Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, and rests on the eastern banks of the Buriganga River which flows from the Turag to the southern part of the district.

Dhaka District shares borders with Gazipur and Tangail to the north, Munshiganj and Rajbari to the south, Narayanganj to the east and Manikganj to the west.

The city area of Dhaka was ruled by the Buddhist kingdom of Kamarupa and the Pala Empire before passing to the control of the Hindu Sena dynasty in the 9th century.

After the Sena dynasty, Dhaka was successively ruled by the Turkish and Afghan governors descending from the Delhi Sultanate before the arrival of the Mughals in 1608.

[8] Throughout the 1950s and '60s, Dhaka remained a hotbed of political activity, and the demands for autonomy for the Bengali population gradually gained momentum.

[citation needed] With public anger growing against ethnic discrimination and poor cyclone relief efforts from the central government, Bengali politician Sheikh Mujibur Rahman held a nationalist rally on 7 March 1971 at the Race Course Ground.

[8][9] In response, the Pakistan Army launched Operation Searchlight, which led to the arrests, torture and killing of hundreds of thousands of people, mainly Hindus and Bengali intellectuals.

[11] The Pak army also burnt down many houses in Konakhola, Basta, Brahmankirtha, Goalkhali and Khagail Kholamora villages of Keraniganj Upazila.

The fall of Dhaka city to the allied forces led by Jagjit Singh Aurora on 16 December marked the surrender of the Pakistani army.

The post-independence period has seen a rapid and massive growth of the city population, attracting migrant workers from rural areas across Bangladesh.

Dhaka District had a literacy rate (age 7 and over) of 84.88%, compared to the national average of 74.80%, and a sex ratio of 865 females per 1000 males.

[20] Hawkers, peddlers, small shops, rickshaws transport, roadside vendors and stalls employ a large segment of the population[20][21] – rickshaw-drivers alone number as many as 400,000.

The annual per capita income of Dhaka is estimated at $550, although a large segment of the population lives below the poverty line, with many surviving on less than $3 a day.

Bashundhara City is a recently developed economic area that houses many high-tech industries and corporations and a shopping mall that is one of the largest in Southeast Asia, frequented daily by more than 25,000 people.

Urban developments have sparked a widespread construction boom, causing new high-rise buildings and skyscrapers to change the city landscape.

[19] Growth has been especially strong in the finance, banking, manufacturing, telecommunications and services sectors, while tourism, hotels and restaurants continue as important elements of the Dhaka economy.

The old town of Dhaka, south of the city centre, is the site of most of the tourist attractions, including the Lalbagh Fort, the Stat Mosque, and the Ahsan Manzil Palace Museum.

Built in 1678 by the Viceroy of Bengal, it contains a three-domed mosque, the tomb of Pari Bibi, the reputed daughter of Nawab Shaista Khan, the Audience Hall and the hammam of the Governor.

A majestic place, it was once home to the Nawab of Dhaka, and houses 23 galleries displaying portraits, furniture and household articles.

In the old European quarter of Dhaka, the museum contains many interesting collections, including sculptures and paintings of the Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim periods.