Teknaf, where emerald hills meet the bluest sea

Cox’s Bazar is mostly known for long stretch of sandy beach. But it is perhaps unknown to many is that the most beautiful part of this longest uninterrupted beach in the world is the Teknaf point. Teknaf, the southern-most border town in Bangladesh, has an unfortunate disrepute for shady drug trafficking. However, the actual face of Teknaf is unexplored by many. It has almost all natural tourist attractions including exclusive tourism parks presently under construction.

Teknaf is the only peninsula in the country surrounded by such beautiful and natural landscape – from beautiful hills in the north to the sandy beach in the west, the pristine river in the east and the only coral island of the country in the south – Saint Martin’s. The whole of Cox’s Bazar, particularly the areas along the Marine Drive are geographically rich, full of natural resources and tourist attractions.

Living in Teknaf for a couple of years, I have visited every corner. Its hospitable people, local distinctive culture, green hilly forests, fresh dish and dry fish, green coconuts, Burmese pickles, mild weather, the Naf River, the journey through Marine Drive, the beautiful houses surrounded by tall betel nut trees, watermelons and salt fields, are all just a part of this paradise.

Teknaf beach is perhaps one of the finest, quietest, cleanest and coolest of all natural beaches. The air is so soothing, the environment is so refreshing, the waves are so high, the sunset is so striking and the water is so blue, that it just draws you to it irresistibly.

Teknaf doesn’t have any flashy luxury hotels and big billboards as in Cox’s Bazar. It is far from the madding crowd. All you will see is colourful fishing boats in rows on the beach, green hills, the Marine Drive and the tall tamarisk trees. You will also find fisherman catching fish using dragnets. There is coral in some areas like Saint Martin and there are different types of shells washing up ashore.

Many roads and tourism parks are currently under construction in Teknaf – Subrang Toursim Park in Subrang union of Teknaf and Naf Tourism Park on Jaliardwip, an island in Naf River. The parks are said to be exclusive economic zone being developed by Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority (BEZA). They are some of the Bangladesh’s highly ambitious investments in tourism where foreign investors like Sunset Bay, Inter-Asia Group PTE are to build five-star hotels, restaurants, cottages, amusement parks, swimming pools, etc. Once they are completed, it would certainly be one of the finest tourist destinations in the world.

Once there was only one route to Teknaf from Cox’s Bazar - Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf highway. Now there are two ways to visit Teknaf. The Marine Drive route from Cox’s Bazar to Teknaf along the beach is 85 kilometers long. The journey through Marine Drive can be one of the most enjoyable journeys you will ever have. The straight route, stunning sea view, green villages, betel leaf (paan) plantations and emerald hills along the route are absolutely amazing. This is where the hills meet the sea.

The Naf River in the east that has separated Bangladesh from Myanmar is a quiet, beautiful and unpolluted river. There are no industries or big cities on the bank of the river in Bangladesh or Myanmar. There are a number of jetties on the Naf River. Two of them are quite expansive. One is in Teknaf and the other is in Shah Porir Dwip. From the jetty, you can see the high hills of Arakan and the areas where Rohingya people used to live before coming to Bangladesh. Once you go to the end of the jetty, you will find yourself almost in the middle of the Naf. You will be amazed by the big fish being caught by hook on the river.

Shah Porir Dwip in Teknaf has its own natural beauty. It is about to be connected with Teknaf mainland through three main roads; one on the bank of Naf River, one along the beach and another in middle of both. There is a wide area of salt fields in-between Subrang and Shah Porir Dwip. Though Subrang is currently known for its betel nut productions, in the future it is going to be best known for the tourism park.

Teknaf has a vast area of reserved forest and wild life sanctuary that have been declared as ‘ecologically critical areas’ long ago. Recently, the ministry of environment, forest and climate change of Bangladesh has declared Saint Martin’s a ‘Marine Protected Area’ to safeguard the island and the marine biodiversity of its surrounding areas. It is certainly a great move and appreciated by people like Leonardo DiCaprio, the famous Hollywood actor and outspoken climate activist.

While we want to make Teknaf a tourism hub in the country, we should at the same time care for its bio-diversity and adapt everything for eco-friendly tourism. As climate change has been a serious concern across the world, eco-friendly development and tourism should be our top priority.

* Parvez Uddin Chowdhury is a development worker and independent researcher. He can be reached at p.uddinchy@gmail.com