Maps of Dhaka City and Bangladesh Transport System

Bangladesh- Population Density-----------------Bangladesh Administrative Map

Bangladesh- Transport Network Map-----------------Bangladesh Rivers

Bangladesh- Flood Affected Area -------------------- Cyclone affected Zone

Map- Climatic Zone --------------------------------------- Map Forest zone
(map ref: http://www.bangladesh.gov.bd/)

Dhaka City map - pre Mughal period

Dhaka City Map- Mughal Capital

James Rennel's Map of Bengal showing Inland Navigation (1776)

Rennel's Dhaka City map of late 18th century

Dhaka City map in 1859- under British Occupation

Dhaka City Map- Capital of East Bengal and Assam during 1905-11

Dhaka City Map of 1914

Dhaka City map - fag end of British rule
(map ref: Wikipedia)






Dhaka rivers and canals (daily star)


Dhaka city Image / Googles Earth Station Map of Dhaka (click to Save and Zoom to read)

Mapping of Bengal:

James Rennell (1742-1830) was born in Devonshire, England became a geographer and marine engineer and made an exploration of the Bengal river basins and mapped them for the first time. To facilitate commercial navigation, Henry Vansittart, governor of the Fort William, Calcutta gave him a commission in Bengal Engineers of the Company's army and entrusted him with the specific responsibility of making a survey of the major rivers of Bengal and their tributaries. After the company's acquisition of the Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa (1765), the need for such a survey was more keenly felt. Governor Robert Clive thus established a regular survey department in 1767 with James Rennell as its Surveyor General.

By the time, of course, Rennell had largely completed his explorations of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna river-systems. Dhaka was his operational headquarters. Originally, Rennell was employed for only surveying the Ganges delta with the special objective of finding a shorter passage suitable for large vessels from the Ganges to Calcutta, than that through the Sundarbans and the Meghna. His daily journal gives a detailed account of this voyage and of three subsequent expeditions, during which he surveyed greater part of northern and eastern Bengal, penetrating beyond Goalpara in Assam. Inadequately equipped, he was attacked by tigers, reptiles, dacoits and hostile people many times as he completed the survey within a span of three years with the help of only four assistants. It was while he was engaged on this duty on the frontier of Kuch Behar that he was attacked and severely wounded by a party of the rebellious followers of Fakir Majnu Shah.

His expeditions were so satisfactorily made that later the Survey of India found his identifications remarkably accurate. To all users — academic, administrative and navigational, Rennell's Atlas was the dependable guide until professional maps were made available in mid 19th century. Rennell's second great work was the first approximately correct map of India. The map was accompanied by a Memoir (1783) containing a full account of the plan on which it was executed. Rennell retired from the service in 1776 shortly after being promoted to the rank of Major in the Bengal Engineers. His Bengal Atlas, published in 1779, was a work of the highest importance from commercial, military and administrative points of view. To all users - academic, administrative and navigational, Rennell's Atlas was the dependable guide until professional maps were made available in mid 19th century (ref: Banglapedia).

It's a pity that Government, Tourism (Parjatan corp.) or Dhaka City Corporation has yet to make an interactive digital map of Dhaka city with images of city landmarks and road networks 'ward by ward' under Dhaka city. The Dhaka city maps commercially printed by some private firms "The Mappe" and "Graphosman" do not show details of landmark and routes of old Dhaka although they are of presentable quality and handy for the visitors.