Murshidabad

The Nawab Murshid Quli Khan, the Dewan of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa under Emperor Aurangzeb gave the name Murshidabad, who shifted the capital of Bengal to Murshidabad in 1705. The historic town of Murshidabad has witnessed trickery and palace politics, which played a key role to the transfer of power from the hands of the Nawabs into the hands of the East India Company and after that, the capital was shifted to Calcutta in 1773. The travelogue describes that the place called Karnasubarna situated near Murshidabad was the first capital of ancient Bengal.

The last capital city of independent Bengal, Murshidabad is located on the banks of the Ganges River. During the days of the Nawabs, the splendor of Murshidabad was comparable with London. At present, Murshidabad is a small district town, which is well known with shoperholic for its silks.

There are a number of interesting places located in and around Murshidabad, some of them are listed below:

  -  Hajarduari (1837) – May be the major attraction of Murshidabad
  -  Katra Masjid
  -  Jahankosh - a huge cannon
  -  Nimak Haram Deorhi
  -  Khusbagh (Garden of delight)
  -  Kathgola
  -  Palsy (Palashi)

Jiaganj and Azimganj are situated close to Murshidabad, where you can see Rani Bhabani's terracotta temple and few Jain temples.

Fairs and Festivals, which celebrated in Murshidabad:
In Murshidabad, Muharram is celebrated with magnificence. Bera Bhasan on the Ganga with lights and fireworks is celebrated during middle of September.

Where to stay at Murshidabad:
In Murshidabad, there are numerous private hotels, lodges and Guest Houses of high, medium and low budgets. Some of the preferred accommodations are,

WBTDC Tourist Lodge, Baharampur.
Lalbagh Municipality Guest House, Lalbagh.

How to get to Murshidabad:
Murshidabad is 182 kms far away from Calcutta and 11 kms far away from the district headquarters Baharampur.
  -  By Train: There are various trains accessible from Sealdah to Baharampur and Murshidabad.
  -  By Bus: Bus services are directly accessible from Calcutta to Baharampur and Murshidabad.