“চায়ের দেশে স্বাগতম” (Welcome to the land of tea) is what a sculpture says on the entrance of the Moulvibazar district. It portraits a female tea-plucker with a basket on her back. This is enough to let you know the main attraction of this place is the tea-estates. But it will be only half of the picture, as moulvibazar has so many other fascinations besides the tea-estates.
Moulvibazar is a north-eastern district of Bangladesh. On its west is Habiganj. On the north side it is surrounded by Sylhet distrtict. While on the South and east sides it has a boundary with Indian states Tripura and Assam respectively. From these adjacent states various streams find their way into Moulvibazar. The Dholoi, Manu and Juri ,the main rivers of this region, are such rivers.
History:
hazrat shah mustofa (R) mazar
The place was named Moulvibazar after Moulvi Kudratullah, who used to preach Islam here. He was one of the descedents of Hazrat Shah Mustafa (Ra), a companion of the great saint Hazrat Shah Jalal (Ra) who spread Islam all over Sylhet. In the 17th century Moulvi established a small bazaar near his house which was “moulvibazar” by the local inhabitants. In course of time this market flourished and the place became familiar as “Moulvibazar”. However before the 14thcentury, i.e. before the Muslim era, this region is thought to have a majority of Hindu inhabitants. Hindu religious book revealed Moulvibazar as holy place and river Manu as divine tribute.
Natural beauty:
tea garden at moulvibazar
Moulvibazar offers great scenic beauty and immense natural charm. Tea-gardens, mixed evergreen forests, mountains and waterfalls running down these mountains are the major fascinations of its beauty. Among other attractions of the land are the interesting lifestyle of the tea-garden workers and the unique culture of the local tribal people. The luxurious residences made by the expatriates may also be noted in the “Places to See” list.
Tea estates are the common most feature of Moulvibazar. Moulvibazar has many hills – small ones and big ones followed by flat lands. These topographic features make it very favorable for production of tea. This is why there are 92 tea- estates in Moulvibazar while there are 154 of them in the whole country. Bangladesh has become one of the leading countries of the world in exporting tea. Two of the greatest tea producing estates in the world are located here. In the tea – gardens the tea trees are planted in regular manner in the slopes of the hills. Big trees usually trees bearing fruits are planted in between them to provide shade. Everything there is in a very orderly fashion. Every plant and tree seems to be very strict as if not to disrupt the regularity. In these tea estates various animals find shelter. If you are lucky you may see some rare animals while visiting them.
Accommodation:
Moulvibazar has flourished much as a tourist spot. A large number of tourists from home and abroad every year visit this place. For their accommodation, now a good number of hotels are available here with a few differences in facilities served. Some of Moulvibazar’s hotels are –
Hotel Sonargaon (contact no: 0861 – 64607)
Hotel Helal (contact no : 0861- 52535)
Hotel Rezia (contact no: 01716 – 086463)
Parjatan Resthouse (contact no: 0861 – 52350)
Sheraton Plaza (contact no: 0861 – 52020)
Hotel Rajdhani
Hotel Camilla
Hotel Basundhara
Hotel Lal Kella
Some restaurants are –
Hotel Western Plaza (contact no: 0861 – 64810)
Bengal Food and Restaurant
Hotel City King Chinese (contact no: 0861 – 62775)
Rajmahal
Shad
Hotel Prince
Khawa-dawa
Rahmania
Manager stall etc
All these Hotels and Restaurants are located in Moulvibazar town. You can also book your rooms in hotels not located in moulvibazar rather than in Srimangal, which may be considered the best tourist attraction spot of this division.
Some hotels and restaurant in Srimangal are –
Hotel Plaza (contact no: 08626 – 71525)
Tea resort (contact no: 08626 – 71207)
B.T.R.I (contact no: 08626 – 71225)
Tea town restaurant
Hotel Prince etc.
You can also take room in Baralekha area in –
Hotel Al-Amin
Hotel Amirat
Source : http://www.travel-bangladesh.net
