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The Chittagong Hill Tracts are one-tenth of Bangladesh's natural beauty. Chittagong Hill Tracts consist of three districts – Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarban. Somewhere high and sometimes low, mountains of about two to three thousand feet height in the remote mountainous region. Somewhere in the canyon. Going from one mountain to another where before was impossible and miraculous. At present, such a situation has also been embedded in the same formula by the border road of the remote mountainous region. It is like accomplishing an impossible task by overcoming hardships and difficulties. The border road has integrated the backward hilly areas into the mainstream of development. And all of this is going to be implemented with the sole wish of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
As part of development in Chittagong Hill Tracts, border road construction is progressing in Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarban districts. This border road gives tourists the opportunity to enjoy the immense natural beauty of the entire mountainous region. The mountainous region is changing. Part of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's far-reaching plan is to integrate the underprivileged and marginalized communities of the hilly regions into the mainstream of Bangladesh's development. And the reflection of this plan is this border road.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is not only making good arrangements for public transportation in every corner of the country, but also changing the socio-economic conditions of those towns. As announced by the Prime Minister, all the villages of the country are being converted into modern cities. The 1,36 km long border road will play a key role in connecting the hill town with the main stream of the country's economy. With the blessing of modernity, this long border road will improve the socio-economic condition of the hill people.
Chittagong Hill Tracts is an important region of the country. The region was once characterized as a backward region due to its mountainous terrain. On December 2, 1997, a Hill Peace Agreement was executed between the National Committee for Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Chittagong Hill Tracts People's Solidarity Association to resolve the ongoing conflict in Chittagong Hill Tracts with the goodwill of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Since then, a new era began in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. After the peace accord in 1997, there has been a lot of development in the infrastructure sector in the three hill districts. 1 thousand 212 kilometers of paved roads have been constructed in the three hill districts after the Parbatyakuti or Peace Treaty. 700 km of unpaved roads, 614 km of road rehabilitation and 9 thousand 839 meters of bridges and 141 culverts have been constructed. The benefits of the mountain agreement and the peace agreement are now being enjoyed by everyone, including the marginalized ethnic groups in the region. The development in all areas in the last 27 years after the mountain agreement is now visible to everyone. Especially in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, there has been a surprising change in the road communication system. The government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina started construction of border road in 2019 to change the face of Chittagong Hill Tracts. People are now weaving new dreams around the border road. This border road will play an important role in the development of education, health, security, information technology, tourism industry and the quality of life of the people in the mountainous region. The hill-Bengalis are celebrating the construction of the border road. The people of the country are expressing their gratitude by welcoming such a bold initiative of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government.
Bilaichhari Upazila Farua union border remote area. Due to the lack of transport system, it used to take two days to bring the produce of this area to the Rajasthan upazila headquarters of Rangamati. Due to the construction of the border road, farmers can now bring their crops to Rajasthan within a few hours. It is a great success of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government. Production of high quality cashew nuts, dragon fruit, coffee and malta has started in the hilly areas. The border road will play the biggest role in their proper management and expansion. Based on these agricultural products, the processing industry will be developed here. Such activities have already started. Once the construction of the border road is completed, the unguarded areas of the inaccessible hills will also come under full surveillance by the security forces of Bangladesh. The road will be paved for the development of the tourism industry along with the security of the wider area. Betling, Saichal and Mazhirpara have created the record of building the highest road in the country. If the construction of the border road is fully implemented, there will be no power, network problems, water crisis will be removed and no terrorist sanctuaries will be created here. Where earlier it used to take a whole day to go anywhere, now it comes to an hour. In the development of communication system, this border road has brought a great change in the health care, education, agriculture and economic prosperity of the common people. No one had imagined that there would be such a beautiful road in the hill town. The breeze of peace will waft over the hills.
The Chittagong Hill Tracts border road will start from Naikshyongchari in Bandarban district and will reach the border of Myanmar and India from Rajasthali Upazila Sadar in Rangamati District to Farua in Bilaichari Upazila via Dumdumya in Juraichari Upazila. This road will end at the border of Ramgarh upazila through Dighinala, Panchari, Matiranga of Barkal and Baghaichari and Khagrachari districts. The entire road is being built through the border hills. The construction of the border road will be implemented in the first, second and third phases. The first phase of the project approved at Ekne has been started and the 317 km work is scheduled to be completed by June 2024 at a cost of Tk 3,861 crore. If the second and third phases of the next 667 km work are implemented, the three hilly districts of Bangladesh will be connected with the bordering countries. By 2036, 1036 km. Road work is about to be completed. When the entire work is completed, it will be the longest road network in Bangladesh. This particularly long border road will pave the way for connecting the road network with India's Mizoram-Tripura and Myanmar's Arakan state in the near future. This border road will be credited with the construction of the highest road in the history of the country, which will record a height of about 2,800 feet above sea level. Earlier, the Thanchi-Alikdam road constructed in Bandarban in 2015 was the highest road in the country so far. The road was about 2,500 feet above sea level.
20, 26 and 17 ECBs under 34 Engineer Construction Brigade of Corps of Engineers of Bangladesh Army are implementing the border road project. The Bangladesh Army is working tirelessly to build this tourist-friendly road while maintaining the quality of work while keeping the nature intact. The members of the Bangladesh Army have been carrying out the development work of the road by facing the challenges of high mountains, deep ditches, landslides, hostile behavior of nature, ineffectiveness of regional organizations, transport and communication crisis.
The construction of the border road will provide a new opportunity to target the tourism sector, agriculture sector and fruit cultivation and production in the mountainous regions of the country. In the mountainous region of Chittagong Hill Tracts, the production of various agricultural and fruit products including dragon, coffee, cashew nut, orange-malta, iksu, pineapple, mango, banana has already started. The border road will further enrich the country's economy through rapid transportation and marketing of the agricultural produce and fruits produced in the hilly areas. A lot of processing industries can be established here once the location is selected with easy access to agricultural potential. As a result of which the employment of the local hill-Bengalis will increase, as well as there will be extensive economic changes at the local level.
Once the construction of the border road is completed, the fate of the people of the mountainous region and the country will be opened. A new economic zone will be developed here. Communication and trade will improve. Illegal smuggling, illegal arms trafficking, drug trafficking will be stopped. Apart from this, the country's cash crop transportation facilities, new employment generation, increase in the number of domestic and foreign tourists, government control in the border areas, i.e. the security system of the entire mountainous region will be strengthened. In short, the backward hilly regions will once again become prosperous economic regions.
Author: Information and Public Relations Officer, Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs.
