Bangladesh District Gazetteers: Jessore District

Written By : K.G.M. Latiful Bari (Editor)
Publisher By : Bangladesh Government Press, Dacca
Preparing District Gazetter with geographical, topographical, historical, socio-economic and cultural details and statistics came down to us a tradition from Ain-i-Akbari, a source document of informations of each unit of Mughal administration and written by none else but celebrated Abul Fazal, an illustrious member of Akbar’s court. The District Gazetteers as we find them now, however got its form, from the Britishers, during East India Company’s rule. The Company appointed Dr. Buchanaan Hamilton in 1807 to survey and collect materials of the territories under the presidency of Fort William. Mr. Buchanan collected materials of topography, economic conditions, religious and social customs, agriculture, landed property, tenures, manufactures and arts of each district. Mr. Montogomery Martin was asked by the Company to prepare digests out of the materials collected by Dr. Mamilton. Furthermore, with the efforts of Mr. Walter Hamilton and Mr. W.W. Hunter, the tradition of writing District Gazetteers found its real home and in fact, with the publication of Hunter’s Statistical Accounts of Bengal (20 Vols.) and Imperial Gazetteers (14 vols.) the tradition came to stay for good. The philosophy of collecting and writing an account of the administrative units of the Mughal Empire was not simply to rule their subjects, but the Mughals were also interested in getting themselves acquainted with the everyday life of this subcontinent. On the other hand, the British colonialist rulers compiled and prepared the District Gazetteers not only to know their subjects intimately but also to exploit them with the sole aim of enriching England. This difference in the attitude of the Mughals and the British rulers should always be taken into consideration. While collecting materials and writing Gazetteers of Bangladesh, an independent and sovereign country, the philosophy should be, not to rule, nor to exploit, nor to simply know the people intimately but to collect, clear, hard