Sahidul Islam Nirab

The number of child patients suffering from cold-related illnesses has been rising steadily at Jamalpur General Hospital, with the paediatric ward becoming increasingly crowded as temperatures drop.

The absence of a bridge over the Jamuna river continues to inflict years of hardship on thousands of residents of Jamalpur’s Sarishabari upazila and neighbouring Kazipur upazila of Sirajganj.

Questions have been raised over the use of public funds after two bridges were built without access roads in a river shoal under Sarishabari upazila of Jamalpur.

The prospect of higher education is often a distant dream for many students hailing from rural areas, especially those residing in the remote shoals.

“Who will go?” The question hung heavy as hundreds of freedom fighters stood in silence. Everyone knew the mission -- carrying a letter urging surrender into the heart of the enemy camp at Kamalpur of Jamalpur’s Bakshiganj upazila -- meant almost certain death.

Inside the Jamuna Bridge Regional Museum in Tangail's Bhuapur, a child was staring at a stuffed owl, mesmerised, as he wondered if it was a real bird.

Operating without environmental clearance, factory dumped chemical waste into nearby fields

Once a source of livelihood for many families in Islampur upazila of Jamalpur, bamboo and cane craft is now on the verge of extinction.

In Jamalpur’s Bakshiganj upazila, a traditional cottage industry has been thriving for a century -- buffalo milk yogurt.

Once alive with children’s laughter and football matches, the lone playground of Chargolabari Government Primary School in Jorkhali union of Jamalpur’s Madarganj upazila now resembles a stagnant pool.

For more than five years, people from at least 25 villages in two Jamalpur upazilas have been suffering after a bridge over the Jhenai river in Sarishabari upazila collapsed during the 2020 floods.

A rickety bamboo bridge remains the only means of communication for around 50,000 people in several unions of Madarganj upazila in Jamalpur and Sariakandi upazila in Bogura, forcing locals to risk their lives every day.

In Jamalpur, food is not just nourishment -- it is memory, emotion, and identity. At the centre of this culinary tradition stands “Milli Bhat”, a rich, hearty dish that locals speak of with pride and nostalgia. Some call it Manda, others Pithali, but to most, it is simply “Milli” -- the taste of home.

There was a time when the Subarnakhali River flowed all year round. Boats carrying raw jute moved up and down the waterway, connecting distant char areas with the jute mills of Sarishabari. Locals even held a floating jute market on boats twice a week.

Shukkur Ali's life once revolved around hardship and uncertainty

Behind each piece of this delicate dessert lies hard work and precision

Farmers say despite spraying insecticides, they have seen little to no improvement, with the situation worsening in some cases

Healthcare services in Jamalpur are in dire straits as hospitals across the district’s seven upazilas struggle with an acute shortage of doctors.

Illegal sand extraction continues unabated in Jamalpur’s Madarganj, Melandah, Sarishabari, Bakshiganj, and Jamalpur Sadar upazilas, posing serious threats to farmland, riverbanks, bridges, residences, and local communities.

In Jamalpur, the buzz of activity is palpable as honey collectors revel in a bustling season, with beekeeping emerging as both a promising enterprise and a profitable profession.