Cox's Bazar History

Cox's Bazar District (Bengali: কক্সবাজার জেলা) is a district in the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh.^[3] It is named after Cox's Bazar town. It is located 150 kilometres (93 mi) south of Chittagong. Cox's Bazar is also known by the names Panowa ("yellow flower") and Palongkee. The modern Cox's Bazar derives its name from Captain Hiram Cox (died 1799), an army officer who served in British India. It is one of the fishing ports of Bangladesh, and contains one of the world's longest natural sea beaches (120 kilometres (75 mi) long including mud flats).

In 1984, during the Ershad government, Cox's Bazar district was established by dividing Chittagong district. Today, Cox's Bazar is a major tourist destination within Bangladesh.^{[citation needed]}

Geography

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Cox's Bazar District has an area of 2,491.86 km² (962.11 sq mi). It is bounded by Chittagong District on the north, Bay of Bengal in the south, Bandarban District on the east, and the Bay of Bengal on the west. Major rivers include Matamuhuri, Bakkhali, Reju Khal, Naf River, Maheshkhali channel and Kutubdia channel. The area of the city of Cox's Bazar is 6.85 km² (2.64 sq mi).

History

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The known history of Cox's Bazar begins in the Mughal period. On his way to Arakan, when the Mughal Prince Shah Shuja (1616–1660) passed through the hilly terrain of the present day Cox's Bazar, he was attracted to the scenic nature of the region. He commanded his forces to camp there. A place named Dulahazara, meaning "one thousand palanquins", still exists in the area.

Cox's Bazar is named after Captain Hiram Cox, an officer of the East India Company, who was assigned with the charges of the current day Cox's Bazar and its adjacent areas.^[4][5] The town of Cox's Bazar was established in 1799 as a market town to honour Captain Cox. In 1854, Cox's Bazar was made a Sub Divisional headquarter in Chittagong district under the Bengal Presidency of British India.

After the end of British rule in 1947, Cox's Bazar remained a part of East Pakistan under the Dominion of Pakistan till 1971. Captain Advocate Fazlul Karim was the first chairman after independence from the British of Cox's Bazar municipality. He established the Tamarisk Forest along the beach to draw tourism to the town and to protect the beach from the tide. He donated many of his father-in-law's and his own lands to establish a public library and town hall. In 1971, the wharf was used as a naval port by the Pakistan Navy's gunboats. This and the nearby airstrip of the Pakistan Air Force were the scene of intense shelling by the Indian Navy during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.

In the year 1984, Cox's Bazar was upgraded into a District from a Sub Division under the Chittagong Division.

Starting in 2017, a "mass human exodus" of the Rohingya Muslim minority group from neighboring Myanmar's Rakhine State has led to Cox's Bazar housing the "world's largest refugee settlement" over the following years. In the first year, the UNHCR estimated that 725,000 refugees had sought safety in Bangladesh.^[6]

Upazila (Subdivisions)

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Inani Beach

There are nine upazilas under this district, namely:

1. Chakaria Upazila

2. Cox's Bazar Sadar Upazila

3. Kutubdia Upazila

4. Maheshkhali Upazila