Lawachara Nat’l Park: Speed limit for trains, vehicles still ignored, wildlife at risk

The government imposed a 20kmph speed limit for trains and vehicles passing through Lawachara National Park in Kamalganj upazila of Moulvibazar in 2023 to protect wildlife.

Forest Department data shows that in 2022, steps were taken to implement a uniform speed cap on vehicles and trains inside Lawachara. The following year, the directorate general of Bangladesh Railway instructed relevant departments to enforce the restriction.

However, even after three years, the directive remains largely unimplemented. As a result, rapidly moving trains and vehicles have led to multiple wildlife fatalities, endangering the forest's fragile ecosystem.

To make matters worse, tourists visiting the forest, often with children, are regularly seen walking, sitting, and posing for photos and selfies along the rail tracks, ignoring the ever-present risk of fatal accidents from passing trains.

A tourist reportedly died in an accident on the rail track within the forest recently.

Miftaul Islam, a tourist from Dhaka who was seen taking photographs on the rail track with his wife and three children, said, "Everyone is taking pictures here. The view is beautiful. So, we took photos too. But yes, it's risky."

Another tourist, Sajjadul Islam, said, "Most of my friends uploaded nice photos to Facebook that were taken here. I came for the same."

Several railway staff on the site said such scenes have now become common.

Kazi Nazmul Haque, ranger at the Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Division in Sreemangal, said, "Although the speed limit for trains and vehicles through the forest was set at 20kmph to protect wildlife, no one follows it."

Lawachara National Park is home to at least 460 species, including 167 types of plants, four amphibians, six reptiles, 246 bird species, and 20 mammals. Many of them are considered rare or endangered.

According to Janak Debbarma, treasurer of the Lawachara Co-Management Committee, more than 2,000–3,000 tourists visited daily during the two Eid holidays this year alone.

Stationmaster Kabir Ahmad of Bhanugachh Rail Station said the matter falls under the jurisdiction of the Public Works Department, not the railway office directly.

Sohel Shyam, an environmental activist, stressed that while the speed restriction was a commendable initiative, without enforcement it is just ink on paper.

Dr Jahangir Alam, divisional forest officer in Sylhet, said the department has discussed alternatives, including rerouting the train line through a tunnel or constructing underpasses or overpasses for wildlife crossings.

"However, all of these are costly options," the DFO added.