Chalanbeel is formed by rivers, canals and beels. The historical Chalanbeel of Bangladesh is well known to the people of the whole country as a storehouse of grain and fish. The 9 Upazilas of Chalanbeel are Tarash, Ullapara, Shahjadpur, Faridpur, Bhangura, Chatmohar, Gurudaspur, Singra and Atrai. From ancient times to the late 19th century, the importance and necessity of boats in this region was immense.
The most famous boat in the Chalanbeel area is the dinghy boat, there are several rivers flowing in this area. All those who live on the riverbanks use this boat to cross the river or do other work, as it is small in size, so a boatman is enough to drive this boat. In addition, sometimes sails can also be raised in this boat. Apart from this, peacock boats were used for the movement of the landlords of the area, barges for the wealthy people and balar, sampan and batnai boats for transporting goods.
With the touch of modernity, these ancient traditional boats have been lost due to the encroachment and filling of rivers and canals with the evolution of time. Now these boats are not seen anywhere in the past. However, boats are still the only means of transportation and transportation of goods for the people of Chalanbeel during the monsoon season. Millions of fishermen in the Chalanbeel area use these boats to fish.
In ancient times, boats were of immense importance in this area during the monsoon season. Fishermen used to travel in boats with various equipment for fishing, including fishing nets, traps, dhundi, briti, bhair and barashi. You have changed a lot now, don’t throw pansi, or I couldn’t drive you anymore, Man Majhi, and your boat is not in my hands.
Once upon a time, when traveling by boat to a distant place or when bringing a new wife from her father’s house to her husband’s house, the boatmen and the boatmen used to sing Bhatiali, Murshidi and Marfati songs to the people of the area. At that time, the only and one of the means of transportation in all the Upazilas around the revering waterways were the sailing Pansi, Gayana, Chaiwala and Rajapuri boats.
Fishing boats can be seen in almost every part of the country. These ancient traditional boats are now equipped with shallow engines. At one time, the only and one of the means of traveling by boat to a distant place was the sailing Pansi and Chaiwala boats. Although the Pansi boats have disappeared with the evolution of time, small boats can still be seen in some places.
These very strong boats made of shal or segun wood used to travel on various rivers and streams and bring goods. Fishing boats were also made of galleys or open decks to store fish.
There was a six-bay square at the back like a house. In this room, fishermen and boatmen used to rest and cook. Nowadays, only fishing boats have proudly retained the tradition of ancient boats, which will never lose their beauty. In ancient times, the famous Bala and Batnai boats used for trade and commerce. Since these boats were quite large in size, they could carry goods up to 50 to 55 tons.
This type of boat had two sails. But today, the weight of this boat is not seen anywhere. According to the elders of the area, 10 to 15 boatmen were needed to carry the load on this boat. Dinghy boats are still used in large numbers in the Chalanbeel area during the monsoon season. The driver of the boat is called a boatman. The various parts of these boats are the hull, the rudder, the canopy, the rudder, the sail, the mast, the ropes, the anchor, the galley, the boat, the log and the gun. All these boats are mainly made of wood. The dinghy used for fishing in the Beel is quite small in size.
On the other hand, the boat used for transporting goods is quite large in size. Bamboo is used to make the hull or canopy of the boat. Tar is used to waterproof the hull of the boat.
Bamboo is required to make the log. The sail is made by attaching strong cloth. Depending on the structure and transportation, there are various types of boats in the Chalanbeel. Such as the sloop, the barge, the peacock, the jewelry, the pansi, the kosa, the dinghy, the patan, the bachari, the ghasi and the sampan. Among the various types of boats in the Chalanbeel, the sampan is the most well-known.
The Sampan boat is mentioned in the folk songs and literature of this country. In ancient times, the jewelry boat was widely used, and people used to travel to different parts of the beel on this boat. 25 to 30 people used to travel on the jewelry boat at a time.
The boat was so popular with the people of the Chalanbeel area that many interesting games were played on this boat. One of them was boat racing; these boats were 150 to 200 feet long. The locals told this reporter that during the boat competition, there were at least 25 to 100 sailors in it.
The carpenters of the beel used to make these boats with their own hands. This boat, an ancient tradition of rural Bengal, is being lost day by day from society.
During the on-site information search, we spoke to Md. Lebu Mia, a boat builder from Tarash Upazila in Chalanbeel area. He said with great sadness that boats are no longer made like before; so many people are changing their professions and joining other professions to earn a living. # 23.02.2025
Mirza Abdur Rob Bulbul
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