Once there was a forest here

The Tulatoli area under Chattogram's Sitakunda used to boast a lush green forest, home to numerous trees.

What was once a sanctuary of nature, now stands as a ship-breaking yard -- with a multi-storey building, some artificially dug up ponds and barbed-wire fences, which now serve as barriers, keeping curious onlookers at bay.

Around 5,000 trees have been felled to convert five acres of mangrove forest in the area into this shipbreaking yard.

The road that now leads to the yard was also carved by clearing the forest area.

Kohinoor Steel, the authorities of the newly-constructed yard, have felled the trees without obtaining permission from the Forest Department, which is illegal under Forest Products Transit Rules-2011.

According to section 5 of the Rule, permission must be obtained from the divisional forest officer (DFO) for cutting trees from any government land.

According to section 5 of the Rule, permission must be obtained from the divisional forest officer (DFO) for cutting trees from any government land, said forest officials.

Following this, the Forest Department filed three cases against officials of Kohinoor Steel recently, said DFO Abdur Rahman of the Chattogram coastal forest department.

According to the coastal forest department, the place was part of the 400 acres mangrove forest created in 1983-1984 by the Coastal Forest Division to protect the locality from natural disasters.

The district administration leased out the 5-acre land to the yard authority on February 14 last year.

But there is an ownership dispute between the district administration and the forest department over the leased land.

For this, the forest department had sent several letters to the deputy commissioner for canceling the lease.

According to data from forest department, the forest was "notified" under Section-4 of Forest Act-in 1986,

DFO Abdur Rahman said, "No one can lease out the land as it is a notified forest land. But the district administration leased the land to Kohinoor Steel without informing us."

However, the district administration announced last month that they cancelled the lease agreement with Kohinoor Steel amid criticism by environmentalists.

Shahadat Hossain, upazila nirbahi officer of Sitakunda, said, "Receiving directive from higher authority, we sealed off the yard and asked the yard authority to remove their structures soon."

While Kohinoor Akhtar is the owner of Kohinoor Steel on paper,  her husband Abul Kashem alias Kashem Raja is constructing the yard in reality.

Kashem Raja has been made one of the accused in the forest department's case. Contacted recently, he refused to comment citing critical health conditions.

In an earlier conversation, he told The Daily Star that the deputy commissioner has leased the place to him as per law and they are paying revenue to the government.

DAMAGE DONE

The experts have warned that despite cancellation of the lease, the damage has already been done as many trees have been felled.

Mohammad Kamal Hossain, former professor of the Institute of Forestry and Environmental Science at Chittagong University, said mangrove trees serve as a natural barrier, lowering the height of storm surges.

"Besides, due to the destruction of the forest, the ecological balance of the area will be disturbed and wild animals will be displaced from there," he added.