Chittagong is the second largest city in the country and plays a major role in the economy thanks to its port, the most important of the Gulf of Bengal, which manages 80% of international trade and generates 50% of the country's income. With more than 2,5 million inhabitants, Chittagong continues to expand, and the city has the same problems as Dhaka: pollution, high poverty rates, land management and improvements, insecurity… As in Dhaka, self-rickshaws are meshboxes and the city may seem inhospitable with congested circulation and its constant boiling. It is, however, a point of passage required to rally the Chittagong Hill Tracts or descend further south to Cox's Bazaar.HistoryThe first traces of civilization go back to the Neolithic, and the first writings mentioning Chittagong date back to the fourth century BC. The port of Chittagong is mentioned on the map of Ptolemy, which specifies that it is one of the most important eastern ports. The first Arab merchants, coming from the Gulf Peninsula, earn Chittagong in the th century. They bring with them Sufi who settle in the region and spread Islam. In 1340, the Sultan of Sonargaon conquered the strategic port that trade with China, East Africa and South-East Asia, and incorporated it into the Sultanate of Bengal, which became the richest state in the Indian subcontinent. In 1528, the Sultanate authorized the installation of a Portuguese settlement, which became the first Western colony in Bengal. Three years later, the Sultanate lost control of the city following the declaration of independence from Rakhine (Rakhine in the current Myanmar). The Portuguese benefit from this political instability to extend their grip on Chittagong harbour. They establish a mandatory commercial license for each vessel entering the Chittagong port. At the end of the 2 500 th century, Chittagong counted Portuguese, a mix of soldiers, civil servants, merchants, missionaries, sailors and pirates. In 1666, the Moghul decided to retake Chittagong in the hands of the Portuguese, sending an army of 6 500 men and 288 ships to block the port. Defeated, the Portuguese withdrew and Chittagong experienced a period of flourishing economic growth. The Moghul La Islamabad. The Eastern British Company of India tries twice to seize it without success. He will have to wait for the whole Bengal in 1793 to take control of the city. The port becomes the world's leading exporter of tea and jute. During the Second World War, Chittagong played a crucial role in the Burmese campaign against Japan. An air and naval military base, it is on the front line and briefly passes into the Japanese camp in 1942. In 1947, during the partition of India, Chittagong became the main port of East Bengal and the province was then the most populous in Pakistan. Many companies based in Calcutta transfer their headquarters to the city, with unprecedented economic dynamism, and the port becomes the country's largest exporter. Despite this, Pakistan invests little in the city and prefers to develop Karachi, in Western Pakistan. During the 1971 Liberation War, Chittagong was the scene of numerous battles. It was here that Bangladesh's independence was declared on 26 March 1971. It took a year and Soviet aid to clear the port and resume normal commercial activity. Since then, the port has continued to play an essential role in Bangladesh's economic development; it is also here that the Tea Exchange has been set up, which sets prices for the entire country.

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