South Asia: Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Islands of the Indian Ocean - Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East and Southeast Asia - page 249

Chapter 9

South Asia: Bangladesh,
Sri Lanka,and Islands
of the Indian Ocean

“When unity is evolved out of diversity,
then there is a real and
abiding national progress. ”

M ANHAR - UL -H AQUE (1866-1921)

Bangladesh: Nation on the Edge

“rice bowl.” Aside from tribal areas in the Chittagong hills,
Bangladesh is linguistically homogeneous. Bengali, known
locally as Bangla, serves as a unifying force within this
politically fractious nation.
Although not officially a Muslim state, most of its
people are Islamic. Bengal, especially in the east, had a
tradition of Tantric Buddhism and Hinduism. This was
conducive to the introduction of new faiths such as Sufi
Islam brought by Arab sea traders in the thirteenth century .
The Hindu caste system made Islam and its notions of
equality an attractive option. By 1947, more than half of
all Bengalis were Muslim. T Today, , around 85 percent are
Muslim, 12 percent are Hindu, and the remainder are
Buddhist, animist, or Christian.
Christianity was introduced by Portuguese traders in
the sixteenth century . Again, many low-caste Hindus
were drawn to Christian ideas of equality and salvation.
The Portuguese also introduced cashew nuts, papaya,
pineapple, and guava to Bengal.
The region has a history of political subjugation and
fragmentation dating back to the sixth century . British
divide-and-rule policies only added to this legacy . Calcutta
had served as the capital of British Bengal since 1772, but
this changed in 1905 when eastern Muslim regions were
linked with Assam and were designated as East Bengal

Imagine 162 million people eking out an existence in a
country the size of Wisconsin (Figure 9-1). Think about
the facts that 59 percent of males but only 48 percent of
females are literate, 27 percent of children under five are
malnourished, and 39 percent are stunted (under-height
for their age). Add the fact that storms and floods wipe
out people and livelihoods by the hundreds or even
thousands yearly . Then, consider that this impoverished,
primarily agricultural country is one of the largest ex-
porters of ready-made garments in the world. What is the
story of this relatively new nation of Bangladesh, and
what are its future prospects?
Established in 1971, Bangladesh occupies a drainage
basin where the Brahmaputra, Padma (Ganges), and
Meghna rivers converge (Figure 8-1). Most of the country
is a deltaic, alluvial plain although there are hill districts
in the northeast and southeast. Its marshy coastline extends
370 miles (600 km) into the Bay of Bengal.

BENGAL NATION
Bangladesh means “Bengal Nation.” This region, once
called Bengal, is renowned for its tigers and as South Asia' is

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