Govt cancels allocation of 700 acres of forest land in Cox’s Bazar

The government has canceled the allocation of 700 acres of  forest land previously allotted to the public administration ministry for establishing Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Academy of Public Administration.

The cancellation came following the request of environment adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan to protect the forest land, said a media release of the environment ministry.

In a letter dated 10 November, signed by Aminur Rahman, deputy secretary of the land ministry, the Cox’s Bazar deputy commissioner was instructed to take necessary action and submit a report to the ministry on this matter.

The 700-acre land, situated in Jhilanja Mouza of Cox's Bazar Sadar, includes 400 acres of 'hill' and 300 acres of 'stream' land , which falls under protected forest land.

On 29 August this year, the environment adviser sent a letter mentioning that the allocated area has been designated as protected forest under Section 29 of the Forest Act, 1927, since 1935.

This 2,145.02-acre forest area contains trees such as Garjan, Chapalish, Telsur, and is home to elephants, monkeys, wild bears, and other species, said the letter.

Reforestation activities were conducted in 2011-12 and 2012-13 to counter climate change effects.

Due to the omission of "protected forest" in the records, the forest department filed a case on this issue.

A writ petition was also filed in the High Court to cancel the land allocation. The High Court issued a stay order on the allocation, which the Appellate Division upheld.

In 1999, Jhilanja union was declared an environmentally critical area, banning activities like tree felling and altering the natural landscape. The 700-acare protected forest falls within this critical zone.

According to Article 18A of the Constitution and the UN Biodiversity Convention, the government is committed to forest conservation.