Communication becomes easier in CHT regions

Reza Mahmud :

[dropcap font=”arial” fontsize=”60″]A[/dropcap]s the road communication has become easier inside the remote area of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) regions, the life style of hilly people specially the tribal has been changed significantly as the people are being encouraged to travel to see the natural beauty of the hilly regions due to availability of many hotels, restaurants and resorts under the supervision of Bangladesh Army.

The people of the hill districts, especially in remote areas, are now able to communicate throughout their regions, and they are now running hotel and restaurant business and shops.

Besides, many tribals involved in various criminal activities earlier, have also started returning to the normal life.

Apart from these, the poor tribal people who are not enough educated and their livelihood depends mostly on Jhum cultivation, many of them have already left their traditional work.

When this correspondent visited Khagrachari and Rangamati districts recently found the tribal, who did not have clothes or sufficient food, they are now leading very happy life as they earn enough money by serving the tourists at their respective remote areas with the help of Bangladesh Army.

Talking to this reporter, local people said earlier they led a miserable life for lack of road communication in absence of development activities in the hill districts.

“We used to cultivate Jhum earlier. It was very tough to us to survive. But now we have overcome the situation. At present several thousands of tribal people came under the communication network with the construction of road from Baghaichhari to Sajek,” said Anitya Tripura, General Secretary of Sajek Resorts and Hotel Owner Association.

Besides, he said the tribal people also are earning money from the tourists after the construction of the Sajek Resorts by Bangladesh Army.
Sajek Valley is situated in the North angle of Rangamati, near the Mizoram border boundary area. The valley is 1,800 ft high form sea. The distance from Khagrachhari town to Sajek Valley is 70 kilometres.

Anitya Tripura said, before the construction of Sajek Valley as a tourists spot, the local people used to depend on only Jhum cultivation.

“Earlier we only used to depend on Jhum cultivation for foods and other needs. But after six moths, we had to face serious food crisis. Most of the tribal had to pass their lives without foods, clothes, medicine and other needs,” he said.

Replying to a query he said as the tribal always had to face serious financial hardship, they had no option to send their children to the schools.
“But now many educational institutions have been founded here with the modern facilitates. Our kids are now going to schools. It is a very good news for us,” he said.

He said about 32 hotels and resorts are now in Sajek Valley.

Talking to this reporter Sajek Union Parishad Member Shanti Tripura said the tribal people did not wear clothes earlier.
“Now they wear clothes. Most of the tribal people used to pass their days by taking country made alcohol. They didn’t have any dream or hope to change the lifestyle, as they were very poor,” he said.

The tribal youths, who were involved in armed terrorists groups, are now driving various vehicles especially motorbikes to ferry the tourists through the remote hilly roads.

According to Parjatan Corporation and the hilly people, there are lots of places in the hill tracts with huge potentials of tourism.

Among those Rechhang waterfall, Alutila, Mysterious cave, Dhighinala Bihar and many, Hanging Bridge, Kaptai Lake, Rajban Bihar, Rongrang hill, Dighinala Upovog Bihar, Sharna Mandir Bihar, Ali Kadam, Nilgiri, Boga Lake, Bolding Khiyang waterfall, Keokradong and Tajindong hills, Nilachal.