Gambling with greenery

A local lawmaker has put forward a proposal to change the status of nearly 600 acres of reserve forest and wildlife sanctuary in Cox's Bazar into khas land for leasing it out to the people living there.

Jafar Alam, elected from Chakaria-Pekua (Cox's Bazar-1) constituency, sent a DO (demi official) letter in January this year to the Cox's Bazar district administration to proceed with a proposal to the secretaries of the land ministry and environment, forest and climate change ministry regarding the de-reservation.

The lawmaker himself is a member of the parliamentary standing committee on the environment, forest and climate change ministry.

Citing the people living inside the forest territory as cyclone victims, a few of whom have lived there since 1970, Jafar said in the letter the people had been enjoying utilities along with other government services over the years.

The letter referred to this as grounds to de-reserve almost 600 acres of forestland in Harbang union of Chakaria upazila.

The forestland which Jafar proposed to be de-reserved lies just adjacent to Chattogram-Cox's Bazar highway and is part of Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary, established in 1986.

A cluster of villages have developed there over the decades.

By a stretch of brick road around 2km long, as seen by this correspondent during a visit on November 25, there were dozens of shops, tea stalls, homes, madrasas and mosques -- a setting as far as possible from the dense forest it once was.

The wave of people settling on this forestland started with 16 families whom the government rehabilitated at Villager Para of Harbang in 1952 after a cyclone devastated Cox's Bazar coastal areas such as Moheshkhali and Kutubdia, leaving many homeless.

Khurshed Alam, 50, whose parents were among these first inhabitants, told The Daily Star that only around 3,000 people in the area constitute the families and descendants of the cyclone victims.

The rest of the inhabitants are those who settled here from other parts of the country and whose relatives soon followed, he said. In the nearly 70 years since, the population now stands at approximately 20,000, he added.

"As it is no longer forestland, the government should allow us to live here legally," Khurshed opined.

Many of the residents of Villager Para settled on the land before it was declared a wildlife sanctuary in the late '80s, but it was declared a reserve forest during the colonial era. As such, it is still protected by the forest department.

The State Acquisition and Tenancy Act, 1950 prevents forestland from being leased out, and in 2018, a land ministry circular requested the district deputy commissioners not to lease out any protected forest, given the scarcity of forestland.

Villagers said they have been living on the forestland peacefully, with no hostility between them and forest department officials.

This peaceful co-existence is now threatened by the MP's proposal, said a Forest Department official.

On condition of anonymity, he said if the status of the forest is changed, there is no guarantee that these villagers won't be evicted from the land as there might be a hidden agenda behind the proposal.

The Daily Star has previously reported on multiple instances of disputed forestland, mistakenly or intentionally classified as khas land, making it vulnerable to land grabbers or leased out to corporations and local influentials for commercial purposes.

MP'S PROPOSAL

On receiving the DO letter from the lawmaker, Cox's Bazar district administration asked the Chakaria upazila administration to investigate the matter in March.

In June, the surveyor of Chakaria upazila land office prepared a report in favour of the move to de-reserve the forest, citing no flora and fauna there.

The report, a copy of which The Daily Star obtained from the land office, stated there was no plantation by the Forest Department on 594 acres of the wildlife sanctuary.

The investigation team found 931 homesteads, 110 acres of agricultural land, 7.70 acres of vegetable fields, 73 betel leaf gardens, nine mosques, two madrasas and a primary school in the area. It also recorded 2,986 voters who received smart cards from the Election Commission in the area.

While Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary has been heavily degraded over the years, the Forest Department's reforestation projects are underway there.

In September, the district administration asked the Forest Department whether they had any reservations regarding the change of status.

Abu Naser Mohammed Yeasin Neyaz, divisional forest officer (DFO) of Wildlife and Nature Conservation Division of Chattogram, told The Daily Star on November 28 that they strongly protested the move that seeks to legalise forest grabbing.

"The district administration could easily have rejected the move, rather they are only seeking our opinion regarding this. Their land office recommended in favour of changing the reserve forest status, an approach that absolutely frustrated us," he said.

The DFO further said the land office's report is based on wrong perceptions about what constitutes forestland.

"It cited that there were no trees on the land but all forestland doesn't have to be densely forested. Some open space, or grassland, is also required for wildlife to roam around on. They mistook the open land as deforested area."

He added the Forest Department opposes the move as significant forest cover in the region, and in the country in general, has been lost already.

"We can't allow this move to proceed in such a situation."

Md Mostafa Javed Kaisar, revenue deputy collector of Cox's Bazar district administration, who is also overseeing the matter, confirmed to The Daily Star that they sent a letter to the forest department to know whether they have any reservation regarding this.

As it is documented as Forest Department land, it is not possible to lease it out until the status is changed, he said, adding that thousands of families lived there.

Jafar Alam, in a written statement on December 9, told The Daily Star that some five decades ago the people now living there had their homesteads devastated by a cyclone. They then took shelter on this land.

He said he considered the matter from a "humane" approach, as the people in the area have long been demanding this. "As the people's representative, I listened to them and sent the DO letter."

He added, "This is the only reason which drove me to write the DO letter asking the authorities if something could be done for the people. I have no other intention behind this."