Located 365 km north of Calcutta in the north-central portion of West Bengal, Malda, was formerly known as English Bazaar and lies east on the confluence of the Mahananda and Kalindi Rivers. It shares its borders with Murshidabad in the south and Uttar and Dakshin Dinjapur in the north. The eastern borders are shared with Bangladesh and the western boundaries with the state of Bihar. While Rice, jute, legumes, and oilseeds are the chief crops, the abundant and typical Fazli mangoes serve a great economic activity through its trade.
Today a part of the urban agglomeration, the Malda town rose to prominence as the river port of the Hindu capital of Pandua. Malda saw three eras of glory the Buddhist Pal dynasty, the Hindu Sena dynasty and the Muslim Nawabs. During the Pal and Sena dynasties, Gaur flourished as a centre of learning, art and culture. During the 18th century it was the seat of prosperous cotton and silk industries and consequently a place of great wealth and prosperity.
A foreign settlement was established in 1680. Malda came to be known as Ingraj Bazaar or English Market. Malda is a base for visiting Gaur and Pandua. Gaur, capital to three dynasties of ancient Bengal, the Pal, the Senas and the Nawabs, has seen three distinct eras of glory. Pandua, once the alternate seat of power to Gaur, also has Muslim monuments while gaur has the largest concentration of Muslim monuments in Bengal.
