Surma River in the context of Kishoreganj District

The Meghna (Bengali: মেঘনা, romanized: Mēghnā) is one of the major rivers in Bangladesh, one of the three that form the Ganges Delta, the largest delta on earth, which fans out to the Bay of Bengal. A part of the Surma-Meghna River System, the Meghna is formed inside Bangladesh in Kishoreganj District above the town of Bhairab Bazar by the joining of the Surma and the Kushiyara, both of which originate in the hilly regions of eastern India as the Barak River. The Meghna meets its major tributary, the Padma, in Chandpur District. Other major tributaries of the Meghna include the Dhaleshwari, the Gumti, and the Feni. The Meghna empties into the Bay of Bengal in Bhola District via four principal mouths, named Tetulia (Ilsha), Shahbazpur, Hatia, and Bamni.

The Barak River or Barbakro or Agu is a trans-boundary river in India and Bangladesh. It flows 900 kilometres (560 mi) through the states of Manipur, Mizoram and Assam in India. It flows into Bangladesh where it bifurcates into the Surma River and the Kushiyara River which converge again to become the Meghna River before forming the Ganges Delta. Of its total length, 524 km (326 mi) is in India, 31 km (19 mi) in Bangladesh. The upper part of its navigable part is in India — 121 km (75 mi) between Lakhipur and Bhanga, declared as National Waterway 16, (NW-16) since the year 2016. It drains a basin of 52,000 km (20,000 sq mi), of which 41,723 km (16,109 sq mi) lies in India, 1.38% (rounded) of the country. The water and banks host or are visited by a wide variety of flora and fauna.

The principal tributaries are all in India: the Irang, Tuivai, Sonai (or Tuirial), the Jiri, the Tlawng (or Dhaleswari, or Katakal), the Jatinga, the Longai and the Madhura.

The Surma-Meghna River System is a river complex in the Indian subcontinent, one of the three that form the Ganges Delta, the largest on earth. It rises in the Manipur Hills of northeast India as the Barak River, flows west to become the Surma River, then flows south as the Meghna River out to the Bay of Bengal. In total, the river system spans 946 kilometres (588 mi), of which 669 kilometres (416 mi) are within Bangladesh.

The Kushiyara (Bengali: কুশিয়ারা নদী, romanized: Kuśiara Nôdi) is a transboundary river in Bangladesh and Assam, India. It forms on the India-Bangladesh border as a branch of the Barak River, when the Barak bifurcates into the Kushiyara and Surma. The waters that eventually form the Kushiyara originate in the uplands of the state of Assam and pick up tributaries from Nagaland and Manipur.

Shillong (English: /ʃɪˈlɒŋ/, Khasi: [ʃɨlːɔːŋ]) is a hill station and the capital of Meghalaya, India. It is the headquarters of the East Khasi Hills district. Shillong is the 330th most populous city in India with a population of 143,229 according to the 2011 census. It is said that the rolling hills around the town reminded the British of Scotland. Hence, they would refer to it as the "Scotland of the East".

Shillong has steadily grown in size since it was made the civil station of the Khasi and Jaintia Hills in 1864 by the British. In 1874, on the formation of Assam as the Chief Commissioner's Province, Shillong was chosen as the headquarters of the new administration because of its convenient location between the Brahmaputra and Surma valleys and more so because the climate of Shillong was much cooler than tropical India. Shillong remained the capital of undivided Assam until the creation of the new state of Meghalaya on 21 January 1972, when Shillong became the capital of Meghalaya, and Assam moved its capital to Dispur in Guwahati.

Sylhet (Bengali: সিলেট, pronounced [sileʈ] ) is a metropolitan city in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. It serves as the administrative center for both the Sylhet District and the Sylhet Division. The city is situated on the banks of the Surma River and, as of 2025, the metro area population of Sylhet is estimated to be 1,033,000, reflecting a 3.4% increase from 2024. This makes it the third-largest urban area in Bangladesh.

Sylhet is known for its tea plantations and natural scenery. The region has been inhabited since ancient times, and since the city's establishment in the 14th century has been ruled by various dynasties including the Mughals, the British, and the Nawabs of Bengal. The city is also home to several important landmarks, such as one of the Islamic sites in Bangladesh, the Shah Jalal Dargah, which attracts thousands of pilgrims annually.