partition, the number of publishing houses in Dhaka rose from 27 in 1947 to 88 in 1966.<ref name="thedailystar2"/> Prominent bookshops included Wheeler's Bookstall and Presidency Library. Banglabazaar has since become the hub of the book trade.<ref name="thedailystar2"/> Bookworm is a famous local book shop that has been located adjacent to the Prime Minister's Office for three decades until being ordered to relocate in 2022.<ref>{{cite news |title=Bookworm Bangladesh: Three decades of Dhaka's famous outlet for English books |url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2022/10/27/three-decades-of-dhakas-famous-outlet-for-english-books |work=Dhaka Tribune |access-date=28 October 2022 |archive-date=28 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028130510/https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2022/10/27/three-decades-of-dhakas-famous-outlet-for-english-books |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bookworm Bangladesh to vacate its home of three decades |url=https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/ywz4iysvqy |work=bdnews24.com |access-date=28 October 2022 |archive-date=28 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028130752/https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/ywz4iysvqy |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bookworm Bangladesh to vacate shop after 30 years of serving readers |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/daily-star-books/news/bookworm-bangladesh-vacate-shop-after-30-years-serving-readers-3152751 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=28 October 2022 |archive-date=28 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028130753/https://www.thedailystar.net/daily-star-books/news/bookworm-bangladesh-vacate-shop-after-30-years-serving-readers-3152751 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Dhaka is the centre of the national media in Bangladesh. It is home to the state-owned Bangladesh Television and Bangladesh Betar. In recent years, the number of privately owned television channels and radio stations has increased greatly. There are over two dozen Bengali language television channels in the private sector, including 24-hour news channels. Radio is also popular across the city. Dhaka is home to national newspapers, including Bengali newspapers like ''Prothom Alo'',<ref>{{cite news |url=https://en.banglatribune.com/others/news/89438/No-arrest-of-Prothom-Alo-editor-until-bail |title=No arrest of Prothom Alo editor until bail hearing: HC |date=19 January 2020 |access-date=22 October 2022 |work=Bangla Tribune |archive-date=30 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930094909/https://en.banglatribune.com/others/news/89438/No-arrest-of-Prothom-Alo-editor-until-bail |url-status=live }}</ref> ''Ittefaq'', ''Inqilab'', ''Janakantha'', and ''Jugantor''; as well as English language newspapers ''The Daily Star'',<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/conference-hall |title=The Daily Star Conference Hall |work=The Daily Star |access-date=28 September 2022 |archive-date=28 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928194401/https://www.thedailystar.net/conference-hall |url-status=live }}</ref> ''The Financial Express'', ''The Business Standard'', ''Dhaka Tribune'', and ''New Age''. Broadcast media based in Dhaka include Gaan Bangla, Banglavision, DBC News, Somoy TV, Independent TV and Ekattor.

== Education and research ==
[[File:Curzon Hall 0003.jpg|thumb|left|Curzon Hall is the home of the Faculty of Science, Dhaka University]]
[[File:Dhaka University 03710.JPG|thumb|The Teacher-Student Centre in Dhaka University, designed by Constantinos Apostolou Doxiadis, is one of the major student hubs of the city]]
Dhaka has the largest number of schools, colleges and universities of any Bangladeshi city. The education system is divided into five levels: primary (from grades 1 to 5), junior (from grades 6 to 8), secondary (from grades 9 to 10), higher secondary (from grades 11 to 12) and tertiary.<ref name=CompEd>{{cite book |author=T. Neville Postlethwaite |title=The Encyclopedia of Comparative Education and National Systems of Education |page=130 |publisher=Pergamon Press |year=1988 |isbn=0-08-030853-8}}</ref> The five years of primary education concludes with a Primary School Completion (PSC) Examination, the three years of junior education concludes with Junior School Certificate (JSC) Examination. Next, two years of secondary education concludes with a Secondary School Certificate (SSC) Examination. Students who pass this examination proceed to two years of higher secondary or intermediate training, which culminate in a Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSC) Examination.<ref name=CompEd/> Education is mainly offered in Bengali. However, English is also widely taught and used. Many Muslim families send their children to attend part-time courses or even to pursue full-time religious education alongside other subjects, which is imparted in Bengali and Arabic in schools, colleges and [[Engineering:Madrasa#Bangladesh|madrasas]].<ref name=CompEd/>

There are 52 universities in Dhaka. Dhaka College is the oldest institution for higher education in the city and among the earliest established in British India, founded in 1841. Since independence, Dhaka has seen the establishment of numerous public and private colleges and universities that offer undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as a variety of doctoral programs.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Growth of academic institutions |author=Kamal Siddiqui |title=Social Formation in Dhaka City: A Study in Third World Urban Sociology |page=42 |publisher=University Press Limited |location=Dhaka |year=1990 |oclc=23989900}}</ref> The University of Dhaka is the oldest public university in the country which has more than 30,000 students and 1,800 faculty staff.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dhaka teachers on violence charge |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7138123.stm |work=BBC News |date=11 December 2007 |access-date=15 May 2008 |archive-date=14 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071214124759/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7138123.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> It was established in 1921 being the first university in the region. The university has 23 research centres and 70 departments, faculties, and institutes.<ref name="DhakaU">{{cite web |url=http://www.univdhaka.edu/fastFacts.php |title=Univ. Facts |website=University of Dhaka |access-date=10 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060904074222/http://www.univdhaka.edu/fastFacts.php |archive-date=4 September 2006}}</ref> Eminent seats of higher education include Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Jagannath University and Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sau.edu.bd/about/history-a-act |url-status=dead |title=History & act |website=Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928035835/http://www.sau.edu.bd/about/history-a-act |archive-date=28 September 2011 |access-date=19 October 2011}}</ref> Dhaka Medical College is one of the oldest and largest medical colleges in the country.<ref>{{cite book |author=Muhammad Shamsul Huq |title=Higher Education and Employment in Bangladesh |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000075760/PDF/75760eng.pdf.multi |publisher=UNESCO |year=1983 |page=181 |isbn=92-803-1102-6 |access-date=22 March 2021 |archive-date=19 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519032119/https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000075760/PDF/75760eng.pdf.multi |url-status=live }}</ref> Founded in 1875, the Dhaka Medical School was the first medical school in British East Bengal, which became Sir Salimullah Medical College in 1962.<ref>{{citation |author=Shahida Alam |chapter=Mitford Hospital |chapter-url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Mitford_Hospital |title=Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh |editor=Sirajul Islam and Ahmed A. Jamal |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |year=2012 |edition=Second |access-date=8 June 2017 |archive-date=1 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401071734/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Mitford_Hospital |url-status=live}}</ref> Other government medical colleges are Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College, Mugda Medical College and Armed Forces Medical College, Dhaka.

Two Nobel laureates are prominently associated with the city, including Amartya Sen who grew up in the city during the 1930s and 1940s, and attended St. Gregory's School;<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/education/back-to-the-alma-mater-1580929247|title=Back to the alma mater|work=The Financial Express|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=21 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230821234546/https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/education/back-to-the-alma-mater-1580929247|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/contribute-nations-development-3076521|title=Expat alumni of St Gregory's High School and College form not-for-profit organisation|author=Staff Correspondent|date=22 July 2022|work=The Daily Star|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=21 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230821220033/https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/contribute-nations-development-3076521|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.getbengal.com/details/amartya-sens-nostalgia-jagat-kutir-his-home-in-dhaka|title=Amartya Sen's nostalgia: Jagat Kutir, his home in Dhaka|website=Get Bengal|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=21 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230821220034/https://www.getbengal.com/details/amartya-sens-nostalgia-jagat-kutir-his-home-in-dhaka|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news/amartya-sens-lovehate-for-dhaka|title=Amartya Sen's Love/Hate for Dhaka|first=Nazrul|last=Islam|date=4 January 1999|work=The Daily Star|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=21 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230821220034/https://www.thedailystar.net/news/amartya-sens-lovehate-for-dhaka|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Biography:Muhammad Yunus|Muhammad Yunus]], who studied at Dhaka University, founded the [[Company:Grameen Bank|Grameen Bank]] and lives in the city.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2006/yunus/biographical/|title=The Nobel Peace Prize 2006|website=NobelPrize.org|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=26 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726173150/https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2006/yunus/biographical/|url-status=live}}</ref>

{{clear}}

===Learned societies and think tanks===
[[File:Bangla Academy Inside 2 by Ashfaq.jpg|thumb|The Bangla Academy]]
*Asiatic Society of Bangladesh
*Atomic Energy Centre, Dhaka
*Bangla Academy
*Bangladesh Academy of Sciences
*Bangladesh Enterprise Institute
*[[Organization:Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies|Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies]]
*Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies
*Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs
*Bangladesh Institute of Peace & Security Studies
*[[Organization:Centre for Policy Dialogue|Centre for Policy Dialogue]]
*Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific
*[[Organization:International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh|International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh]]
*[[Organization:International Jute Study Group|International Jute Study Group]]
*[[Organization:Space Research and Remote Sensing Organization|Space Research and Remote Sensing Organization]]
*[[Organization:Yunus Centre|Yunus Centre]]

== Sports ==
[[File:Mirpur Indoor Stadium, Dhaka.jpeg|thumb|Mirpur Indoor Stadium]]
[[File:BPL Fire Works.jpg|thumb|Fireworks at the launch of a Bangladesh Premier League season]]
[[File:Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka, Bangladesh.jpg|thumb|221x221px|Bangabandhu National Stadium, the largest football stadium in Dhaka]]
Cricket and football are the two most popular sports in Dhaka and across the nation.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Bangladesh |title=The New Encyclopædia Britannica |editor=Robert MacHenry |page=[https://archive.org/details/newencyclopaedia07ency/page/717 717] |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica |year=1993 |isbn=0-85229-571-5 |chapter-url-access=registration |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/newencyclopaedia07ency/page/717}}</ref> Teams are fielded in intra-city and national competitions by many schools, colleges and private entities. The Dhaka Metropolis cricket team represents Dhaka City in the National Cricket League, the oldest domestic first-class cricket competition in Bangladesh.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/news/ncl-set-start-today-2064609 |title=NCL set to start today |work=The Daily Star |date=22 March 2021 |access-date=26 May 2021 |archive-date=26 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526090434/https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/news/ncl-set-start-today-2064609 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Dhaka Premier League is the only domestic List A cricket tournament now in Bangladesh. It gained List A status in 2013–14 season.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/story/669635.html |title=Revamped Dhaka League ready for kick-off |access-date=30 January 2017 |archive-date=3 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203002509/http://www.espncricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/story/669635.html |url-status=live}}</ref> In domestic Twenty20 cricket, Dhaka has a Bangladesh Premier League franchise known as Minister Dhaka.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/cricket/news/dhaka-platoon-sent-packing-1853842 |title=Dhaka Platoon sent packing |work=The Daily Star |date=14 January 2020 |access-date=24 May 2021 |archive-date=25 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210525115137/https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/cricket/news/dhaka-platoon-sent-packing-1853842 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Dhaka has the distinction of having hosted the first official Test cricket match of the Pakistan cricket team in 1954 against India.<ref name="First test">{{cite news |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |date=7 September 2006 |url=http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/ground/56661.html |title=Stadium |access-date=26 May 2006 |archive-date=25 June 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060625130015/http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/ground/56661.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The Bangabandhu National Stadium was formerly the main venue for domestic and international cricket matches, but now exclusively hosts football matches.<ref name="First test" /> It hosted the opening ceremony of the 2011 Cricket World Cup,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/9400288.stm |title=Cricket World Cup: Grand ceremony launches tournament |work=BBC Sport |date=17 February 2011 |access-date=20 June 2011 |archive-date=19 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219051338/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/9400288.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> while the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, exclusively used for cricket, hosted 6 matches of the tournament including two quarter-final matches.<ref name="2011WC">{{cite news |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/engine/series/381449.html |title=ICC Cricket World Cup 2010/11 / Results |access-date=20 June 2011 |archive-date=17 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717161309/http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/engine/series/381449.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Dhaka has also hosted the South Asian Games three times, in 1985, 1993 and 2010. Dhaka is the first city to host the games three times. The Bangabandhu National Stadium was the main venue for all three editions.<ref name=news1>{{cite news |url=http://www.china.org.cn/sports/news/2009-02/18/content_17295836.htm |title=11th South Asian Games to start in January 2010 |work=Xinhua News Agency |access-date=21 March 2009 |archive-date=11 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100211214613/http://www.china.org.cn/sports/news/2009-02/18/content_17295836.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> Dhaka also hosted the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, along with Chittagong and Sylhet, in 2014.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cricketworld4u.com/series/icc-twenty20-wc-2014/index.php |title=2014 T20 WC Fixtures |date=27 October 2013 |access-date=24 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101223826/http://www.cricketworld4u.com/series/icc-twenty20-wc-2014/index.php |archive-date=1 November 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In football, the Dhaka Derby between Mohammedan SC and Abahani Limited Dhaka is the biggest sports rivalry in the country. The two clubs have maintained their fierce rivalry over the years in the Bangladesh Football Premier League and previously in the historic Dhaka League, which is the second oldest football league in South Asia, officially commencing in 1948.<ref name="starsport">{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/06/17/d70617040133.htm |title=Tasty derby drawn |author=Al Musabbir Sadi |work=The Daily Star |date=17 June 2007 |access-date=21 February 2009 |archive-date=15 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080515234304/http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/06/17/d70617040133.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> The Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka has been the home venue for the national football team since 2005.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dailyindustry.news/bangabandhu-national-stadium-to-be-decorated-at-a-cost-of-tk-96-cr/|title=Bangabandhu National Stadium to be decorated at a cost of Tk 96 cr – The Daily Industry|accessdate=1 September 2023|archive-date=24 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220524004924/https://dailyindustry.news/bangabandhu-national-stadium-to-be-decorated-at-a-cost-of-tk-96-cr/|url-status=live}}</ref> It has hosted the SAFF Championship on three occasions, with the first being the 2003 edition, which Bangladesh went on to win.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pavilion.com.bd/details/news/20155/%E0%A6%AB%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%96%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%83-%E0%A6%B8%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AB-%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AE%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AA%E0%A6%BF%E0%A7%9F%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%B6%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AA-%27%E0%A7%A6%E0%A7%A9 |script-title=bn:ফিরে দেখাঃ সাফ চ্যাম্পিয়নশিপ '০৩ |first=নওশাদ |last=জামান |website=প্যাভিলিয়ন |access-date=5 April 2022 |archive-date=4 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220104145721/https://pavilion.com.bd/details/news/20155/%E0%A6%AB%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%96%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%83-%E0%A6%B8%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AB-%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AE%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AA%E0%A6%BF%E0%A7%9F%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%B6%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AA-%27%E0%A7%A6%E0%A7%A9 |url-status=live }}</ref> The 1978 AFC Youth Championship was the first major international tournament hosted by the stadium.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.utpalshuvro.com/special-article/news/417|script-title=bn:ঢাকার মাঠে সবচেয়ে বড় ফুটবল উৎসব|website=উৎপল শুভ্র :: Utp al Shuvro|access-date=23 July 2022|archive-date=23 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220723162135/https://www.utpalshuvro.com/special-article/news/417|url-status=live}}</ref>

The National Sports Council, responsible for promoting sports activities across the nation, is based in Dhaka. Dhaka also has stadiums largely used for domestic events such as the Bangladesh Army Stadium, the Bir Sherestha Shaheed Shipahi Mostafa Kamal Stadium, the Dhanmondi Cricket Stadium, the Maulana Bhasani Hockey Stadium and the Outer Stadium Ground.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |url=http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/town/56660.html |title=Grounds – Bangladesh: Dhaka |access-date=13 March 2008 |archive-date=6 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071006162140/http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/town/56660.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The Dhaka University Ground and the BUET Sports Ground host many intercollegiate tournaments.<ref>{{cite book |author=Muhammad Abdur Rahim |title=The History of the University of Dacca |page=161 |publisher=University of Dacca |year=1981 |oclc=8765658}}</ref>

There are two golf courses in Dhaka, Army Golf Club and Kurmitola Golf Club.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=Bangladesh Golf Federation |url=http://www.bgf-bd.org/ClubList |title=Bangladesh Golf Federation Member list |access-date=30 January 2017 |archive-date=2 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202070318/http://www.bgf-bd.org/ClubList |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Transport ==

=== Road ===
{{Multiple image
| perrow = 2
| total_width = 500
| image1            = Rickshaws Dhaka.jpg
| image2            = Kazi Nazrul Islam Ave Road, Dhaka. .jpg
| image3            = Trust taxi Toyota Axio, Bangladesh. (31932338632).jpg
| image4            = Mirpur-banani flyover.JPG
| footer = Clockwise from top-left: heavy rickshaw traffic in Dhaka, congested main road, Mirpur-banani flyover and Dhaka yellow taxi.
}}
Dhaka suffers some of the worst traffic congestion in the world. The city is connected to other parts of the country through highway and railway links. Five of Bangladesh's eight major national highways start from the city: N1, N2, N3, N5 and N8. Dhaka is also directly connected to the two longest routes of the Asian Highway Network: AH1 and AH2, as well as to the AH41 route. Highway links to the Indian cities of [[Place:Kolkata|Kolkata]], Agartala, Guwahati and Shillong have been established by the BRTC and private bus companies, which also run regular international bus services to those cities from Dhaka.<ref name="BRTC"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hcidhaka.gov.in/pages.php?id=1244 |title=Details of Bus Services |publisher=hcidhaka.gov.in |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202043359/https://www.hcidhaka.gov.in/pages.php?id=1244 |archive-date=2 February 2017}}</ref> As of 2022, the elevated expressway is still under construction.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=189387 |title=No more push for PPP initiative |work=The Daily Star |date=10 June 2011 |access-date=25 June 2011 |archive-date=24 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024151446/http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=189387 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The Dhaka Elevated Expressway would run from Shahjalal International Airport-Kuril-Banani-Mohakhali-Tejgaon-Saatrasta-Moghbazar Rail Crossing-Khilgaon-Kamalapur-Golapbagh to Dhaka-Chittagong Highway at Kutubkhali Point. Dhaka Elevated Expressway is set to open partially in 2022.<ref>{{cite news |title=Delayed Dhaka Elevated Expressway: Now set to open in 2022 partially |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/transport/news/delayed-dhaka-elevated-expressway-now-set-open-2022-partially-2169336 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=25 January 2022 |language=en |date=6 September 2021 |archive-date=25 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125090539/https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/transport/news/delayed-dhaka-elevated-expressway-now-set-open-2022-partially-2169336 |url-status=live }}</ref> A second elevated expressway, Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway, is expected to be opened in 2026.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway to come into operation in 2026 |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/transport/news/dhaka-ashulia-elevated-expressway-come-operation-2026-2183716 |work=The Daily Star |access-date=25 January 2022 |language=en |date=25 September 2021 |archive-date=25 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125090527/https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/transport/news/dhaka-ashulia-elevated-expressway-come-operation-2026-2183716 |url-status=live }}</ref> Dhaka was introduced to Japanese automobiles in the late 1990s. This resulted in the car industry blooming, which also caused a rise in traffic on the streets of Dhaka.

==== Rickshaw ====
Cycle rickshaws and [[Engineering:Auto rickshaw#Bangladesh|auto rickshaws]] are the main modes of transport within the metro area, with close to 400,000 rickshaws running each day: the highest number in any city in the world.<ref name="CiE" /><ref name="Rickshaws2">{{cite news |last=Lawson |first=Alastair |date=10 May 2002 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/2300179.stm |title=Dhaka's beleaguered rickshaw wallahs |work=BBC News |access-date=17 December 2008 |archive-date=1 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701021024/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/2300179.stm |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Rickshaws1">{{cite news |url=http://student.britannica.com/eb/art-72937/More-rickshaws-are-found-in-Dhaka-Bangladesh-than-in-any |title=rickshaw: Dhaka |work=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=17 December 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116082507/http://student.britannica.com/eb/art-72937/More-rickshaws-are-found-in-Dhaka-Bangladesh-than-in-any |archive-date=16 January 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Cervero |first=Robert |title=Informal Transport in the Developing World |year=2000 |publisher=UN Habitat |place=Nairobi |url=https://unhabitat.org/books/informal-transport-in-the-developing-world/ |page=25 |isbn=92-1-131453-4 |language=en-US |access-date=17 May 2018 |archive-date=20 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170120123032/http://unhabitat.org/books/informal-transport-in-the-developing-world/ |url-status=live}}</ref> However, only about 85,000 rickshaws are licensed by the city government.<ref name="EDemo1" /><ref>{{cite news |author=Rizanuzzaman Laskar |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/03/04/d703042503132.htm |title=Rickshaw pullers get licences |work=The Daily Star |date=4 March 2007 |access-date=25 January 2009 |archive-date=6 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070306082749/http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/03/04/d703042503132.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> Relatively low-cost and non-polluting cycle rickshaws are considered superior to private cars, which are a big cause of Dhaka's congestion.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/politics/news/ban-rickshaw-how-logical-it-1767535|title=Ban on rickshaw: How logical is it?|work=The Daily Star|author=Mohammad Al-Masum Molla|date=7 July 2019|access-date=24 May 2021|archive-date=7 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207075113/https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/politics/news/ban-rickshaw-how-logical-it-1767535|url-status=live}}</ref> The government has overseen the replacement of two-stroke engine auto rickshaws with "green auto-rickshaws", which run on [[Chemistry:Compressed natural gas|compressed natural gas]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Rahman |first=Mushfiqur |year=2012 |chapter=Compressed Natural Gas |chapter-url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Compressed_Natural_Gas |editor1-last=Islam |editor1-first=Sirajul |editor1-link=Sirajul Islam |editor2-last=Jamal |editor2-first=Ahmed A. |title=Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh |edition=Second |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |isbn=978-984-32-0576-6 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150418065056/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Compressed_Natural_Gas |archive-date=18 April 2015 |access-date=17 January 2008}}</ref>

==== Taxi ====
Limited numbers of taxis are available. It is planned to raise the total number of taxis to 18,000 gradually.<ref name="Taxis">{{cite news |date=10 May 2013 |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/govt-to-import-5000-taxis/ |title=Govt to import 5,000 taxis |work=The Daily Star |access-date=15 May 2013 |archive-date=22 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622201448/http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/govt-to-import-5000-taxis/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Uber">{{cite news |date=10 May 2013 |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/editorial/uber-taxis-dhaka-1290241/ |title=Uber taxis in Dhaka |work=The Daily Star |type=Editorial |access-date=27 November 2016 |archive-date=27 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161127144909/http://www.thedailystar.net/editorial/uber-taxis-dhaka-1290241 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Cabined">{{cite news |date=15 January 2018 |url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2018/01/15/cabinet-ride-sharing-guideline-draft |title=Cabinet nods guideline draft legalizing Uber, Pathao |work=Dhaka Tribune |access-date=11 September 2018 |archive-date=11 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180911090241/https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2018/01/15/cabinet-ride-sharing-guideline-draft |url-status=live}}</ref> Ride-sharing services like [[Company:Uber|Uber]] and [[Company:Pathao|Pathao]] are popular modes of transportation.

==== Bus ====
[[File:BRTC double decker bus 03652.jpg|thumb|300px|A BRTC double decker bus]]
Buses carried about 1.9 million passengers per day in 2007.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jinat Jahan & Syeda Bushra Binte Amin |date=2013 |title=An Approach to Estimate Demand and Supply of Bus Service, in Particular, Road Section of Dhaka |url=https://www.bip.org.bd/admin/uploads/bip-publication/publication-11/paper/20141016160305.pdf |journal=Journal of Bangladesh Institute of Planners |volume=6 |pages=5 |access-date=16 January 2023 |archive-date=11 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311030819/https://www.bip.org.bd/admin/uploads/bip-publication/publication-11/paper/20141016160305.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Public buses are operated by the state-run Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) and by numerous private companies and operators. BRTC buses are red, based initially on the Routemaster buses of London. There are three inter-district bus terminals in Dhaka, which are located in the city's Mohakhali, Saidabad, and Gabtoli areas. It is now planned to move three inter-district bus terminals outside the town.<ref>{{cite news |date=19 September 2021 |title=Inter-district bus terminals to be moved outside Dhaka |work=Dhaka Tribune |url=https://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/dhaka/2021/09/19/inter-district-bus-terminals-to-be-moved-outside-dhaka |access-date=25 January 2022 |archive-date=25 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125090528/https://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/dhaka/2021/09/19/inter-district-bus-terminals-to-be-moved-outside-dhaka |url-status=live }}</ref> Highway links to the Indian cities of [[Place:Kolkata|Kolkata]], Agartala, Guwahati and Shillong have been established by the BRTC and private bus companies, which also run regular international bus services to those cities from Dhaka.<ref name="BRTC">{{cite news |last=Lawson |first=Alastair |date=13 October 2003 |title=Passengers shun Dhaka-India bus |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3162854.stm |url-status=live |access-date=7 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308190204/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3162854.stm |archive-date=8 March 2008}}</ref>

===== BRT =====
Set to partially open in fall 2023, the Dhaka Bus Rapid Transit is a Bus Rapid Transit system that is currently in construction. It will consist of two lines, BRT Line 3, running from Gazipur to Dhaka Airport, and BRT Line 7, from Purbachal New Town to Narayanganj. Currently, only Line 3 is under construction, line 7 remains in the planning phase. The recommendation of a BRT system for Dhaka originally came from the [[Organization:World Bank|World Bank]].<ref name="brtopen">{{cite news|url=https://www.banglanews24.com/national/news/bd/1136182.details|script-title=bn:সেপ্টেম্বর-অক্টোবর নাগাদ শেষ হবে বিআরটি প্রকল্প|language=bn|date=17 June 2023|access-date=12 July 2023|work=Banglanews24.com|archive-date=12 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712134249/https://www.banglanews24.com/national/news/bd/1136182.details|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="brtplans">{{cite news|url=https://www.jugantor.com/todays-paper/last-page/37860/%E0%A7%AA%E0%A7%AC-%E0%A6%AE%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%97%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%AA%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%B2%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AA-%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BE%E0%A7%9F%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%B6%E0%A6%99%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%BE|script-title=bn:৪৬ মেগা প্রকল্প বাস্তবায়নে শঙ্কা|language=bn|first=Matin|last=Abdullah|date=13 April 2018|access-date=13 March 2023|newspaper=Jugantor|archive-date=13 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313202606/https://www.jugantor.com/todays-paper/last-page/37860/%E0%A7%AA%E0%A7%AC-%E0%A6%AE%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%97%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%AA%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%B2%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AA-%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BE%E0%A7%9F%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%B6%E0%A6%99%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%BE|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Waterway ===
[[File:Sadarghat Launch Tarminal.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Port of Dhaka]]
[[File:Hatirjheel Lake Dhaka Bangladesh.jpg|thumb|200px|Hatirjheel waterway in central Dhaka]] 
The Sadarghat River Port on the banks of the Buriganga River serves for the transport of goods and passengers upriver and to other ports in Bangladesh.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Dhaka |title=Asian Highway Handbook |page=28 |publisher=United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, United Nations Publications |year=2005 |isbn=92-1-120170-5 |author=Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.}}</ref> Inter-city and inter-district motor vessels and passenger ferry services are used by many people to travel riverine regions of the country from the city. [[Engineering:Water taxi|Water bus]] services are available on the Buriganga River and Hatirjheel and Gulshan lakes. Water buses of the Buriganga River ferry passengers on the Sadarghat to Gabtali route.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://businessnews-bd.com/waterbus-service-launched-on-sadarghat-gabtali-river-route/ |title=Waterbus service launched on Sadarghat-Gabtali river route |publisher=Bangladesh Business News |date=28 August 2010 |access-date=1 April 2017 |archive-date=2 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170402082849/https://businessnews-bd.com/waterbus-service-launched-on-sadarghat-gabtali-river-route/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Water taxis in Hatirjheel and Gulshan lakes provide connectivity via two routes, one route between Tejgaon and Gulshan and the other route between the Tejgaon and Rampura areas.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2016/12/06/water-taxi-services-on-dhakas-hatirjheel-from-victory-day |title=Water taxi services on Dhaka's Hatirjheel 'from Victory Day' |work=bdnews24.com |date=6 December 2016 |access-date=1 April 2017 |archive-date=2 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170402081705/http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2016/12/06/water-taxi-services-on-dhakas-hatirjheel-from-victory-day |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Rail ===
{{Multiple image
| perrow = 2
| total_width = 500
| image1            = Bangladesh Railway, Komlapur Railway Station.jpg
| image2            = Agargaon metro station Platform 10.jpg
| image3            = 18Metro at Agargaon metro station Platform.jpg
| image4            = Interior of Uttara North 09.jpg
| footer = Clockwise from top-left: DEMU Train at Kamalapur Railway Station, Metro Rail station sign in Agargaon, Metro train interior and exterior. 
}}
Kamalapur railway station, situated on the northeast side of Motijheel, is the largest and busiest of the city's railway stations.<ref name="Morshed">{{cite news|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/perspective/quiet-masterpiece-serves-dhakas-gateway-1437574|title=A quiet masterpiece that serves as Dhaka's gateway|work=The Daily Star|author=Adnan Zillur Morshed|date=24 July 2017|access-date=24 May 2021|archive-date=7 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107103550/https://www.thedailystar.net/perspective/quiet-masterpiece-serves-dhakas-gateway-1437574|url-status=live}}</ref> It was designed by American architect Robert Boughey and was completed in 1969.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Habib|first1=Kishwar|last2=De Meulder|first2=Bruno|year=2015|chapter=Rallying Towards the Nation Theatre of Nation Building in Post-colonial Dhaka|editor-last=Bracken|editor-first=Gregory|title=Asian Cities: Colonial to Global |publisher=Amsterdam University Press |page=230 |isbn=978-90-485-2824-0 |jstor=j.ctt16d69sf.14}}</ref> The state-owned Bangladesh Railway provides suburban and national services, with regular express train services connecting Dhaka with other major urban areas, such as Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Rangpur.<ref>{{cite book |author=Marika McAdam |title=Bangladesh |page=66 |publisher=Lonely Planet |year=2004 |isbn=1-74059-280-8}}</ref> The Maitree Express provides a connection from Dhaka to [[Place:Kolkata|Kolkata]], one of the largest cities in India.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/backpage/maitree-express-run-dhaka-to-kolkata-6-days-week-1795198|title=Maitree to run 6 days a week|work=The Daily Star|author=Tuhin Shubhra Adhikary|date=4 September 2019|access-date=24 May 2021|archive-date=25 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210525115111/https://www.thedailystar.net/backpage/maitree-express-run-dhaka-to-kolkata-6-days-week-1795198|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013, suburban services to Narayanganj and Gazipur cities were upgraded using diesel-electric multiple-unit trains.<ref name="BR">{{cite news |date=24 April 2013 |url=http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2013/04/24/pm-inaugurates-dhaka-narayanganj-demu-train |title=PM inaugurates Dhaka-Narayanganj DEMU train |work=bdnews24.com |access-date=1 May 2013 |archive-date=25 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130625072207/http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2013/04/24/pm-inaugurates-dhaka-narayanganj-demu-train |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="BR1">{{cite news |date=24 April 2013 |url=http://archive.dhakatribune.com/development/2013/aug/22/demu-train-service-introduced-dhaka-joydebpur |title=Demu train service introduced on Dhaka-Joydebpur |work=Dhaka Tribune |access-date=22 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161218141934/http://archive.dhakatribune.com/development/2013/aug/22/demu-train-service-introduced-dhaka-joydebpur |archive-date=18 December 2016}}</ref> There is also a proposal to build an orbital rail system in collaboration with South Korea.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Adhikary |first=Tuhin Shubhra |date=2021-11-03 |title=Dhaka circular rail: Worth the investment? |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/worth-the-investment-2220981 |access-date=2023-07-07 |work=The Daily Star |language=en |archive-date=25 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220525163748/https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/worth-the-investment-2220981 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Dhaka circular train likely by 2030 |url=https://bangladeshpost.net/posts/dhaka-circular-train-likely-by-2030-102398 |access-date=2023-07-07 |website=bangladeshpost.net |language=en |archive-date=7 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230707170203/https://bangladeshpost.net/posts/dhaka-circular-train-likely-by-2030-102398 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Metro ====
Dhaka Metro Rail is a mass rapid transit system serving Dhaka, Bangladesh. Together with the city's planned light rapid transit (LRT) system, it is expected to reduce congestion in the capital. It is a part of the 20-year-long Strategic Transport Plan (STP) outlined by the Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.dmtc.org.bd/about/about-mrt-line-6|title=About MRT Line-6|website=DHAKA MASS TRANSIT COMPANY LTD.|access-date=28 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202061003/http://www.dmtc.org.bd/about/about-mrt-line-6|archive-date=2 February 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> The first phase of Dhaka Metro's MRT Line 6 was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and commenced commercial operations on 28 December 2022, with metro services being available to general commuters for the first time in the country the very next day.<ref>{{cite news |title=PM Hasina becomes first passenger to travel on Metro Rail with ticket |url=https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/pm-hasina-becomes-first-passenger-travel-metro-rail-ticket-559082 |work=The Business Standard |date=28 December 2022 |access-date=31 December 2022 |archive-date=28 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221228140224/https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/pm-hasina-becomes-first-passenger-travel-metro-rail-ticket-559082 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Passengers gather at Dhaka metro stations at first light |url=https://bdnews24.com/metro-rail/o2sjvoesf1 |access-date=2022-12-29 |work=bdnews24.com |language=en |archive-date=29 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221229022955/https://bdnews24.com/metro-rail/o2sjvoesf1 |url-status=live }}</ref> The construction of MRT Line 6's second phase is scheduled to be completed by 2023.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/transport/metro-magic-here-now-558862 |title=Metro magic is here, now |date=2022-12-27 |access-date=2022-12-29 |work=The Business Standard |last=Datta Gupta |first=Titu |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221229004938/https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/transport/metro-magic-here-now-558862 |archive-date=2022-12-29 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The network is planned to contain six lines. Currently, there is one partially completed line, two under construction, and four have been proposed. Before the opening of the Dhaka Metro Rail, Dhaka was the biggest city in the world without a mass rapid transit system.

==== Subway ====
Unrelated to the metro, there is also a proposal for a subway.<!-- Self-verifying statement, links to corr. article. -->

=== Air ===
[[File:Emirates Airlines - Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport - VGHS.jpg|thumb|250px|Emirates jet in Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport]] 
Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (formally Zia International Airport),<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://caab.gov.bd/airports/shahjalal.html#:~:text=Dhaka%20international%20airport%20was%20renamed,the%20capital%20city%20of%20Bangladesh. |access-date=2023-01-16 |title=Brief History Of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport |website=caab.gov.bd |archive-date=7 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207091632/http://caab.gov.bd/airports/shahjalal.html#:~:text=Dhaka%20international%20airport%20was%20renamed,the%20capital%20city%20of%20Bangladesh. |url-status=live }}</ref> located 15 kilometres (9.3&nbsp;mi) north of Dhaka city centre, is the largest and busiest international airport in the country.<ref name="Air">{{cite book |last=Alam |first=Jobair Bin |year=2012 |chapter=Air Transport |chapter-url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Air_Transport |editor1-last=Islam |editor1-first=Sirajul |editor1-link=Sirajul Islam |editor2-last=Jamal |editor2-first=Ahmed A. |title=Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh |edition=Second |publisher=Asiatic Society of Bangladesh |isbn=978-984-32-0576-6 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701035850/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Air_Transport |archive-date=1 July 2015 |access-date=17 January 2008}}</ref> The airport has an area of 1,981 acres (802 ha). The airport has a capacity of handling 15 million passengers annually <ref name=capacity>{{cite news |last=Byron |first=Rejaul Karim |title=New int'l airport to cost Tk 50,000cr |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=152589 |access-date=16 November 2011 |newspaper=The Daily Star |date=28 August 2010 |archive-date=31 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101031082713/http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=152589 |url-status=live}}</ref> and is predicted by the Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh, to be sufficient to meet demand until 2026.<ref name=caab>{{cite web |title=Airport Development History |url=http://www.caab.gov.bd/devlpmnts/devhis.html |publisher=Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh |access-date=16 November 2011 |archive-date=11 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111182729/http://www.caab.gov.bd/devlpmnts/devhis.html |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2014, it handled 6.1 million passengers and 248,000 tonnes of cargo.<ref>{{cite news |title=CAAB initiates efforts to expand and upgrade HSIA To build a new airport for Dhaka |url=http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/news_detail.php?nhid=6199&CID=1 |access-date=21 July 2013 |newspaper=The Bangladesh Monitor |date=1 April 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150405130549/http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/news_detail.php?nhid=6199&CID=1 |archive-date=5 April 2015}}</ref> The average aircraft movement per day is around 190 flights.<ref name="thedailystar.net">{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=234667 |title=Shahjalal airport set for upgrade in two months |work=The Daily Star |access-date=4 June 2015 |archive-date=18 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118102210/https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-234667 |url-status=live}}</ref> It is the hub of all Bangladeshi airlines. Domestic service flies to Chittagong, Sylhet, Rajshahi, Cox's Bazar, Jessore, Barisal, and Saidpur (Rangpur), and international services fly to major cities in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.<ref name=intsched>{{cite web |title=Biman's Destination: International Destinations |work=Biman Bangladesh Airlines |url=http://biman-airlines.com/our-network/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130701060706/http://biman-airlines.com/our-network |archive-date=1 July 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=dhkcityguide>{{cite web |title=Dhaka – Zia International Airport (DAC) |work=World Executive |publisher=OE Interactive |url=http://www.worldexecutive.com/locations/asia_pacific/bangladesh/dhaka/airports.html |access-date=15 May 2013 |archive-date=24 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424120233/http://www.worldexecutive.com/locations/asia_pacific/bangladesh/dhaka/airports.html |url-status=live}}</ref> A third international terminal is under construction and is expected to be operational in 2023.<ref>{{Cite news|date=5 June 2021|title=Dhaka airport's Terminal 3 likely to be completed by June 2023|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/bangladesh/news/dhaka-airports-terminal-3-likely-be-completed-june-2023-2105373|access-date=9 August 2021|website=The Daily Star|language=en|archive-date=9 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809060622/https://www.thedailystar.net/bangladesh/news/dhaka-airports-terminal-3-likely-be-completed-june-2023-2105373|url-status=live}}</ref> According to the project design, the third terminal will have 12 boarding bridges and 12 conveyor belts. The terminal will have 115 check-in counters and 59 immigration desks. Another large-scale airport known as Bangabandhu international airport has been proposed to be built outside Dhaka.

==Twin towns – sister cities==
* {{flagicon|IND}} [[Place:Kolkata|Kolkata]], {{wipe|India}}<ref>{{cite news |last=Mazumdar |first=Jaideep |title=A tale of two cities: Will Kolkata learn from her sister? |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/A-tale-of-two-cities-Will-Kolkata-learn-from-her-sister/articleshow/25916888.cms |access-date=24 May 2021 |newspaper=The Times of India |date=17 November 2013 |location=New Delhi |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140723040319/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/A-tale-of-two-cities-Will-Kolkata-learn-from-her-sister/articleshow/25916888.cms |archive-date=23 July 2014}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|USA}} {{wipe|New York City}}, {{wipe|United States}}<ref name="worldatlas.com">{{cite web |url=https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-are-twin-towns-or-sister-cities.html |title=List Of Sister Cities – What Is A Sister City? |website=WorldAtlas |date=12 March 2019 |access-date=16 March 2022 |archive-date=8 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408175608/https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-are-twin-towns-or-sister-cities.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
* {{flagicon|CHN}} Guangzhou, {{wipe|China}}<ref name="worldatlas.com"/>
* {{flagicon|ROM}} [[Place:Bucharest|Bucharest]], Romania<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/bucharest-becomes-dhakas-sister-city-385370 |title=Bucharest becomes Dhaka's sister city |work=The Business Standard |date=15 March 2022 |access-date=16 March 2022 |archive-date=16 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316082947/https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/bucharest-becomes-dhakas-sister-city-385370 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* {{flagicon|PER}} [[Place:Lima|Lima]], Peru<ref>{{cite web |url=https://lucidez.pe/ciudades-hermanas-costumbres-similares-por-ines-yabar/ |title=Sister Cities: Similar Customs |date=14 January 2018 |access-date=16 March 2022 |archive-date=8 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408145456/https://lucidez.pe/ciudades-hermanas-costumbres-similares-por-ines-yabar/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== See also ==
{{div col}}
* List of districts and suburbs of Dhaka
* List of places of worship in Dhaka city
* List of largest cities
* List of metropolitan areas in Asia
* List of most expensive cities for expatriate employees
* List of urban agglomerations in Asia
* Mia Shaheb Moidan
{{div col end}}

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book|title=Dhaka -past present future|editor=Sharuf Uddin Ahmed|publisher=The Asiatic Society, Dhaka|year=1991|isbn=984-512-335-X}}
* {{cite book|last=Karim|first=Abdul|title=History of Bengal, Mughal Period (I)|location=Rajshahi|publisher=Institute of Bangladesh Studies, University of Rajshahi|year=1992}}
* {{cite book|last=Pryer|first=Jane|title=Poverty and Vulnerability in Dhaka Slums: The Urban Livelihood Study|publisher=Ashgate Publishing|isbn=0-7546-1864-1|year=2003|oclc=123337526|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/povertyvulnerabi0000prye}}
* {{cite book|last=Rabbani|first=Golam|year=1997|title=Dhaka, from Mughal outpost to metropolis|publisher=University Press, Dhaka|isbn=984-05-1374-5}}
* {{cite book|last=Sarkar|first=Sir Jadunath|title=History of Bengal (II)|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.283718|location=Dhaka|publisher=The University of Dhaka|year=1948}}
* {{cite book|last=Taifoor|first=S.M.|title=Glimpses of Old Dacca|location=Dhaka|publisher=Pioneer Printing Press|year=1956}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
{{wikivoyage|Dhaka}}
* [http://www.rajukdhaka.gov.bd/ Capital Development Authority] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429215814/http://www.rajukdhaka.gov.bd/ |date=29 April 2017 }}
* [http://www.dncc.gov.bd/ Dhaka North City Corporation]
* [http://dhakasouthcity.gov.bd/ Dhaka South City Corporation]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20170606045741/http://www.dtcb.gov.bd/ Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority]
* [http://www.dmp.gov.bd/ Dhaka Metropolitan Police website]
* [https://www.britannica.com/place/Dhaka Dhaka History]

{{Geographic location
 | Centre = Dhaka City
 | North = Gazipur City
 | Northeast = Purbachal New Town
 | East = Rupganj Upazila, Narayanganj District
 | Southeast = Narayanganj City
 | South = Keraniganj Upazila, Dhaka District
 | Southwest = Keraniganj Upazila, Dhaka District
 | West = Savar Upazila, Dhaka District
 | Northwest = Savar Upazila, Dhaka District
}}
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[[Category:Capitals in Asia]]

{{Sourceattribution|Dhaka}}