Zinda Park (জিন্দা পার্ক)

Zinda Park, also called Oikotan Eco Resort, is a 33-acre wooded park run by a village society in Daudpur Union, Rupganj Upazila, Narayanganj District, about 37 kilometres from central Dhaka. It sits beside the Dhaka Bypass Expressway at the north-eastern corner of Purbachal and suits families and groups wanting a green day out from the capital.

Founded by a village society in 1981

A village society now called Agrapathik Palli Samity built the park. It began in 1980 as the Augnibina Students Forum and founded the park in 1981 on about 100 bighas of land, 60 of them given by Tabarak Hossain Kusum. The park was first named Shantikanan. Work began with a school and offices, followed by a library, a health centre and a mosque.

Disputes with RAJUK

In 1995 the capital development authority RAJUK acquired the area for the Purbachal new town, which led to years of disputes with residents. RAJUK effectively controlled the park until 2014. After protests in February 2014 it was briefly called Rajuk Zinda Park, and later that year the society took it back and restored the name Zinda Park.

Tree houses, water bodies and 250 tree species

The grounds hold 20,000 to 25,000 trees of about 250 species. Five water bodies take up roughly a quarter of the area and are crossed by bridges, with a small lake along the northern and eastern edges. Visitors come for the tree houses, sand dunes, flower gardens and shaded paths. The society's schools, library, mosque, cottages, offices and a guest house stand inside the grounds.