Gouripur Lodge

Type: Building / Skyscraper

Contributed By: ,Nayeem

Brief

Gouripur Lodge (গৌরীপুর লজ) is a signature of golden Zamindari period and an old edifice in Mymensingh town. This archaic building is located near the main town. One can go there using rickshaw easily. It is very near to the Boro Bazar. Though, the purpose and time of establishment is not known to all; however, it can be discovered if further research is conducted there.

It was made using iron, tin and wood. Structure of the building is similar to the Zamindar Mansion of that period. History tells that it was built by Brozendra Kishor Ray Chowdhury (ব্রজেন্দ্র কিশোর রায় চৌধুরী).

Now it is being used as Sonali Bank Corporate office of Mymensingh city. Government officers and few of their subordinates are currently living at that mansion. It has around 20 rooms inside. Anyone can visit there at anytime. You may not have the permission to enter inside, but easily can get access to the mansion premises.

How to go

It is located near Mymensingh Zero Point and Boro Bazar area. You may Just ask to the local people for Sonali Bank and they will direct you to it.

How To Reach: Mymensingh District

Mymensingh city is located about 120 km (75 mi) north of Dhaka which is the capital of the country. There is no airport in Mymensingh. Dhaka airport is approximately 110 km (4.00 hours drive) from Mymensingh by bus. There are several bus services from Dhaka to Mymensingh. Buses leave from the Mohakhali bus stand (10 km south of Dhaka Airport) in Dhaka to the Mashkanda bus stand in Mymensingh. You can get on any of the following buses from the Mohakhali bus stand in Dhaka, which will cost around Tk. 350 ($4):

1. Shoukhin
2. Ena
3. SEPL

There are several train services from Dhaka to Mymensingh. It takes almost 3 hours to reach Mymensingh from Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. You can get on from the Dhaka Airport or you could go to the main train station-Komlapur Rail Station.

By Road
By Train

The main bus terminal is Mahstandar bus station, 3km from the Station Rd Circle. Between 6am and 6pm you can get a bus to a zillion places including Tangail (Tk 80, 2½ hours), Madhupur (Tk 40, 45 minutes), Dhaka (Tk 80, 4½ hours) and Bogra (Tk 140, 4½ hours).

The bus stand for Haluaghat and other destinations on the other side of the Brahmaputra River is, logically, at the bridge. Buses to Haluaghat (Tk 45, 1½ hours) leave regularly between 8am and 7pm.

Every day from the capital Dhaka to Mymensingh, a total of 7 mail trains comes in till 11:00 am. Four of the seven are intercity express train, others are local. These trains come to Mymensingh through to Tongi-gaffargaon from Dhaka. 3 out of 4 go to Tarakandi and 1 go to Dhaka-mohanganj. Per day 3 local train arrives at Mymensingh from Dhaka. 1 in 3 of the local trains come to Mymensingh via Bhairab-Kisorganj-gauripur, the other two comes Mymensingh via gaffargaon.

Where to Stay

1. Hotel Hera
Address: 36/B S. K. Moharaja Road
Phone: +8801711167880, +8801714414212
24 hours internet facility at the lobbey of the Hotel Hera. Internet is absolutely free for the people staying at the hotel.

2. Hotel Amir International
Address:Palika Shopping Centre, 46 Station Rd Mymensingh
Phone: 01711167948, 09151500

3. Hotel Mustafiz International
Address: 6/B Gangadas Guha Rd, Mymensingh
Phone: 09163870

4. Nirala Rest House
Address: 67 Chotto Bazar Mymensingh
Phone: 091 67384

Eating Facilities

The place is near Shambhugonj Bridge. There are a lot of local restaurants in here.

Travel Tips

Walk ahead and visit the Pourashabha Building too.

Map

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Chittagong has two railway stations. One is new and another is old, which was built by the British Government. There is a highway beside the station which is called station road. This old railway station is very near from the hotel "Golden Inn". Basically it’s not a tourist place but its old red structure can lure you to visit the station.

This station is not function for long road journey. Some local train take a stoppage here. Also some goods caring trail used to load or unload their goods at this place.

[We need more detail information of this spot. If you have more information and photos, please be advised to add and share in our website. Your name will be published as a Content Contributor]

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চট্রগ্রামে দুটি রেলস্টেশন আছে। একটি নতুন এবং অপরটি পুরাতন। পুরাতন রেলওয়ে স্টেশন ইংরেজ শাসনামলে নির্মাণ করা হয়েছিল। স্টেশনের পাশ দিয়ে মহাসড়ক চলে গিয়েছে যেটির নাম স্টেশন রোড।

পুরাতন রেল স্টেশনের খুব কাছেই ‘গোল্ডেন ইন’ হোটেল অবস্থিত। পর্যটন স্পট না হলেও পুরাতন স্টেশনের লাল ভবনটি আপনাকে আকর্ষিত করবে। এই স্টেশনে কিছু ট্রেইলার মাল খালাস করে এবং কিছু লোকাল ট্রেন থেমে থাকে। দীর্ঘদিন যাবত এই পুরাতন রেলস্টেশনটি ব্যবহার করা হচ্ছে না। এ কারনে এখানে খুব একটা ভিড় পরিলক্ষিত হয়না। পুরো স্টেশনটি ঘুরে দেখতে ১৫ মিনিটের মত সময় লাগবে। চট্রগ্রামে আসলে এই পুরাতন রেলস্টেশনটি দেখতে আসার সুযোগ হাতছাড়া না করাই ভাল।

{:} ) [1] => Array ( [name] => House of Poet Quazi Kader Newaj [post_id] => 18491 [post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/house-of-poet-quazi-kader-newaj-2/ [thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/house-of-poet-Quazi-Kader-Newaj2-300x225.jpg [post_content] =>

Historic and archaeological importance of the majestic house of poet Quazi Kader Newaj, an icon of Bangla literature, has been lying uncared in Sreepur upazila town under Magura district, as the authorities concerned are ignoring its tourism potentials.

The poet is specially recalled for his masterpiece of poetry ‘Shikhaker Marjada’. The poet was also a freedom fighter as he played an important role during the liberation war. He was also a good teacher. The poet and his kin were buried along this majestic building.

house of poet Quazi Kader Newaj4 The splendid building still stands tall along the bank of the Kumar River beckoning the people passing by it to have a look of its grandeur and magnificence. None can resist the temptation of taking a look at the captivating old structure when one passes by it.

house of poet Quazi Kader Newaj3 In the absence of proper maintenance and renovation, weeds have grown in and around the house while the mossy bricks are crumbling down from the decaying structure. The house has lost much of its charm of terracotta due to the authorities’ negligence. Locals have already taken away many of the bricks, plaques, wooden doors and windows. The house has become a safe haven for drug addicts and gamblers due to lack of proper initiatives for its preservation and maintenance. Local people use the building as their cowshed and it has turned into the public toilet.

Unfortunately, the government has done nothing to renovate the palace, though the historic site can fetch a large amount of revenue every year.

) [2] => Array ( [name] => Khelaram Datar Kotha [post_id] => 10252 [post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/andharkotha-khelaram-datar-kotha/ [thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/18-225x300.jpg [post_content] =>

Previously, the actual color of Khelaram Datar Kotha (খেলারাম দাতার কোঠা) was reddish (first three photographs added). But after a renovation done by the Department of archaeology, it is colored white now.

Possibly the most intriguing, interesting and uniquely confusing archeological structures of Nawabganj is the Khelaram Daata’r Kotha, which has recently been renovated. Yet they have not put up a sign board describing the building.

It is confusing, who was Khelaram? What was he known for? What is this building all about? What is the story behind it? When was it built? One could come up with several such questions, but apparently there isn’t much available documentation. It’s hardly possibly to rely on local folklore, as that is far more fiction than facts. To start with some confusion, some say the name of the founder of this structure was Khelaram Dutta, Banglapedia mentions him as Khelaram Dada, while the locals say he was known as Khelaram Daata.

According to Banglapedia he was a Zamindar, but the locals claim he was a dacoit. Since Banglapedia mentions nothing about him apart from naming him as Zamindar Khelaram Dada. So, there isn’t any other way except relating oral history along with the information of Banglapedia.

Some 200 years ago, there lived a ferocious dacoit named Khelaram, who was dreaded by the rich, but loved by the poor, because similar to Robin Hood, he generously donated much of his spoils from each mission amongst the poor people. Hence he was known as “Daata” the beneficent. But he still retained quite a bit and needed to store the loot. So he built this structure consisting of many rooms just overnight (within a short time). The building had five floors (it now has only two) and the roof had a large tank. There still is a large pond nearby. Poor people had to come to this pond to bathe, and anything they asked for was granted.

Oral History Or Myth :

Khelaram was extremely obedient to his mother. She once wanted to drink some milk and eat some ripened bananas, so Khelaram arranged the rooftop tank to be filled to the brim with ripened bananas and pure milk, so she could swim there and eat and drink to her heart’s content. But one day something Khelaram did severely angered his mother. She sternly rebuked and cursed him and then left for a bath in the pond. But as soon as she left the building, three floors of the building simply sank into the ground, leaving only the top two floors to be seen over the surface. Khelaram was not seen any more from then. Some believe he got trapped in one of the lower floors. Some believe he drowned in the pond, trying to save his mother. Within a short time, all his belongings got stolen, leaving behind just an empty house.

) [3] => Array ( [name] => Bhai Girish Chandra Sen's Old House [post_id] => 23726 [post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/bhai-girish-chandra-sens-old-house/ [thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Old-House-of-Bhai-Girish-Chandra-Sen-9-200x300.jpg [post_content] => Girish Chandra Sen also known as Bhai Girish Chandra Sen ( ভাই গিরিশ চন্দ্র সেন), a Brahmo Samaj missionary, was the first person to complete the translation of the Qur'an into Bengali in 1886. It was his finest contribution to Bengali literature. Born in the village of Panchdona of Narsingdi in 1835 in the famed Dewan Baidya clan, he learnt Persian and Sanskrit in early life and started working as a copywriter in the court of the deputy magistrate in Mymensingh. He also taught for a short while at the Mymensingh Zilla School before engaging wholeheartedly in journalism and literary activities. He was attracted to the Brahmo Samaj under the influence of Keshub Chunder Sen and Bijoy Krishna Goswami and joined it as a missionary in 1871. He traveled through India and Burma to propagate his new faith. The plasters on the walls of this two floor house have almost completely fallen off, baring the brick work, which is covered in a thick moss. The ceilings on both the floors have entirely caved in. Trees have grown all over the walls, thereby creating large cracks. The wood work from doors and windows is completely stolen. To overcome those destruction and deterioration of this old House owned by this famous Scholar, Government has taken necessary steps to renovate the building immediately. In the year of 1869, Keshub Sen chose four persons amongst his missionaries and ordained them as professors of four old religions of the world. Girish Chandra was selected to study Islam. The others selected to study different religions were Gour Govinda Ray for Hinduism, Protap Chandra Mazoomdar for Christianity, and Aghore Nath Gupta for Buddhism. This was a time, when even translating religious scripts from Islam was considered as desecration of the sanctity of the scripts. The Holy Qur’an was considered too sacred for translation, as such most of the Muslim scholars refrained from even trying. A firm believer in the basic unity of all religions, Girish immersed himself in his studies and later went to Lucknow in 1876 to study Arabic, Islamic literature and the Islamic religious texts. He was involved in intense studies for about five years. His keen interest in different religions and his liberal outlook earned him the respect of followers of other religions. On completion of his studies, he returned to Kolkata and engaged in translation of Islamic scriptures. After hard labor of six years from 1881-1886, he produced an annotated Bengali version of the Qur’an via Persian. Girish Chandra wrote and published a total of 42 books in Bengali. His books were greatly appreciated by the Muslim community which referred to him as 'Bhai Girish Chandra'. The Muslim society, in his days, respected him enormously and gave him the title of a Maulavi. Girish Chandra Sen spoke fluently in Bengali, Urdu & Persian. A simple soft-spoken person, he endeared himself to all those who came in contact with him. His autobiography, 'Atmajivani' (আত্মজীবনী), was published in 1906. He passed away in 1910. ) )

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