In the upper part of its course the Bansi is connected with the Turag near

Kaliakoer, but unfortunately a bar has formed which can only be passed at the
height of the flood. The Turag flows past Mirzapur and Kasimpur and falls into the
Buri Ganga a little below Mirpur. Above Mirzapur the Turag receives three minor
streams which rise in the Madhupur jungle; i.e., the Saldaha, the Lavandaha, and
the Goalear creek. About seven miles above Mirpur the Tangi stream connects the
Turltg with the river Balu which rises in the Madhupur jungle a little to the east of
Sripur and falls into the Lakshya at Demra. None of these streams are of much use
for traffic during the dry season and the navigation of the Tangi stream is rendered
difficult during the rains by the railway bridge near Tangi station. (page-14)

Boro paddy is grown on the sides of bils and streams and on the churs and along
the banks of the Meghna and to a less extent of the Padma and the Dhaleswari.At
Mirpur, a little to the west of Dacca, there is a great expanse of boro land near the
confluence of the Turag and Buri Ganga and much boro is grown along the banks
of the Turag all the way from Mirpur to Kaliakoer. ....The fields are as a rule not
ploughed and the seedlings are simply planted in the soft mud left behind when the
floods recede ; but unless the plants are exposed to the action of the river tides the
fields have to be irrigated by water-lifts. The seed is generally sown in November
transplanted in December or January and harvested in April or May. (Page-98)

The next land routes to be undertaken were the road to Aricha opposite Goalando
and the embanked bridle-path from Munshiganj to Srinagar. The latter had been
constmcted by 1873, but in that year the former had only reached a point seven
miles west of Dacca. The Aricha or Goalando road is 36 miles in length, and cost
Rs. 1,23,000 to construct, exclusive of the bridge which was thrown across the
Turag at Mirpur at a cost of .Rs. 1,82,000. (P-141-42)

Only four of the Commissioners in 1910 were Europeans and the chairman Was a
non-official Indian gentleman, so that the Dacca MIunicipality may be regarded as
an example of representative institutions subjected to the minimum of official
interference. The total area of the Municipality was 6·05 square miles and the
population residing within municipal limits in 1911 was 108,551.
The principal sources of direct income are a tax on holdings levied at the rate of 10
per cent of the annual value, latrine rates, tolls on roads and ferries, and a tax on
animals and vehicles. (Page-164)

1
Mirpur : Large Trading village situated 8.5 miies west of Dacca, on the banks of
the Turag, in 23° 67' N. and 90° 20' E.; population in 1911, 818. The village is
rather picturesque as it is situated on several low hills intersected by the various
channels
of the Turag. Two large madrasas are maintained here and in the neighbourhood is
the shrine of Hazrat Shah Ali, which is visited every year by thousands of pilgrims.
The mosque in which he is buried was erected in 1480 A.D., but the saint did not
die till 1577. It is stated that he shut himself up in the mosque after requesting that
he might not be disturbed in any way for forty days. On the thirty-ninth day the
disciples heard a noise as of boiling liquid inside the mosque and in their alarm
decided that the door must be burst open. On entering the mosque all that they
found was a pool of boiling blood upon the floor, while a voice from heaven,
which they recognised as being that of the saint, ordered them to bury the blood
where it lay. (Page 193)