We cannot afford to lose 16,000 acres of forestland

We are surprised to learn from a report by The Daily Star that around 16,000 acres of Sal forest in Mymensingh's Bhaluka upazila is at risk because the land ministry recorded it as khas and private land by mistake. The inefficiency and negligence on part of the land ministry was so great that they even recorded a national park—Kadigarh National Park—as private property. Because of these mistakes in the land records, it has now become even easier for the local powerful quarters to grab the vast swathe of forestland in the upazila. What is most concerning is the apathy of the land ministry in correcting the land records, as the ministry did not bother to look into the matter despite repeated requests from the forest department.

Amid widespread forest grabbing all across the country, we currently have only 15.58 percent forest coverage which should be increased to 18 percent in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030. Whereas in the past, vast areas of Kumilla, Gazipur, Mymensingh and Tangail were covered with Sal forest, at present only a few patches of the forest are left. According to Forest Department sources, around 65 percent of forestland in Mymensingh district—25,070 acres out of 38,858—has been encroached since independence. From the reports published in this daily we also came to know about the amount of forest we have lost to various government agencies over the years. According to sources in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, so far almost 1.6 lakh acres of forestland have been handed over to different government agencies and establishments, or used for development projects.

Therefore, the government needs to stop using or leasing out forestland for any purpose and recover the forests that have either been grabbed by powerful individuals or by well-known organisations. In addition, it should take well-thought-out measures from now on to increase our forest coverage, by increasing the number of reserve forests, creating coastal forests that can act as natural barriers to tidal surges, cyclones, and floods, as well as by protecting the remaining forest areas.

We cannot just lose 16,000 acres of forestland in Mymensingh's Bhaluka due to some senseless mistakes. We hope whatever mistakes have been made by the land ministry, can be corrected through taking proper steps. And if need be, the Land Record and Survey Department should conduct a fresh survey in the conflicting areas of Bhaluka to reclaim the forestland we are about to lose.