Overview
At Dhamrai, the site of one of the major Rath Yatra traditions of South Asia outside Puri. The historic chariot was burnt by the Pakistan Army in 1971 and has since been replaced.
History
Sources disagree on the age. One account, citing local records, describes a bamboo chariot in use from the Bangla year 1079, about 1672 CE. Other claims in the popular press were not independently verified and are not repeated here. The historic chariot of 1933 was a three-storey wooden structure with four corner chambers on the lower floors and one on top.
Spiritual Significance
Dhamrai's chariot festival is the principal Jagannath observance in Bangladesh, historically supported by local zamindars and, in the twentieth century, by the philanthropist R. P. Saha. A Rath Yatra of this scale outside Odisha is unusual and makes the town a centre of its own.
Prayers at Dhamrai Jagannath Rath
चतुर्भुज जगन्नाथ
श्री जगन्नाथ जगत गुरू आस भगत के आप । नाम लेते ही आपका मिटे कष्ट संताप ॥
आरती कुंजबिहारी की
बंशी शोभित कर मधुर,नील जलद तन श्याम। अरुण अधर जनु बिम्बा फल,पिताम्बर शुभ साज॥
अधरं मधुरं वदनं मधुरं नयनं मधुरं हसितं मधुरम्।
श्री बाँकेबिहारी तेरी आरती गाऊँ
Pilgrimage Information
Confirm festival dates and local conditions close to the time of travel. Several of these sites hold gatherings of very large scale.
Preservation
Protection status. None found in the sources consulted. The 1933 chariot was burnt down by the Pakistan Army during the 1971 Liberation War, and the temple's patron R. P. Saha was abducted and killed. That is the documented record.
Sources
- Dhamrai Jagannath Roth other
About this page
Researched and written by YatraBeyond from published sources, and not yet confirmed by the temple. Facts here are cross-checked against at least two independent sources, never written from memory, and every source is listed above.
Last reviewed by us: 2026-09-17. Timings, entry rules and access can change without notice; treat anything time-sensitive as a starting point and confirm before you travel.
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