History of Khulna · Lablypedia

The area's recorded history begins with its incorporation into the ancient kingdoms of Vanga and Samatata, and later the Sena kingdom's southern deltaic province of Bāgri in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The mid-fifteenth century brought a decisive transformation with the arrival of Khan Jahan Ali, a Sufi missionary and administrator under the Bengal Sultanate, who led the first large-scale reclamation of the Sundarbans and established the mosque-city of Bagerhat — today a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Toward the end of the sixteenth century, the chieftain Pratapaditya, one of the Baro-Bhuiyans, established an independent kingdom in the southern delta and permitted the construction of the first Christian church on the territory of present-day Bangladesh at Chandecan (present-day Jessore). His kingdom was eventually defeated by the Mughal general Man Singh I in 1611. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the southern delta was severely depopulated by raids from Arakanese and Portuguese pirates.

British administrative control was established from 1781, and Khulna District was formally constituted on 1 June 1882. The completion of the Eastern Bengal State Railway transformed Khulna into a major regional trade hub, while the Indigo Revolt of 1859–1860 marked a formative episode of agrarian resistance in the district. During the Pakistan period (1947–1971), Khulna emerged as a major industrial centre, home to some of the largest jute mills in Asia and the Chalna (Mongla) Port.

The Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 brought intense fighting to the district, culminating in the Battle of Shiromoni and a formal Pakistani surrender on 17 December 1971. The district suffered one of the highest civilian death tolls of the war, including the Chuknagar massacre of 20 May 1971 — one of the deadliest single incidents of the conflict. Following independence, Khulna developed as the third-largest city in Bangladesh, an industrial and port centre whose economy has increasingly shifted toward shrimp cultivation. In 2024, the city was a significant site of the Quota Reform Movement that culminated in the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the formation of an interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.

Deltaic origins and geography

The origins of the name Khulna are disputed, with no single account supported by documentary evidence. According to popular legend, the town is named after 'Khullanā', a heroine from medieval Bengali literature and mythology who was the second wife of the merchant Dhanapati Saudagar. Tradition states that Khullanā dedicated a shrine or temple to the goddess Khullaneswari (a form of the goddess Chandi or Kali) on the banks of the Bhairab River, approximately one mile east of the present town's center. Historical narratives suggest that the area was once a dense forest known as Noyabad (newly reclaimed land), and the name Khulna eventually superseded this designation as the settlement grew.

The physical origins of Khulna are entirely deltaic, as the district forms a central portion of the vast southern delta between the Hooghly and Meghna estuaries. The region was formed by the continuous action of the Ganges and Brahmaputra river systems, which carried down immense volumes of fine mud, silt, lime, and limestone from the Himalayas over millennia, delivering approximately one billion tons of sediment annually to the basin. This process of land building occurs when silt-laden river water reaches the sea; the velocity of the current is checked by the sea's resistance, causing the heavier silt to drop and form bars at the river mouths. These bars eventually grow into islands, building up land in the shape of the Greek letter delta, from which the phenomenon takes its name. This constant influx has resulted in a delta progradation rate of roughly 17 km² per year over the last five decades.

Khulna's geological history is distinguished in part by the phenomena of earth subsidence. The remains of old sundri forest stumps found deep beneath the present surface, sometimes at depths of 18 to 30 feet (5.5 to 9.1 m), provide definitive evidence of this subsiding. These trees, which can only grow above the mean tide level, show that the land surface has sunk from time to time, which has let new layers of silt be laid on top of old forest floors. Ancient brick foundations, human skeletons, and coins discovered at these depths during excavations in Khulna and adjacent regions show that settlements existed in places presently covered by marshes or woods. Antiquarians suggest that a once-populous civilization in the Sundarbans was forced to abandon its lands as they sank below the water level, explaining the presence of ancient ruins and palatial remains deep within the mangrove swamps.

Further proof of this uneven land fall is the bil system, characterised by broad, water-logged depressions. Often produced when the silt-laden rivers constructed their own banks higher than the adjacent interior country, these bils left low-lying pockets that catch water. While some bils are the result of natural deltaic action, the great northern chain of bils is attributed to the same geological subsidence that affected the Sundarbans. About 15 miles (24 km) from the coast, where the sea floor plunges sharply from 20 to over 200 fathom, is another major geographical feature in the Bay of Bengal, the Swatch of No Ground, a huge submarine canyon. This canyon serves as a critical sediment sink, trapping approximately one-third of the annual sediment load delivered by the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. Geologists believe this dip marks the original bed of the Bay of Bengal, where silt buildup was inhibited as the primary course of the Ganges changed to the eastern side of the delta, so altering the concentration of deposits.

The river system acts as the "veins and arteries" of Khulna, dictating its historical settlement patterns and economic life. During the 16th century, the main volume of the Ganges shifted from the Bhagirathi eastward to the Padma, which caused the Bhairab and other western effluents to shrink and silt up, fundamentally altering the river network of the southwestern delta. The eastern border of Khulna, the Madhumati River meaning "honey-bearing," is today the biggest river in the district and serves as the main distributary of the Ganges, having assumed its modern prominence in the early 19th century after the Brahmaputra changed its course, forcing more water into the Gorai and Madhumati channels.

Major rivers

The river system forms the "veins and arteries" of Khulna, dictating its historical settlement patterns and economic life. Three rivers have been particularly significant in shaping the district's deltaic landscape and human geography.

The Bhairab River, whose name derives from the Sanskrit word for "the terrible," was once a mighty distributary of the Ganges and the primary force behind the formation of the district's deltaic tract. Since the eighteenth century, however, its headwaters have progressively silted up, reducing it to a "dead river" across several of its reaches and diminishing its former role as a commercial artery.

The Rupsha River did not exist as a major watercourse in the historical record but originated as a small canal. Local tradition and administrative records attribute its creation to an individual named Rup Shaba, who cut a channel connecting the Bhairab to the Kajibacha; this channel subsequently expanded, through the natural action of tidal and fluvial forces, into the substantial river it is today.

The Kobadak River, known poetically in Bengali as Kapot-aksha — meaning "dove's eye" — was once a vigorous effluent of the Ganges and a major trade route through the southwestern delta. Having lost its direct connection to the main Ganges flow, it now carries only surface drainage; yet its characteristically high banks remain as physical evidence of its former vigor and commercial importance.

The geographical stability of Khulna is currently threatened by saline inundation as the sweet water of the Ganges continues to migrate eastward. The western and central rivers have become conduits for salt water from the Bay of Bengal, which can lead to local crop destruction and scarcity. The construction of embankments to protect crops has created a "vicious circle," where restricted silt causes riverbeds to rise, forcing salt water higher and further into the interior.

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Communication and trade infrastructure

The historical prosperity of Khulna was driven by its role as a regional transit hub, utilizing a complex network of "veins and arteries" formed by the delta's river system. Before the advent of modern rail and road networks, Khulna's economy was entirely dependent on water-borne trade. The district served as the focus for water routes connecting the jute and grain-producing districts of Eastern Bengal to the markets of Calcutta.

Administrative documents from the late 1800s carefully recorded two main routes through the delta. The "Inner Route" used channels like the Jamuna and Madhumati to avoid the more risky seaward routes, while the outer route followed the bigger estuarine channels nearer to the Bay of Bengal. Regular steamer services connected Khulna to Narayanganj, Barisal, and Goalundo by the early twentieth century, enabling the mass transit of rice and jute from the deltaic interior to the Calcutta markets. A transformative milestone in Khulna's infrastructure history was the completion of the Eastern Bengal State Railway in the late 19th century. Khulna town became the southern terminus for the central section of this railway, providing a direct link to Calcutta. This connection accelerated the town's growth, turning it into a major forwarding mart for salt, sugar, and betel nuts.

During the colonial era, Khulna's economic geography was mostly defined by two trade centres. Originally a salt-producing site called Molonga, Barobazar developed at the confluence of the Bhairab and Rupsha rivers into the main economic center of the city, serving as the principal distribution point for grain, jute, and forest products from the Sundarbans hinterland. A second market, Shaheber Bazar, developed near the railway station during the colonial period; it derived its name from a Mr. Challett, who managed a nearby indigo factory.

Ancient and early medieval period

The earliest history of Khulna is deeply intertwined with the hydro-geological evolution of the Bengal Delta, a region formed by the continuous deposition of silt from the Ganges and Brahmaputra river systems. From a geological standpoint, Khulna is located at the southernmost edge of the Gangetic delta on Quaternary sediments mostly made up of late Holocene to Recent alluvium. Historical study points to the region being a part of the Haldighi branch of the Ganges' Burani island at the estuary.

Historically, the area was connected with the kingdoms of Vanga, Samatata, and Harikela. 5th–6th century CE archaeological discoveries at Bharat Bhayna point to the existence of Buddhist settlements and cellular stupas. The finding of Abbasid-era coins along the coastal belt implies that the area was included in Arab marine commerce networks by the 8th century.

In prehistoric times, Khulna was considered part of the deltaic tract known as Banga. Early literary accounts such as the Aitareya Aranyaka and the Mahabharata describe the inhabitants of this low-lying region as a race that lived in boats and subsisted primarily on fish and roots. Ancient Greek geographers and texts like the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (c. 1st century CE) allude to the commercial prominence of the lower Ganges, where ports were established for the trade of salt, coral, and muslin. The region was also historically linked to the kingdom of the Gangaridai.

During the 4th century AD, the region was likely part of the kingdom of Samatata, described as a populous country bordering the "great sea". The Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsiang, who visited in the 7th century, noted that the area contained approximately 30 Buddhist monasteries and 100 Hindu temples. In the 11th and 12th centuries, the tract formed part of Bāgri, the southern deltaic portion of the kingdom of Ballala Sena. Under the Sena Dynasty, the region served as a hub for maritime commerce and salt manufacture managed by producers known as Molongi.

The transition to medieval Islamic rule is evidenced by numismatic finds in the district. Near the Marjal River, archaeological remains unearthed 38 silver coins belonging to the reign of Ghias-ud-din Balban (dated c. 1274 CE), suggesting that the area east of the Jamuna was under Muslim administration during the late 13th century.

Medieval era: Khalifatabad and Khan Jahan Ali

The mid-15th century marked a transformative era for the Khulna region with the arrival of Khan Jahan Ali (popularly known as Khanja Ali), a Sufi missionary, military commander, and administrator who served under the Bengal Sultanate. According to local tradition, he obtained a jaighir (fiefdom) encompassing a large portion of the Sundarbans from the King of Gaur (Gauda). He is credited with leading the first large-scale systematic reclamation of the Sundarban forests, reportedly arriving with a body of 60,000 followers.

Khan Jahan Ali established an administrative and religious center at Bagerhat, naming the region Jahanabad. The tract of country over which he ruled became known as Khalifatabad, a term signifying the "clearance of the Viceroy" (Khalifa). This designation persisted in official records until the late 18th century, and the region was later formally identified as the sarkar of Khalifatabad in the sixteenth-century assessments of Todar Mal.

Khan Jahan's legacy rests on an extensive programme of civil works alongside the spread of Islam in the delta. He constructed a road of roughly 60 miles following the line of the Bhairab River, connecting Jessore to Bagerhat and extending toward Satkhira, and is also credited with building a 112.7 km earthen embankment to control flooding across the reclaimed tract. Tradition credits him with the construction of 360 mosques, the most famous of which is the Satgumbaz Mosque in Bagerhat — a 15th-century structure of solid masonry featuring 81 domes supported by 60 stone pillars, combining local Bengali and Tughlaq architectural traditions. To provide fresh water across the saline coastal tract, he also dug 360 tanks (dighis), including the 100-acre Ghora Dighi and the 180-acre Thakur Dighi.

Khan Jahan Ali's chief lieutenant and Diwan (Prime Minister) was Muhammad Tahir, also known as Pir Ali, a Brahman convert whose descendants, the Pirali Brahmans, became a prominent local community. Khan Jahan Ali died on June 13, 1459 (26th Zil Hijjah 863 A.H.). His tomb in Bagerhat, which bears an intact inscription of his death date, remains a major site of pilgrimage. His influence established a lasting Islamic frontier in the delta that persisted through the Bengal Sultanate and into the Mughal Empire.

Kingdom of Pratapaditya and Mughal conquest (16th–18th century)

Toward the end of the 16th century, following the decline of the Pathan regime, the region saw the rise of the independent Baro-Bhuiyan (Twelve Landlords), who resisted central Mughal authority. The most prominent among them was Pratapaditya, who carved out a powerful independent kingdom in the southern delta.

Sovereign Kingdom of Pratapaditya

Pratapaditya established his capital at Dhumghāt (near modern Kaliganj), which he developed with fortifications, roads, and temples. Contemporary accounts credit him with repelling multiple Mughal expeditions — O'Malley, citing local tradition, records the figure as 22 generals dispatched from Delhi — before his eventual defeat. During his reign, the region flourished as a hub of local autonomy and cultural synthesis, documented as a period when indigenous elites and traditions flourished alongside the evolving Islamic culture of the delta.

European contact and the first Christian church

The late 16th century also saw the first significant European contact in the district. In 1598, Jesuit missionaries Frances Fernandez and Dominic de Josa visited Pratapaditya's capital, which they identified in their records as Chandecan. With the king's permission and financial support, and on land granted by Pratapaditya, Fernandez and de Josa constructed a church at Chandecan (present-day Jessore), dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus and inaugurated in 1598 — the first Christian church on the territory of present-day Bangladesh.

Mughal conquest and the Chanchra Raj

The era of local independence ended when the Mughal general Raja Man Singh I led an imperial army through the Sundarbans to crush the rebellion. Pratapaditya was defeated in 1611 (some records cite 1606 or 1612), and his kingdom was incorporated into the Mughal Empire. Following his fall, much of the territory was granted to the Rajas of Jessore (the Chanchra family) in recognition of the assistance they rendered to the Mughal forces during the war.

Maritime depredations and piracy

During the 17th and 18th centuries, Khulna's southern riverine tracts suffered from severe depopulation due to the raids of Arracanese (Magh) and Portuguese (Firinghi) pirates. These corsairs scoured the delta's estuaries, surprising villages during market days or festivals and carrying away entire populations into slavery. To such an extent were these depredations carried out that large portions of the southern Sundarbans were entered on early maps as "depopulated by the Muggs," with many formerly inhabited islands reverting to dense jungle and becoming the lairs of wild beasts.

Colonial era: administrative consolidation and agrarian resistance (1757–1947)

The transition to British rule began with the transfer of the Diwani (fiscal administration) of Bengal to the East India Company in 1765. However, it was not until 1781, with the opening of a court at Murali and the appointment of Tilman Henckell as the first Judge and Magistrate, that British administration was fully established in the region.

Henckell scheme and forest reclamation

In 1781, Henckell inaugurated a systematic scheme to convert the Sundarbans forest into rice fields. His plan aimed to gain revenue from unproductive lands and create a rice reserve to guard against famine. Henckell established three administrative and trade outposts across the delta to anchor his reclamation scheme. The first, Henckellganj (now Hingalganj), was founded at the confluence of the Jamuna and Kalindi rivers and served as the northernmost base for colonial operations into the Sundarbans. The second, Chandkhali, was established on the Kabadak River as a staging post for the central tract. The third, Kachua, was sited at the junction of the Baleswar and Bhairab rivers to control the southeastern approaches to the reclaimed lands.

Despite opposition from local zamindars, Henckell's efforts led to the creation of the "Henckell taluks," which marked the first successful colonial attempt at large-scale deltaic reclamation.

Indigo Rebellion (1859–1860)

One of the most significant agrarian uprisings in colonial history, the Indigo Revolt (Nil Bidroha), was particularly intense in the Khulna and Jessore regions. British planters forced local peasants to cultivate indigo instead of food crops like rice, using an exploitative system of "dadon" (advance loans) that trapped farmers in debt bondage.

The resistance in Khulna was supported by village headmen and substantial ryots, including the Biswas brothers (Bishnu Charan and Digambar) and zamindars like Ramratan Mullick of Narail. The conflict, famously documented in Dinabandhu Mitra's play Nil Darpan, eventually led to the formation of the Indigo Commission in 1860 and the prohibition of forced indigo cultivation.

Administrative formation and growth

Khulna's modern administrative boundaries took shape across several decades. In 1842 the area was established as a subdivision of Jessore, partly in response to the conduct of the indigo planter Mr. Rainy, whose activities had become a source of local grievance. Khulna District was formally constituted on June 1, 1882, by merging the subdivisions of Khulna and Bagerhat from Jessore with Satkhira from the 24 Parganas. The Khulna Municipality followed in 1884.

The city's growth during this period was further accelerated by its position as a terminal for the central section of the Eastern Bengal State Railway, which connected Khulna to Calcutta and established the town as a vital trade hub for grain and jute.

1927 Fawcus Report

L.R. Fawcus's 1927 Final Report on the Survey and Settlement Operations provides a comprehensive record of the late colonial administration in Khulna. The report meticulously detailed the "bil" system (water-logged depressions) and the complex hierarchy of land holdings that defined the district's economy. It also documented the foundation of modern forest administration through the establishment of reserved and protected forest areas in 1875.

Modern history: partition, liberation, and industrialization (1947–present)

The twentieth century brought profound political shifts to Khulna, starting with the 1947 Partition of India, which transformed the district from a colonial administrative center into a strategic frontier of East Pakistan.

Partition and demographic transformation

Under the terms of the Radcliffe Line, the district of Khulna was a subject of intense negotiation. Despite being a Hindu-majority district (recorded as 51.2% Hindu in the 1941 census), Khulna was awarded to East Pakistan to balance the allocation of the Muslim-majority Murshidabad to India, a decision deemed necessary to ensure the survival of the port of Calcutta. On August 15, 1947, Khulna initially declared itself part of India and hoisted the Indian flag, but the boundary commission's final declaration on August 17/18 officially placed the city in East Bengal.

This "Partition anomaly" led to significant demographic shifts; a large portion of the Hindu and Marwari merchant class migrated to West Bengal, while Muslim refugees from India arrived in the city. These refugees were politically and economically influential, playing a dominant role in the subsequent urban development of the city.

Industrial ascent and the "Golden Fiber"

During the Pakistan period (1947–1971), Khulna was transformed into a strategic industrial hub. Its location on the Bhairab and Rupsha rivers and its proximity to the newly developed Chalna (Mongla) Port made it an ideal site for export-oriented industries. The Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC) established large-scale manufacturing units, making Khulna synonymous with the "Golden Fiber" (jute). By the 1960s, the city hosted some of the largest jute mills in Asia, including the Crescent, Platinum Jubilee, and Star Jute Mills. Additionally, the Khulna Newsprint Mill (1959) and the Khulna Shipyard (1954) provided the infrastructure for a diversified industrial economy. In October 1961, Khulna was formally established as a divisional headquarters.

Liberation War and the Battle of Shiromoni

The Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 saw some of its final and most intense fighting in Khulna. The first encounter between the Pakistan Army and the freedom fighters in the district occurred at the Gallamari Radio Station. The conflict concluded with the Battle of Shiromoni (December 13–17, 1971), recorded as one of the most intense tactical engagements of the war.

While the main body of the Pakistan Army surrendered in Dhaka on December 16, the 107th Brigade under Brigadier Hayat Khan refused to yield in Khulna, persisting until December 17. The joint forces of the Mukti Bahini and the Indian Army, led by Major Muhammed Abul Manzur, eventually breached Pakistani lines using PT-76 tanks in a commando-style attack. The battle ended at 1:55 pm on December 17 with a formal surrender at the Khulna Circuit House.

Wartime violence and civilian toll

Khulna district bore a disproportionately heavy burden of violence during the Liberation War. Casualty estimates for the district vary across sources and methodologies. The Government of Bangladesh has cited a figure of approximately 150,000 killed across the district, a toll reproduced in district-level newspaper compilations and the post-war inquiry conducted by the People's Inquiry Commission. Independent scholarly assessments, including those compiled by Rounaq Jahan and the International Crimes Tribunal, have corroborated that Khulna was among the districts with the highest concentration of organised killings during the nine-month conflict. The United Nations has also recognised the scale of atrocities committed in Bangladesh in 1971 as among the most severe episodes of mass killing of the twentieth century. Khulna held strategic importance for the Pakistan Army as a vital port city in the southwestern delta; the Pakistani 9th Infantry Division, headquartered at Jessore, held operational responsibility over the Khulna, Jessore, Kushtia, Faridpur, Barisal and Patuakhali districts, with the 107th Infantry Brigade covering the Jessore–Khulna sector. When Jessore fell in December 1971, Pakistani forces under Brigadier Muhammad Hayat deliberately withdrew to Khulna, making a final stand at the port city, while the ad hoc 314th Brigade was tasked with its garrison and defence.

The Razakar paramilitary force, raised by the Pakistan Army from local collaborators, was formally constituted in Khulna in May 1971 — making it the first district in East Pakistan where the organisation was established. A contemporary report published in The Sunday Times (London, 11 July 1971) noted that 300 of the estimated 5,000 Razakars then operating in East Pakistan were stationed in Khulna district alone. Working alongside the Al-Badr militia, these forces assisted Pakistani troops in identifying Bengali nationalists, intellectuals, and members of the Hindu community for detention and killing.

The most devastating single incident in the district was the Chuknagar massacre of 20 May 1971. Chuknagar, a small market town in Dumuria upazila of Khulna district near the Indian border, had become a gathering point for tens of thousands of refugees attempting to cross into India. Pakistani troops arrived and opened fire on the assembled crowd; scholarly estimates of the death toll range from 7,000 to 10,000, with Muntassir Mamoon's district-level study placing the figure at the higher end of this range, making it one of the deadliest single episodes of the entire war. Other documented killings in the district included the mass execution of more than 500 civilians at the Badamtala area of Batiaghata upazila on 19 May 1971.

Evidence of wartime atrocities across the district — including bloodstained clothing, survivor testimonies, and documentary records — is preserved at the 1971: Genocide-Torture Archive and Museum in Khulna city, established in 2014 and the only institution of its kind in South Asia. Several individuals tried by the International Crimes Tribunal after 2010 were convicted for crimes committed in the Khulna region during 1971. The Government of Bangladesh and human rights scholars have characterised the killings as genocide, a position supported by the findings of the International Crimes Tribunal; the Government of Pakistan has not officially acknowledged the events.

Contemporary landscape and environmental challenges

Following independence, the industrial sector was nationalized, but soon faced a decline due to global market shifts toward synthetic alternatives to jute. The 1980s and 1990s were marked by privatization and mill closures, culminating in the shutdown of the Khulna Newsprint Mill on 30 November 2002, which left 6,000 workers jobless and became a symbolic turning point in Khulna's industrial history. The broader Khalishpur industrial belt has since transitioned into a series of brownfield sites, with ongoing research focused on urban regeneration and support for distressed worker communities. On 1 July 2020, the government shut down all 25 remaining state-owned mills run by the Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) after prolonged financial losses.

Mongla Port, located on the bank of the Pashur River approximately 48 kilometres south of Khulna city, has grown to become Bangladesh's second-largest seaport after Chattogram. Originally established at Chalna in the 1950s and later relocated to Mongla following the silting of the original site, the port serves as a critical exit point for raw jute, jute goods, and shrimp exports, and a major entry point for import commodities including rice, wheat, and cement. Its continued expansion has been a significant driver of economic activity in the Khulna region in the twenty-first century.

The post-independence period has also been marked by a series of devastating cyclones that have compounded the district's environmental pressures. Cyclone Sidr, which struck on 15 November 2007, caused catastrophic destruction across the southwestern coastal belt, killing thousands across Khulna and Bagerhat districts and prompting significant research into disaster-resilient housing and the expanded use of multipurpose cyclone shelters. Cyclone Aila (2009) and Cyclone Amphan (2020) subsequently breached embankments across the district, causing saline inundation of farmland that in many areas took years to remediate. Cyclones, storm surge, and salinity intrusion have accelerated climate-driven displacement from the Sundarbans fringe, contributing to the rapid growth of Khulna city as rural coastal communities migrate to the urban centre after losing agricultural land and livelihoods to recurring disasters.

Today, Khulna is the third-largest metropolis in Bangladesh and a critical port city whose economy has increasingly shifted toward shrimp cultivation. The city faces severe long-term threats from climate change and sea-level rise, which are accelerating the eastward migration of fresh Ganges water and increasing salinity in the Rupsha and Bhairab rivers, threatening both agricultural livelihoods and the integrity of the Sundarbans mangrove forest that serves as a biological buffer for the coastal population.

Economy and industrialization

Historically known as the "Industrial Metropolis" of the region, Khulna's economic rise began in the mid-20th century, primarily driven by its strategic waterfront location and its role as a major transit hub for commodities from the deltaic hinterland. During the 1950s and 1960s, Khulna emerged as a global center for the export of jute and jute goods, often referred to as the "Golden Fiber," with the industrial belt concentrated in areas like Khalishpur home to massive state-owned enterprises, including four major jute mills. While the industry faced a decline from the late 1960s due to political shifts and competition from synthetic fibers, it remains a pillar of the local economy, with jute exports contributing significantly to the district's annual revenue. Established in 1959 by the Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation, the Khulna Newsprint Mill (KNM) was a flagship industrial project located on the banks of the Rupsha River. Occupying over 87 acres, it was once the primary producer of newsprint in the country. However, the mill was forced to close in 2002 due to heavy financial losses and the emergence of modern competitors like the Bashundhara Paper Mill. Today, the site is classified as a "brownfield," with ongoing research focusing on the urban regeneration of its infrastructure to support the surrounding worker communities.

In recent decades, the cultivation of shrimp, known locally as "White Gold," has become a dominant export industry for Khulna. The district is a primary source for both dried and frozen shrimp exports, with the sector earning billions of Taka annually. Despite environmental challenges such as river salinity, the shrimp trade continues to support a large portion of the rural workforce. Agriculture remains a vital component of the local economy, with paddy (rice) serving as the staple crop, occupying approximately 92% of the district's cropped area. A unique regional specialty is betel cultivation, which is more extensive in Khulna than in neighboring districts like Dacca or Faridpur. The city's commercial heart is Barobazar, an ancient waterfront trade center that evolved from salt factories (known as Molonga) during the ancient Hindu and Aryan periods into a modern commercial hub. Barobazar remains a critical point for the distribution of grain, jute, and forest produce from the Sundarbans.

Natural calamities

Khulna's history is a testament to human resilience against a volatile environment. The district has been periodically devastated by storms, floods, and scarcity. Due to its proximity to the Bay of Bengal, Khulna has frequently been struck by severe cyclones; of all coastal regions in Bangladesh, the Khulna coast has historically recorded the highest number of direct cyclone landfalls, accounting for 33 per cent of all landfalling tropical cyclones between 1877 and 2001, and having been struck by 51 cyclones between AD 1484 and 2009. Among the most destructive on record for the area, the cyclone of 1909 crossed the coast with wind speeds of 77 miles per hour and triggered a major tidal wave that surged up the principal rivers, causing the deaths of 698 people and more than 70,000 head of cattle in Khulna district alone. A second major cyclone in 1919 breached embankments across the district and caused widespread crop failure; the resulting disruption to agricultural production led directly to the economic hardship recorded in administrative reports as the "scarcity of 1921."

While Khulna often remained immune from droughts that affected other parts of Bengal, it suffered from intense flooding and saline inundation. Rising from a mix of unfavorable environmental and economic factors, the 1897 famine impacted almost 474 square miles of the region and hit the Satkhira and Magura areas especially hard. In 1885, 1890, and 1900, large floods were reported; each was made worse when the embankments on the Bhagirathi burst and sent too much water through the deltaic channels, which killed the standing aman paddy crop that the rural people relied on. Beyond these hydrological threats, a unique geological calamity in Khulna is periodical earth subsidence. Historical surveys (such as Rennell's in the 18th century compared to 20th-century maps) indicate that portions of the coastline have receded due to the land sinking. This phenomenon has historically forced the abandonment of settlements in the Sundarbans as they sank below the water level.

July Uprising and the 2024 Quota Reform Movement

The modern history of Khulna was significantly shaped by the 2024 Quota Reform Movement, which later transformed into a mass anti-government uprising known as the July Revolution or the Monsoon Revolution. The movement was sparked by a June 5, 2024, High Court verdict that reinstated a controversial 30% quota in government jobs for descendants of 1971 freedom fighters, a system students denounced as discriminatory against merit-based candidates.

Chronology of the movement in Khulna

The anti-quota movement in Khulna officially began on July 10 with students from Khulna University (KU) staging a protest. Students from KU, BL College, and Day-Night College ignored police and political barriers to block the railway and roads at the Daulatpur intersection for one hour. By July 16, Khulna became a "city of processions" as an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 students from Khulna University, Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET), and Northern University converged at the Zero Point intersection, the main entrance to the city. During these demonstrations, students chanted slogans such as "No quotas, merit matters" and "Quota system is not in my golden Bengal."

The intensity of the movement grew on July 19 when protesters hung "Step Down Sheikh Hasina" banners at the Shibbari Mor intersection. Nationwide, this period was marked by the government imposing a total internet blackout and a national curfew followed by the deployment of the Bangladesh Army. On July 31, under the "March for Justice" program, a massive clash erupted at the Satrasta intersection when police used batons, tear gas, and rubber bullets to disperse students. At least 60 people were injured and approximately 100 protesters were arrested as violence spread to Royal Mor, Shantidham, and PTI Mor. The conflict culminated on August 2, when violent clashes occurred in front of Khulna University as police opened fire on protesters. More than 50 students were injured, and one police member was reportedly killed during the conflict.

August 2024: resignation of the government

On August 4, 2024, the balance of control in Khulna shifted decisively toward the protesters. Defying gunfire from police and Awami League activists, thousands of citizens took to the streets and seized control of the local Awami League party office and the residence of Sheikh Hasina's uncle. By the end of the day, most local leaders associated with the ruling party had fled the city. On August 5, following the "March on Dhaka," Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country, marking the end of her 15-year tenure.

Post-Uprising and Interim Period

Following the regime's collapse, an interim government was formed on August 8, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. In Khulna, the transition was marked by a temporary collapse of the policing system, which led to a spike in violent crime, including 27 murders in the city between August 2024 and August 2025. Despite the security challenges, the region's economy, particularly jute and shrimp exports, remained resilient, earning over Tk5,971 crore in the 2024–25 fiscal year. To memorialize the movement, the Khulna District Administration and student groups initiated efforts to honor the five "martyrs" killed in the district during the uprising.