10 Taka Independence

Bangladesh issued this coin to mark the fortieth anniversary of independence, declared on 26 March 1971 following the Pakistani military's launch of Operation Searchlight — a crackdown so violent that it killed an estimated 300,000 to 3,000,000 civilians over the nine-month war. The Liberation War ended in December 1971 with one of the largest military surrenders since World War II, when Pakistani General Niazi signed the instrument of surrender before an audience in Dhaka.

The .999 silver specification places this above the fineness of most commemorative issues from the region in this period.