Overview
Malda is a district covering area of 3733 Sq Km with Bihar and Uttar Dinajpur at North , Murshidabad at South , Bangladesh at east , and Jharkhand and Bihar at West. It shares 165.5 km international border with Bangladesh. Having a central location it is an important junction and entry point to Siliguri from South Bengal. The river Ganga makes its first entry in West Bengal near Manikchak of Malda. As it is a low lying basin, it is prone to flood. Malda is easily accessible by road and by train from any part of the rest of the India. It is 347 Km away from Kolkata towards north and 256 Km from Siliguri towards south.
There are number of places to visit at Malda which has some historical importance. The main among them are GOUR, ADINA, PANDUA, and recently explored JAGJIBANPUR.
Gour
Situated at a distance of 16 km. south of Malda town on the border with Bangladesh. Gour came into prominence as the 7th century capital of King Shashanka, and was the capital of ancient Bengal for several centuries. Gaur being an ancient city, its mention can be found even in the Hindu Puranic texts. The historical records of the city however can be traced from 500 BC from the time of Mauryan Dynasty. From the Mauryas, Gaur and the region of Pandua, then known as Pundrabardhana came under the reign of the Guptas. They were succeeded by Sasanka, the king of Karnasubarna as well as the king of Gour in the beginning of 7th Century AD who ruled for almost 3 decades. From the middle of the 8th century to 11th century the Pal dynasty ruled Bengal. They were great followers and propagators of Buddhism and the religion flourished under their reign. The Pal dynasty yielded to the Sen Dynasty who was ardent followers of Hinduism. Unlike the Pals, the Sens did not encourage the propagation of the other religions During the reign of Lakshman Sen, Gaur was known as Lakshmanbati. The Sen Kings ruled Bengal till Bakhtiyar Khilji conquered Bengal in 1204 AD.
Gour has many architectural structures of historical importance, and is sure to attract history and archaeology buffs.many historical relics are located along the road towards Gour till you reach Mahadipur, the Indo-Bangladesh border. Baroduari / Boro Sona Mosque, Dakhil Darwaja, Firoz Minar, Chika Mosque, Lukochuri Gate, Kadam Rasul Mosque, Lattan Mosque, Kotwali Darwaza, Gumti Darwaza .
Adina
Adina Situated at 15km North of Malda Town. Adina Masjid, built in 1369 by Sultan Sikander Shah. One of the largest mosques in India, it also typifies the most developed mosque architecture of the period, the orthodox design being based on the great 8th century mosque of Damascus. Carved basalt masonry from earlier Hindu temples is used to support the 88 brick arches and 378 identical small domes.
Pandua
Pandua situated at 18km North of Malda Town. Kutubshahi Mosque and Eklakhi Mausoleum are main attraction in here. Qutb Shahi Mosque, locally known as the Chhoto Sona Masjid, built to honour saint Nur Qutb-ul-Alam. The ruins of his shrine are nearby, along with that of Saint Hazrat Shah Jalal Tabrizi, collectively known as the Bari Darga. The Eklakhi Mausoleum is the most elegant monument in Pandua. One of the first square brick tombs in Bengal, with a carved Ganesh on the doorway, it is the tomb of the convert son of a Hindu Raja.