A traditional boat race was held on the Kaliganga River in the Beutha area of Manikganj on Saturday afternoon, drawing thousands of spectators.
Organised to preserve rural traditions and introduce traditional boat racing culture to the younger generation, the competition featured 40 boats from Manikganj and other districts, including Pabna, Rajbari, Faridpur, Tangail and Thakurgaon.
The event commenced at 2:00pm, with races covering a three-kilometre stretch of the river. The competition was held across four distinct categories of traditional boats: Chhipa, Ghasi, Chhandi, and Khelna.
Thousands of spectators gathered along both banks of the river from Saturday morning to watch the spectacle, while many others cheered from trawlers and speedboats.
Attending the event as the chief guest, Food Minister Afroza Khanam expressed delight at the arrangement and announced plans to organise boat races on a larger scale under the sponsorship of the district BNP in the future.
Following the competition, refrigerators, televisions, and microwave ovens were distributed among the winners in each category, while four motorcycles were awarded to the champions of the four respective groups.