Jamuna Future Park

Architectural Information:
Jamuna Future Park is a shopping mall in Dhaka, and the largest shopping mall
in Bangladesh with a gross leasable area of 1,614,586 square feet (150,000 m2).
It was inaugurated on 6 September 2013. Construction began in 2002, by Jamuna
Builders Ltd., a subsidiary of the Jamuna Group and the exterior was completed
in 2008.
The complex is spread across 33 acres (13 ha) of land in Kuril, Baridhara, situated
on the Pragati Sharani, neighboring middle and upper class residential areas of
Dhaka city like Gulshan, Banani, Uttara and Bashundhara. It is relatively close
to Shahjalal International Airport, offices of multinational companies, major
embassies and other offices.
It can be accessed by the Kuril Flyover, which opened in August 2013, from both
directions of the Airport Road.
Structure
The centrally air-conditioned shopping complex has seven floors, equipped with
its own 45MW power plant and WiFi internet. The lower basement and middle
basement floor are reserved for car parking and a portion for a supermarket and
a hypermarket. Level 1 is the base floor for all atria, facilities for live
entertainment, musical and fashion shows. From the ground floor to the fifth
floor, there are several categories of outlets, non-branded shops, banks, online
booths and food courts. The fifth floor has space for a children's theme park, a
gymnasium and a health club, two separate swimming pools for men and women,
exhibition halls, banquet halls, international standard movie theater with seven
individual halls, 22-lane bowling alley with karaoke facilities, and a musical and
entertainment floor. JFP is also going to have Dhaka's second ice skating rink. The
shopping mall is built with earth resistance as per Bangladesh National Building
Code (BNBC) Zone 2 International retails include KFC, Pizza Hut, Burger King,
Krispy Kreme, Boost Juice, Lotto, Levi's, Hush Puppies, Bata, Clarks, Raymond,
Uniqlo, M.A.C, Manyavar, Miniso, The Body Shop etc. Local brands include
Aarong, Yellow, Ecstasy etc.

Features
The Jamuna Future Park (JFP) developed on a massive scale of 1,50,000 square
meters (Aporox). JFP is located at the multiple intersections of Baridhara,
Bashundhara, Gulshan, Banani, Nikunja, Airport and Uttara. A magnificent
building having
 2 basement floors for car parking, 7 floors (including upper basement
floor ) for shopping mall with multifarious amusement facilities.
 Each floor comprises of about 4,50,000 sft. containing approx 500 shops.
 An architectural landscaping has been developed containing and area of
approx 16 acres. 9 level's magnificent and grand entry in 4 sides in
different levels.
 5 octagon shaped atriums and 7 large void malls with sky light containing
10 panorama lifts will facilitate plenty of natural light into the mall area
 Arrangement of total 118 escalators, 26 spacious lifts and 03 pairs of
conveyor belt will ease shopper's movement around the complex area.
 A family entertainment centre containing Cineplex with 7 individual hall
rooms.
 Indooor children's theme park with capacity for 2500 children.
 22 lines bowling alley with facility of karaoke and musical arrangement.
 Gymnasium and health club for at a time capacity of 2000 persons with
facilities of spa and sauna.
 Well-spacious exhibition halls
 Banquete hall with capacity of 500 persons.
 Hundreds of international and local brand shops.
 A grocery hypermarket of about 500000 sft. floor area.
 Two separate swimming pool for ladies and gents.
 An international franchise five star hotel chain will be developed near
future for aligning Bangladesh with the international tourism arena.
 Live existence of different malls with facility of kiosk, lighting and strong
security measure covered by both manual and CCTV camera network in
the internal and external network.
 Strong earthquake resistance as per BNBC Zone 2
 Online branch banking and ATM booth in each floor of JFP.
 Centrally Air-Conditioning system of 18500 ton capacity.
 Total road networking and traffic control system.
 Ring road has been developed around Jamuna Future Park for enhancing
the vehicle movement.
 Automated car parking toll system with the capacity of 5000 parking at a
time.
 Water supply from deep-tube well, independent water treatment plant
and supply of purified drinking water in different floor.
 Fixed / wireless PSTN connectivity facility and intercom.
 Brodband, wireless, Wi Fi . internet connectivity
 Automatic security system with CCTV, Auto Alarm, surveillance system
and guard patrolling system.
 Automatic fire, explosive and smoke detection and protection system
with international standard fire hydrant system.
 Auto powered generator plant to ensure uninterrupted power supply
with a capacity of 45 mega watts self-electricity sub-station.
 External illumination / lighting at night.
 Lost and found desk.
 Central mosque inside JFP complex
 Customer loyalty program.
 Strict compliance with BNBC code.
 Kantajew Temple
Kantanagar Temple, commonly known as Kantaji Temple or Kantajew
Temple (Bengali: কান্তজীউ মন্দির) at Kantanagar, is a late-medieval Hindu
temple in Dinajpur, Bangladesh. The Kantajew Temple is one of the most
magnificent religious edifices belonging to the 18th century. The temple belongs
to the popular Hindu Kanta or Krishna and this is most popular with the Radha-
Krishna cult (assemble of memorable love) in Bengal. This beautiful temple is
dedicated to Krishna and his wife Rukmini.[citation needed] Built by Maharaja
Pran Nath, its construction started in 1704 CE and ended in the reign of his son
Raja Ramnath in 1722 CE. It boasts one of the greatest examples
on terracotta architecture in Bangladesh and once had nine spires, but all were
destroyed in an earthquake that took place in 1897. This Bihar is another unique
wonder of Pala kingdom in Bengal. The Bihar was such a huge area, and no other
Bihar monastery was found in the Indian sub-continent. In 1985 UNESCO gave it
the status of the World Heritage Site.

Architectural Information:
The temple was built in a navaratna (nine-spired) style before the destruction
caused by the earthquake of 1897. The characteristic features of the erections
are the four centered and wide multi-cusped arches, the plastered surface of the
walls having immense rectangular and square panelings, prominence of the
central archway and the central mihirab by making the slightly larger and setting
in a projected fronton in the outside directions, the use of ornamental turrets on
the either side of the fronons, the semi-octagonal mirirab apertures, the archway
opening under half-domes, the Persian muquarnas work in stucco inside the half-
domes over the entrance arches and mihirab niches, the bulbous outline of the
domes with constructed necks, domes on octagonal drums with lotus and kalasa
finials as the crowning elements, the round pendentives to make up the phase of
transition for the domes and the multi-faced corner towers rising high above the
horizontal merloned parapets
Paharpur Bihar is the largest Bihar of in Asia. Brick surrounded the whole Bihar.
The main wall of Bihar was found to be 20 feet wide. There are many smaller
temples available in the enclosure. The monastery is 922 feet in the north and
919 feet in the west. There are 177 rooms around the main temple. It is estimated
that monks lived here. Each of these rooms is 14 feet long and 13 feet in width.
About 80 odd monks were vestiges of this monastery. There are small doors for
each room to enter. The long verandah has gone through the chambers. The only
part we get after discovering is the bottom part.
Now it's height is 70 feet. The above-ground walls and ceilings have long been
disintegrated. The area that was found intact was 280 meters in length and 278
meters wide. Two halls on two sides of the courtyard and several guardrooms on
both sides were found. A small lane on the east aspect of the north corner and
the middle of the eastern extremity provides one more hidden path route. The
wall surrounds the entire temple. Its entrance and the central staircase to the
main building was on the north side. There was a pond in front of the north
entrance gate until 1984.
According to the data obtained in the year 1984-85, the pond was dug after the
first construction period, and erosion of the stairs was destroyed. Later the lake
was filled up. During the excavation, 125 silver coins of the reign of Kharif Harun
al-Rashid were found in clay pots, and they were stored in the adjacent
museum at Paharpur. Besides, many statues, coins, inscriptions, etc., rescued
from Paharpur Bihar, are preserved in Paharpur Museum.

Features:
 Terracotta designs on columns near the entrance
 Terracotta designs outside the temple
 Description of the temple
 Comparison
 Temple front
 Paharpur Bihar (Sompur Bihar)
 Paharpur Bihar (Sompur Bihar) is one of the most important
archaeological sites in Bangladesh. This area was named Sompur during
Pala period. The name of the monastery was named after the name of
the area, Sompur.

Features:
Central temple: The ruins of the Central Temple are in the middle of the open
square of the intermediate area of Bihar. The wondrous main temple is the
unique architecture of the building industry. Extraordinary artistic planning.
There are about 2 thousand terracotta plaques available in the wall of the temple.

It was dispersed in the anticipated reflection of the general public life of East
Bengal. For example - people, hunters, dancing women, shepherds, plants,
flowers, animals, elephants, horses and much more. The dramatic composition
of beautiful cultural history is seen in the eyes of the eyes.
The main temple was in the center of Bihar. In the heart of the original plan, there
is a vacant square-faced cell with no doors and windows. This chamber stretches
from the bottom of the temple to a peak. It is the center of this empty room, built
on the structure of the temple. It stepped up like a pyramid step by step.

Here was the roundabout path. The temple's length is 400 feet, and width is 350
feet. The main temple was made of bricks and mud clay mixed with it. Historians
believe that the beauty of this temple was influenced later in the formation of
Burma, Cambodia, Java in Indonesia and various monuments of Bali Island.
A brick pots floor has been discovered in the vacant central room. Outside the
floor room, the room and the mound of the room are almost extinguished. But
no way to go around the room or rooms in the center there before the door was
closed later that has not found any evidence. There is no altar or idol of idols in
the chamber. The statues were probably placed in the rooms around it. There is
no clear sign of the top of the temple since it is not clear about the roof.
Open courtyard: Some architectural ruins were found in the Intermediate Open
Space. The dining-room and kitchens are located in the southeast part of the
courtyard. There is 46-meter long brick paved sewage between these two
installations, and it has three wells in one row.

There are also some dusk stacks, administrative buildings, a portrait of the central
temple, etc. Among the deposited stupas, the stack in the southeast is 16 angle
star form. A well built on a steep platform, there is a ripe well in the nearby place.
Apart from this, administrative buildings, cooked houses, dining rooms, dining
stacks, wells, etc. are available sporadically.

Other notable architecture: It is basically the establishment of the outside of

Bihar. Some baths and toilets were built on a stage 27m south from the southern
wall of Bihar. It is connected by a high stopping path from the number 102 of
Bihar. Below this route, there is a vaulted arch in the parallel to the Bihar wall.
Perhaps it was designed to move freely outside Bihar and to arrange drainage.
Sandhyabotir Ghat: The south-east corner of Bihar has the Shanbankhonga Ghat
(The gorge) outside the wall. It is called the evening ghat. King Meydalan's
daughter Sandhavati used to take a bath regularly. There was a river passing by
Bihar. On each side, each wall is 1.5m wide. The ghat from the surface of the
ground has dropped down to about 12 meters.
Gandheshwari Temple: There is a temple outside the eastern wall of 12 meters
from the bathing site. There are Buddhist goddess Padmapani statues on the
southern wall of the temple. It is locally known as the temple ofGandheshwari.
Its length is 6.7m and width is 3.5m. Its front wall looks like a full-blown lotus with
various types of flower design and masonry material.
There is a four-story hall. An octagonal pillar below the middle of the lobby room
is found. Outside of a wall grown in the west, there is a worship hall of 1.4 m wide
outside. Besides, there are arrangements for setting up the statue in the four hall
room niches. There is a terrace in front of the temple. Its floor is erected with
vertical bricks and isolated from other architectural patterns in Paharpur.
House of Satyapir (Satyapirer Bhita): Satyapiar Bhita, located 365 meters east of
Paharpur Bihar. There are a Tara (star) temple and a ruin of various shapes and
sizes stupas. In the temple courtyard, around 50 terracotta plaques, erected
statues, and statues of Buddhist religious doctrines have been constructed from
the terracotta round seals.
There are 132 submersible mounds in the temple area. The various forms and
designs around the temple testify to the multiplicity of sutures and the fame and
importance of ornamentation. Among the stupas, the foursquare Stupa is located
in the southeastern part of the adjoining main temple.
The length of every arm of the stupa is 3 meter, and the outer part is decorated
with orange bricks. Due to the excavation, a pavement memorial chamber with
an area of the 1m square has been discovered in the middle of this formula. The
staircase was filled with several thousand small mud pots offering a statue.
 Ahsan Manzil
Ahsan Manzil (Bengali: আহসান মন্দিল, Ahsan Monjil) was the official residential
palace and seat of the Nawab of Dhaka.[1] The building is situated at Kumartoli
along the banks of the Buriganga River in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Construction was
started in 1859 and was completed in 1872. It was constructed in the Indo-
Saracenic Revival architecture. It has been designated as a national museum.

Architectural Information
Ahsan Manzil is one of the most significant architectural monuments
of Bangladesh. The building structure was established on a raised platform of 1
meter, the two-storied palace measures 125.4m by 28.75m. The height of the
ground floor is 5 meters and the height of the first floor is 5.8 meters. The
thickness of the walls of the palace is about 0.78 meters. There are porticos of 5
meters height on the northern and southern sides of the palace. The building has
a broad front-facing the Buriganga River. On the river side, an open spacious
stairway leads right up to the second portal and on their stands the grand triple-
arched portals. There was once a fountain in the garden in front of the stairs
which does not exist today. All along the north and the south side of the building
run spacious verandahs with an open terrace projected in the middle.
The palace Ahsan Manzil is divided into two parts: the eastern side and the
western side. The eastern building with the dome is called the Rangmahal and
the western side with the living rooms is called Andarmahal. The high octagonal
dome is placed on the central round room. There is a large drawing room, card
room, library, state room and two other guest rooms are located on the east side
of the palace. The ballroom, the Hindustani room and few residential rooms are
situated on the western side. A beautiful vaulted artificial ceiling, made of wood,
decorates the drawing room and the Jalsaghar. A splendid dining hall and few
smaller rooms are placed on the west part. The floors of the dining and Darbar
Halls are decorated with white, green and yellow colored ceramic tiles. The
famous store room, where the valuables of the Nawabs used to be stored, was in
the middle of the five rooms located in the western half of the ground floor. Along
with those rooms a Darbar Hall or assembly hall and a chest room is also place
there.
There are attractive wooden stairs in the room that is attached to the north of
the domed room. The balusters were ornamented with vine leaves made of iron
along the railing of the stairs. The wooden ceiling of the room, decorated with
geometric designs, is very elegant. The verandas and rooms are covered with
marble. The doorways are placed within semicircular arches. The inner doors
had multi-colored glasses. Wooden beams supported the roof of these rooms.
The architecture and the decoration is one of a kind in whole Bangladesh.
The construction of the famous dome of the Ahsan Mazil, which is at the center
of the palace, took a lot tedious planning. The square room on the ground floor
was built with a round shape and brickworks were done around the corners. To
give the room an octagonal shape, squinches were given around the roof corners.
The eight corners of the octagon was slanted gradually to make the dome look
like the bud of a lotus ( kumud kali). The peak of this dome is 27.13 m above the
ground. Ahsan Manzil was severely damaged during the tornado that occurred
on 7 April 1888.the western block of Andermahal was completely demolished
and later it was entirely rebuilt. The present day dome, which is situated on the
top, was built during the time of reconstruction. This place was also damaged
during the earthquake of 1897but Nawab Khwaja Ahsanullah repaired the whole
place again.

Features:
Museum: More than 4000 signs are collected and being displayed in Ahsan manzil
Museum. These are being displayed in 23 rooms out of 31 in Rangmahal. Among
those, 9 rooms are arranged according to photos captured in 1904.
Gallery 1: The brief description of Ahsan Manzil presented with photographs and
pictures. There is a model of the building also.
Gallery 2: Evolution of the building ‘Ahsan Manzil’ is displayed with photographs
here. There are Samples of cut-glass and Chandelier also.
Gallery 3: It is the Royal Gala dining room. Cupboard, mirrors, glass and clay
crocks obtained from Ahsan Manzil are displayed here.
Gallery 4: Large wooden stairs. Skeleton of Elephant head. Armour and sword.
Original specimen of wooden fence.
Gallery 5: Armours and swords.
Gallery 6: Various Instruments and Registers used in Ahsan Ullah Memorial
Hospital are displayed here.
Gallery 7: This large room was used as Darbar Hall. Oil paintings of all India Muslim
leaders who came to join Shahbag Conference to form Muslim league in 1906 are
being displayed in this gallery. Additionally, an octagonal table gifted to the
Nawab of Dhaka from Italy is also being displayed here.
Gallery 8: Horns of various kinds of animals collected from Edward House.
Various Sports Equipment of the then indoor and outdoor games.
Gallery 9: Large iron chests and wooden cupboards of Royal period.
Gallery 10: There are large cupboards, clay crocks which are signs of Nawab
period.
Gallery 11: This gallery is arranged with portraits of eminent persons.
Gallery 12: This gallery is organized with the memory of Nawab Sir Salimullah.
Gallery 13: This gallery has been decorated with portraits of Royal
contemporary great men.
Gallery 14, 15, 16 & 17: These are the Hindustani room, main stairs, Library room
and card room respectively.
Gallery 18 & 19: The symbols of Drinking Water Supply in Dhaka which were found
in Ahsan Manzil and Edward House. There are also a few rare pictures of Dhaka
Water Work.
Gallery 20 & 21: There was no electricity in Dhaka before 1901. Information about
the arrangement of electricity by the Nawabs as well as clay crocks and flower
vases of the royal period are being dispayed here.
Gallery 22: This gallery is in the first floor. Arms got from Ahsan Manzil are being
displayed here. The high dome is located over this room.
Gallery 23: It was a Ballroom. It has been arranged according to pictures taken
in 1904.
 Bashundhara City
Bashundhara City (Bengali: বসুন্ধরা সসটি) is a shopping mall in Dhaka, and the
second largest shopping mall in Bangladesh. Opened to the public on 6 August
2004, the mall located in Panthapath, near Kawran Bazar. Bashundhara City is a
19 floor building complex covering an area of 191200 sqft comprising an 8 floor
podium containing retail spaces, theme Park, cinemas, fitness club, swimming
pool and food court with a 19-storey Corporate Office of Bashundhara Group.

Architectural Information:
The mall has space for 2,325 retail stores and cafeterias and has a large
underground gymnasium, a multiplex cinema, a top-floor food court, an ice
skating rink, and a theme park. The fully air-conditioned shopping mall with
rooftop gardens is considered a modern symbol of the emerging city of Dhaka.
Bashundhara City is one of the largest shopping malls in South Asia: up to 50,000
people visit daily.
It is the first modern mall in the city, designed by the principal architect Mustapha
Khalid Palash and Mohammad Foyez Ullah of Vistaara.

Features:
 Bashundhara City Shopping Mall is South Asia’s largest shopping –cum
recreation complex and 12th largest in the world.
 World famous footwear manufacturer company “BATA” has its largest
outlet (Store) in the world at Bashundhara City Shopping Mall.
 Bashundhara City is one of Bangladesh’s largest private sector employers
with more than 1200 employees.
 Up to 50,000 people from home and abroad visit the mall daily, which
reaches to 1,00,000 during festivals and special occasions.
 It can endure a major quake measuring 7.5 on Richter Scale.
 National parliament
Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban or National Parliament House, (Bengali: জাতীয় সংসদ
ভবন Jatiyô Sôngsôd Bhôbôn) is the house of the Parliament of Bangladesh,
located at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka. Designed by
architect Louis Kahn, the complex is the largest legislative complexes in the
world, comprising 200 acres (800,000 m²).
The building was featured prominently in the 2003 film My Architect, detailing
the career and familial legacy of its architect, Louis Kahn. Robert McCarter,
author of Louis I. Kahn, described the National Parliament of Bangladesh as one
of the twentieth century's most significant buildings.

Architecture Information:
Louis Kahn designed the entire Jatiya Sangsad complex, which includes lawns,
lake and residences for the Members of the Parliament (MPs). The architect’s key
design philosophy was to represent Bangladeshi culture and heritage, while at
the same time optimizing the use of space. The exterior of the building is striking
in its simplicity, with huge walls deeply recessed by porticoes and large openings
of regular geometric shapes. The main building, which is at the center of the
complex, is divided into three parts – the Main Plaza, South Plaza and Presidential
Plaza. An artificial lake surrounds three sides of the main building of Jatiya
Sangsad Bhaban, extending to the Members of Parliament hostel complex. This
skillful use of water to portray the riverine beauty of Bangladesh adds to the
aesthetic value of the site.
Design philosophy
Kahn's key design philosophy optimizes the use of space while representing
Bangladeshi heritage and culture. External lines are deeply recessed by porticoes
with huge openings of regular geometric shapes on their exterior, shaping the
building's overall visual impact.
In the architect Louis Kahn's own words:
In the assembly I have introduced a light-giving element to the interior of the
plan. If you see a series of columns you can say that the choice of columns is a
choice in light. The columns as solids frame the spaces of light. Now think of it
just in reverse and think that the columns are hollow and much bigger and that
their walls can themselves give light, then the voids are rooms, and the column
is the maker of light and can take on complex shapes and be the supporter of
spaces and give light to spaces. I am working to develop the element to such an
extent that it becomes a poetic entity which has its own beauty outside of its
place in the composition. In this way it becomes analogous to the solid column I
mentioned above as a giver of light.
It was not belief, not design, not pattern, but the essence from which an
institution could emerge..
The lake on three sides of the Bhaban, extending up to the Members' hostel adds
to site's aesthetics and also portrays the riverine beauty of Bangladesh.
The assembly building received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989.
Completion date: 1982
Function: civic
Construction cost: US$32 million

Features:
The Bhaban (main building)
The Bhaban consists of nine individual blocks: the eight peripheral blocks rise to
a height of 110' while the central octagonal block rises to a height of 155'. All nine
blocks include different groups of functional spaces and have different levels,
inter-linked horizontally and vertically by corridors, lifts, stairs, light courts, and
circular areas. The entire structure is designed to blend into one single, non-
differentiable unit, that appears from the exterior to be a single story.
The main committee rooms are located at level two in one of the peripheral
blocks. All parliamentary functionaries, including Ministers and chairpersons of
some Standing Committees, have offices in the Bhaban. The Parliament
Secretariat also occupies offices in the same building.
The Main Plaza
The most important part of the Main Plaza is the Parliament Chamber, which can
house up to 354 members during sessions. There are also two podia and two
galleries for VIP visitors. The chamber has a maximum height of 117 feet (36 m)
with a parabolic shell roof. The roof was designed with a clearance of a single
story to let in daylight. Daylight, reflecting from the surrounding walls and
octagonal drum, filters into the Parliament Chamber. The efficient and aesthetic
use of light was a strong architectural capability of Louis Kahn.
The artificial lighting system has been carefully devised to provide zero
obstruction to the entry of daylight. A composite chandelier is suspended from
parabolic shell roof. This chandelier in turn consists of a metallic web, spanning
the entire chamber, that supports the individual light fixtures.
Upper levels of the block (that contains the Chamber) contain the visitor and
press galleries, as well as communication booths, all of which overlook the
Parliament Chamber. The block also contains:
 at level one, a library;
 at level three, MPs’ lounges; and
 at the upper level, party rooms.
The South Plaza
The South Plaza faces the Manik Mia Avenue. It gradually rises to a 20' height
and serves as a beautiful exterior as well as the main entrance (used by
members during sessions) to the Parliament Building. It contains:
 controlling gates;
 a driveway;
 a main mechanical plant room;
 offices of maintenance engineers;
 equipment stores; and
 an open plaza with steps and ramps leading directly to the main building.
Presidential Plaza
The Presidential Plaza lies to the North and faces the Lake Road. It functions as
an intimate plaza for the MPs and other dignitaries. It contains marble steps, a
gallery and an open pavement.
 Jatiya Smriti Saudha
National Martyrs’ Memorial (Bengali: জাতীয় স্মৃসত সসৌধ Jatiya Smriti Saudha) is the
national monument of Bangladesh, set up in the memory of those who died in
the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, which brought independence and
separated Bangladesh from Pakistan. The monument is located in Savar, about
35 km north-west of the capital, Dhaka.[1] It was designed by Syed Mainul
Hossain.

Architecture Information:
The monument tower is made by concrete and other structures and pavements
are made by red bricks. This red bricks reminds the blood of millions of people,
who sacrificed their blood for the liberation of Bangladesh. The main monument
is composed of 7 isosceles triangular pyramid like planes each varying in size in
its height and base. 7 isosceles triangular pyramids remind seven Bir Sreshthos.
The highest one has the smallest base while the broadest base has the lowest
height. The planes are folded at the middle and placed one after another. The
highest point of the structure reaches 150 feet. This unique arrangement of the
planes has created a mysterious structure that seems to change its configuration
when observed from different angles. Several mass graves and a beautiful
reflection water body are placed in front of this monument. Anyone has to walk
through different ups and downs of pavements and cross an artificial lake by a
bridge-all of those represent the struggle for independence.
Area:
The complex is spread over an area of 34 hectares (84 acres) which is wrapped
around by a green belt of 10 hectares (24.7 acres).
Features:
 Lake in side of the National martyrs' memorial or Jatiya Sriti Shoudho
complex
 Administrative building and main entrance gate view from inside the
complex
 Mosque inside the National martyrs' memorial or Jatiya Sriti Shoudho
 Towers base of the national martyrs' monument or Jatiya Sriti Shoudho
 Towers of the National martyrs' or Jatiya Sriti Shoudho made of concrete
 Shalban Vihara
Shalban vihara (Sanskrit; Bengali: শালবন সবহার Shalban Bihar) is an archaeological
site in Mainamati, Comilla, Bangladesh. The ruins are in the middle of the Lalmai
hills ridge, and these are of a 7th-century Paharpur-style Buddhist viharas with
about 100 cells for monks. It operated through the 12th century.
Excavations have revealed many archaeological artifacts dated to between the
7th and 12th centuries. Most of them are kept in the Mainamati Museum now.

Architecture Information:
Central of Shalban vihara
The large square monastery of 550-foot sides with 115 monastic cells, a dominant
central shrine and a number of subsidiary shrines. Stupas and chapels, provides
access through its monumental gateway on the north. While the central shrine
revealed six building phases and the monastery four. The 1st and 2nd phases of
the central shrine remains buried under the ruins of the 3rd, 4th and 5th periods
but the remains of the 6th phase have been removed from the top. The cruciform
central shrine of third built with the monastery as a single complex.
Staircases
In the middle of each wing, the monastery verandah is provided with a shallow
projection to serve as the base for a flight of steps leading down to the brick-
paved courtyard, the arrangement in the front side being larger and more
elaborate. Compared to them, the arrangement in each corner of the monastery
is a grand affair. Here, occupying a pair of cells, a solidly built broad and massive
staircase leads to the roof or an upper floor. Such elaborate arrangements
coupled with the evidence of a strong roof naturally suggest the existence of an
upper storey.
Chapels
The central cell in each wing is larger, stronger and more elaborate with certain
special features such as small pedestals and platforms with decorative mouldings,
larger niches, etc. By analogy to similar arrangements in Nalanda and Paharpur
monasteries, they certainly represent subsidiary chapels or shrines.
Niches
Each of the cells were originally provided with three excellently built corbelled
niches in the inner walls, the one in the back wall being larger. Objects recovered
in and around them strongly indicate that these were primarily intended for
keeping votive images, oil lamps and reading and writing materials.
The central shrine
The shrine at Shalban Vihara is actually not but six different structures built
successively on the same spot in different periods and on different plans. They
provide interesting evidence of the evolution and gradual transforming of the
traditional Buddhist stupa architecture into that of the Hindu temple. The
remains of the first two periods are hidden below the cruciform shrine of period
III which was built with the monastery as a single complex. It is an exceedingly
interesting piece of architecture resembling in ground plan a Greek cross, 51.8m
long with chapels built in the projecting arms. Its basement walls are embellished
with a string course of delightfully sculptured terracotta plaques set within
parallel bands of ornamental bricks. This shrine bearing a striking resemblance
with that of Paharpur represents a fully developed and finished example of the
7th- to 8th-century Buddhist temple architecture of Bengal. Since the Mainamati
monuments are unquestionably earlier in date by about a century, and as there
are a number of early and intermediary stages of development in this
evolutionary process clearly traceable in Mainamati.Mainamati supplied
prototypes of cruciform shrines not only for Paharpur and Vikramashila in eastern
India but also for the subsequent Buddhist architectural development in Burma,
Indonesia and Indochina. The next two periods (IV and V) witnessed an
interesting further transformation and development in the plan of the central
shrine, the cruciform shape being replaced by an oblong one. Now fully open,
spacious and functional, it is much nearer to a Hindu temple. In these structural
changes may lie the primary reason for discontinuing the earlier Biddhist tradition
of the delightful terracotta decorations in the early Muslim architecture of
Bengal, though in a somewhat different form. The main interest in these evolved
shrines shifted from the outer walls around the circumambulatory path to the
inner chambers with space enough for images, sculptures and architectural
decorations, and especially to the principal cult images consecrated in them.

Features:
This was once a self-contained Buddhist monastery where, monks lived, studied
and prayed. It was the royal palace for the early Buddhist students. Students from
various places come here for their meditation and religious learning. During their
study period the students stay in the dormitory/cells around the temple. It's such
a quite place inside a barren forest and one of the greatest tourist spots in
Bangladesh.