Chittagong Hill Tracts Region Research Articles

Challenges and Institutional Barriers to Forest and Landscape Restoration in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh

Preventing, halting, and reversing ecosystem degradation is now a global priority, partly due to the declaration of the United Nations (UN) Decade on Ecosystem Restoration by the UN General Assembly 2021–2030 on 1 March 2019. Apart from the most recent global target to protect 30% of the natural planet by 2030 as part of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreed during COP15, there are several other global goals and targets. The Government of Bangladesh (GoB) has also pledged to restore 0.75 million hectares of forests as part of the Bonn Challenge. The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh contain almost one-third of the country’s state-owned forests and are home to 12 ethnic communities, whose livelihoods are dependent on forests. Although once rich in biodiversity, the majority of the forests in the region are highly degraded due to faulty management, complex institutional arrangements, and land disputes with locals. The CHT, therefore, represent the most promising region for ecosystem restoration through forest and landscape restoration (FLR). Here, using the secondary literature, we examine the current institutional arrangements and drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in the CHT region and potential benefits and modalities to make FLR successful in the region. Based on our study, we suggest that institutional reform is essential for successful FLR in the CHT. We also discuss key interventions that are necessary to halt ecosystem degradation and to secure community participation in natural resources management in the region.

Building Sustainable Peace in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: The role of Inclusive Development in Addressing Armed Group Rivalry

This study investigates the effect of inclusive development policies and initiatives in reducing armed group rivalry and fostering long-term peace in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region. The study adopts a qualitative research methodology, utilizing data from key stakeholder interviews, focus group discussions, and document analysis. According to the study's findings, inclusive development policies and programs have the ability to address the underlying reasons of armed group rivalry, boost socioeconomic growth, and generate more social cohesion and reconciliation in the region. Inclusive development techniques that prioritize local communities' needs and ambitions can foster trust and legitimacy among them, increase their feeling of ownership and participation in development processes, and provide an enabling climate for long-term peace. The study also identifies barriers to implementing inclusive development policies and initiatives in the CHT region, such as a lack of political will and commitment, insufficient fund, and low ability and coordination among government agencies and civil society organizations. More political will, coordination, capacity-building, and community participation are required to implement successful development policies and programs that address the core causes of conflict and generate long-term peace in the CHT region.

Integrating forest cover change and carbon storage dynamics: Leveraging Google Earth Engine and InVEST model to inform conservation in hilly regions

Forests are vital in combating climate change by storing and sequestrating CO2 from the atmosphere. Measuring the influence of land use/land cover (LULC) changes on the capacity of carbon storage (CS) within forest ecosystems presents a significant challenge. This study employs remote sensing techniques to examine the changes in spatiotemporal patterns of CS in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), resulting from LULC alterations between 1996 and 2021. LULC change patterns were identified for six different years utilizing the Google Earth Engine (GEE). The Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model was combined with GEE to evaluate the changing patterns of CS. The study discovered that the CHT region experienced a loss of 21.65 × 106 Mg of CS, owing to a 21% reduction in vegetation cover (2862.85 km^2) during the study period. The central city area (Chittagong) accounted for the most significant loss of CS (7.99 × 106 Mg), while the suburban areas of Khagrachari (0.92 × 106 Mg) and Rangamati (3.53 × 106 Mg) contributed the least. The multiple regression model revealed that elevation and vegetation characteristics significantly influenced CS. The findings underscore the importance of developing policies and strategies that mitigate the adverse effects of land cover change on CS, and advocate for sustainable forest management practices that strike a balance between ecological, social, and economic concerns.

Social-ecological and institutional factors affecting forest and landscape restoration in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh

Bangladesh government has recently pledged to restore 0.75 million ha of degraded forestland as part of its commitment to the Bonn Challenge, however little is known about the potential challenges and opportunities involved in achieving that goal. Using secondary literature complemented by expert consultation and a field survey, we examined the outcomes and limitations of previous restoration programmes and identified key social, ecological and institutional aspects crucial for a successful forest restoration programme in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh. The CHT region accounts for over a third of state-owned forests, and it supports a large part of the country's forest-dwelling ethnic populations, although most of the forestland is severely degraded. Our analysis revealed that past programmes had utilised participatory tree planting, horticulture and rubber-based agroforestry to restore degraded forestland and improve community livelihood in the CHT. However, past restoration programmes merely emphasised improving tree cover without considering the ecological functionality, biodiversity and carbon co-benefits of restored forests. The duration of these programmes was also relatively short, and there was no clear plan for engaging local communities in the restoration activities beyond the programme period. Among other things, the local ethnic community’s land rights issue remained unresolved and the participant's land ownership influenced their willingness to participate effectively in any restoration programme. Households with secured land rights had a more positive attitude towards participating in forestland restoration than those with unsecured land rights. Suitable acts and policies that would allow people to legally continue to use tree-based land in the regions (i.e. forest and land tenure rights) are also lacking. Future forest and landscape restoration (FLR) programmes may thus need to focus on improving the biodiversity and ecological functionality of those restored forests, resolving local people's forest and land tenure rights and involving them in site-specific restoration interventions. The engagement of local and regional-level multi-stakeholders in such an FLR programme is also essential for realising the restoration's multiple social and ecological benefits.

Understanding the Food Insecurity and Coping Strategies of Indigenous Households during COVID-19 Crisis in Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh: A Qualitative Study.

This study examined the food insecurity and coping mechanisms among the indigenous Bangladeshi population of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region to extract empirical evidence on the ongoing discussion on the COVID-19 pandemic-exacerbated food-insecurity situation. The study adopted a qualitative approach by interviewing 60 indigenous households. Data were collected in two phases between 15 June 2020, and 30 July 2021 in Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region. Thematic data analyses were performed using the Granheim approach and NVivo-12 software. The authors used Huston’s social–ecological theory to explain the indigenous coping mechanisms. The research evidence revealed that most households experienced challenges over daily foods, manifesting in the decreasing consumption of them, the increased price of food items, a food crisis due to an income shock, malnutrition, the shifting to unhealthy food consumption, starvation and hunger, and food insufficiency, thereby leading to mental stress. This study further revealed that the indigenous population took crucial coping strategies to survive the pandemic. In response to COVID-19, they took loans and borrowed foods, reduced expenses, changed their food habits, avoided nutritional foods, relied on vegetables, sold domestic animals and properties, collected forest and hill foods, and depended on governmental and societal relief. This study also provides the in-depth policy actions for the urgent intervention of government, stakeholders, policymakers, NGOs, and development practitioners to take necessary initiatives to enhance the quality of life of the people that were affected by the post-pandemic recovery period.

Oral glucose tolerance test with methanol extract of leaves of Ocimum minimum L. (Lamiaceae) in Swiss albino mice

Background: Diabetes is a metabolic disorder characterized by high blood sugar caused due to either insufficient production of insulin from the pancreas or development of insulin resistance, which causes polyuria, polydipsia, and polyphagia. In recent years, the disorder is increasing at a rapid rate in virtually all countries of the world. Existing conventional drugs suffer from problems of non-affordability, adverse effects, and non-availability in particularly rural and remote areas of developing countries like Bangladesh. As a result scientists are continually striving for discovery of new anti-diabetic drugs, which can fulfill the needs of all diabetic patients. Methods and Findings: The Ocimum genera within the Lamiaceae family contains a number of plants reported to possess anti-diabetic properties. However, very little is known about the pharmacological including anti-diabetic properties of Ocimum minimum L., the leaves of which are chewed by the indigenous people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region in the south-eastern part of Bangladesh to control diabetes. Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was conducted with Swiss albino mice and methanol extract of Ocimum minimum, using glibenclamide (a standard anti-diabetic drug) as the comparison drug. The methanolic extract of Ocimum minimum (MEOM) showed only significant anti-hyperglycemic activity at a dose of 400 mg/kg body weight; at that dose blood glucose was lowered by nearly 19%. By comparison, glibenclamide at a dose of 10 mg/kg lowered blood glucose by 37%.Conclusions: Methanol extract of Ocimum minimum leaves did not show any remarkable lowering of blood glucose in OGTT except at high doses. However, the plant has an advantage of growing profusely in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region, which is mountainous, forested, and inhabited by a number of indigenous communities with little contact with modern medical facilities. As such, the inhabitants of this region can chew, if necessary, as much as possible of the leaves of Ocimum minimum and bring their blood glucose under control.

DNA‐based assessment of environmental degradation in an unknown fauna: The freshwater macroinvertebrates of the Indo‐Burmese hotspot

Abstract New methods are required for biomonitoring of poorly known tropical ecosystems, but biological assessments of environmental status are limited by insufficient information on taxonomy, composition and ecology of local communities. The current work applies DNA‐based assessment to establish the impact of various types of anthropogenic disturbances on the freshwater macroinvertebrates in an understudied biodiversity hotspot in South Asia, an area that attracts increasing attention for the loss of aquatic ecosystems. We sampled 16 river systems in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region of Bangladesh and characterised habitat intactness based on a set of 14 environmental parameters associated with habitat quality and human activities. Whole‐community metabarcoding was used to investigate the distribution of hypothetical species‐level clusters (Operational Taxonomic Units, OTUs) across sites of different impacts. We found >900 DNA clusters of insects, decapods and molluscs, dominated by Diptera, which revealed significant variation (p < 0.001) in richness across sites. The presumed sensitive Ephemeroptera‐Plecoptera–Trichoptera (EPT) represented 15.6% of total OTU richness. The type and strength of anthropogenic stressors varied greatly across streams but did not affect total OTU diversity. In contrast, EPT richness decreased by ~50% in response to habitat degradation. Partial‐network analysis revealed 26 OTUs that may serve as potential indicators for either good or poor ecological status. Overall, our results document high diversity, local endemicity and pronounced responses to disturbance in these largely unexplored but threatened habitats. Synthesis and applications. The proposed methodology combines local habitat surveys across sites of various degrees of disturbance with species‐level metabarcoding, as a model for biological evaluation of water bodies in poorly known and inaccessible places across the world. Implemented here for the Indo‐Burmese hotspot, the approach will have great value for applied conservation management as a step towards building a biomonitoring system in this region where currently little is known about the taxonomy, diversity and endemicity in both intact and disturbed ecosystems.

Effect of nutrient management on growth and yield of two tomato varieties in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) region of Bangladesh

The main goal is to investigate the effect of crop nutrient management on growth and yield of two tomato varieties in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) region of Bangladesh. Two factors experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Factor A was two varieties of tomato namely, V1: BARI 2 and V2: BARI 15. Factor B was different types of fertilizer like F0 (Farmers practices), F1 (vermicompost), F2 (inorganic fertilizer), F3 (combined fertilizer: 3/4 vermicompost+ 1/4 inorganic fertilizers), F4 (control, no fertilizer). Soil characteristics and climatic conditions were recorded. Plant growth, flowering and fruit characters, and yield were found significantly different (p<0.05). The highest plant height, flowering and fruit characters related to higher production were found in BARI 15 (V2) variety influenced by combined application of fertilizer F3 (3/4 vermicompost + 1/4 inorganic fertilizers). The maximum number of flower clusters per plant (9.66), fruit clusters per plant (8.13), individual fruit weight (117.7 g), fruit numbers per plant (51.17) were found in V2F3 and the same parameters were the lowest in V1F4. The results showed the highest production (95.50 t/ha) in V2F3 followed by V2F0 (81.70 t/ha), V2F1 (72.17 t/ha) and V2F2 (68.06 t/ha), and the lowest yield (27.70 t/ha) in V1F4. The highest fruit yield ((95.50 t/ha) found in V2F3 showed 80.84% higher compared to the V1F4 (27.70 t/ha) treatment. Considering the variety, the highest yield (74.05 t/ha) was found in V2 which was 40% higher yield compared to V1. Combined application of vermicompost and inorganic fertilizers performed best as the nutrient management and BARI 15 was found as a suitable variety for the CHTs climatic condition. Hence, the similar type fertilizers proportion can be applied for the other vegetables production in the farmers field for the healthy and eco-friendly environment achievement.

Traditional uses of Ethno-medicinal Plants in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs), Bangladesh: A Review

Objective: Traditional medicines are of great importance to villagers and also now a day to modern drugs. Scientists are trying to explore new drug resources along with the modern drugs to support drug treatment strategy to be more effective and merely natural. Nature is the rich source of many essential bioactive compounds with more specificity and less side effects and thus, traditional medicines are got attention to the pharmacists. There are lots of medicinal plants with scientific evidences in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) region, but all that information have not yet been compiled as a review. Keeping this in mind, a review attempt has been taken by focusing on traditional medicine used mostly by the indigenous population of Chittagong Hill Tracts region, which is also a rich source of biodiversity of Bangladesh.
 Methods: Research articles based on various traditional medicines focusing CHTs region were taken in consideration to compile the data sources in this review article.
 Results and Conclusion: Peoples in CHTs are using various types of medicinal plants obtained from their surroundings and have been using from long since with traditional reputation. In this review, we focused on such medicinal plants along with their scientific evidences, which would attract lots of scientists to work more to unveil a new research avenue in drug development.

Determinants of forest and tree uses across households of different sites and ethnicities in Bangladesh

This study examines the determinants of forest and tree-product uses in rural households across three sites of different proximity to roads and forests in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region in Bangladesh. A structured questionnaire survey was conducted with 300 households of different ethnic groups, located in three different locations (remote, intermediate, on-road), to collect information on their forest and tree use during 2015–2016. We gathered information on household socioeconomic characteristics (family size, education level of head of household, size of farmland), location (three sites), and ethnic affiliation. By conducting a series of logistic regression modeling, we analyzed the key determinants that would explain the variations in forest use in the households. We recorded twelve different forest and tree products used in the households, primarily for subsistence purposes and cash income. Fuelwood, vegetables, and fish were recorded as the most important forest-sourced products used by people, regardless of socioeconomic condition, location context, and ethnic affiliation. Household land/farm size, location, and ethnic background explained significant variations in the use of forest and tree products (mainly timber, fodder for livestock). The greater the size of the landholding, the more likely timber was used for both subsistence and cash income, but the less the reliance on other products (fuelwood, thatch grass, vegetables). Our findings suggest that the location and ethnic characteristics of the rural households are important for understanding the diverse needs for forest and tree use, and should be factored into the site-specific management and sustainable use of forest and tree resources in Bangladesh and other tropical developing countries.

Assessing land use changes and livelihood outcomes of rural people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region, Bangladesh

AbstractLand use change is a pressing concern for the livelihoods of people in tropical developing countries. Changes in land use from swidden (shifting cultivation) agriculture to smallholder tree‐dominated areas producing timber, fruits and cash crops can result in changing livelihood outcomes for rural communities. This paper examines land use patterns of rural households and the association with food production and income across three different zones of various forest proximity across a landscape gradient (remote, intermediate and on‐road) in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region of Bangladesh. We conducted in‐depth semi‐structured surveys of households (175–300) and farm owners (30) to collect information on people's perceptions of land use change, present land use patterns and contributions to food production and income. Our research found that more than half of the surveyed households experienced a decline in the land available for food production over the past 30 years. The land use patterns revealed decreasing crop lands (mainly swidden shifting cultivation/land rotation farms) and an increase in areas of planted trees within this landscape. However, household use of the reduced crop land has not affected food production in the on‐road zone, whereas the diversity of food sources has declined. People living in more remote areas engaged in swidden farming and used larger areas of crop and fallow lands, fruit orchard and accessed natural forest lands that provide a diverse reservoir of food sources. The current land uses contribute to variations in annual household income across zones, with remote dwelling people earning less to those living closer to urban areas in the intermediate and on‐road zones. In summary, this transition of land uses over three decades and changes in income and food availability cannot be generalised across the region because of zone specific differences. We recommend a broader and context‐reliant landscape management approach in consideration of the diversity of forest and tree benefits for the livelihoods of people in the region.

Cost-effective analysis of childhood malaria vaccination in endemic hotspots of Bangladesh.

IntroductionBangladesh has a history of endemic malaria transmission, with 17.5 million people at risk. The objective of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of universal childhood malaria vaccination in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh with newly developed RTS,S/AS01 malaria vaccines.MethodsA decision model was been developed using Microsoft® Excel to examine the potential impact of future vaccination in Bangladesh. We estimated the economic and health burden due to malaria and the cost-effectiveness of malaria vaccination from the health system and societal perspective. The primary outcomes include the incremental cost per Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY) averted, incremental cost per case averted, and the incremental cost per death averted.ResultsIntroducing childhood malaria vaccination in CHT in Bangladesh for a single birth cohort could prevent approximately 500 malaria cases and at least 30 deaths from malaria during the first year of vaccination. The cost per DALY averted of introducing the malaria vaccine compared to status quo is US$ 2,629 and US$ 2,583 from the health system and societal perspective, respectively.ConclusionsIntroduction of malaria vaccination in CHT region is estimated to be a cost-effective preventive intervention and would offer substantial future benefits particularly for young children vaccinated today. Policies should, thus, consider the operational advantages of targeting these populations, particularly in the CHT area, with the vaccine along with other malaria control initiatives.

A Study on the Participatory Forestry Land Use and Farming Practices in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Bangladesh

The study explored the genesis and current status and forms of land use and farming practices in Chittagong hill tracts region of Bangladesh. Some major observations include the following: (i) Lands allotted for horticulture and agriculture were converted to forestry, agro-forestry and agriculture by the participants of the government and NGO projects. Livestock rearing was found as a common practice, (ii) Forestry was preferred topographically as a suitable land use in the region. Both the government and NGO participants were found to be practicing some form of pure forestry, particularly in the comparatively steep slopes. (Hi) Agroforestry, by combining long gestation forestry with short-term horticultural and agricultural species, was found to be the dominant land use practice in CHT. (iv) Agriculture was found as a general land use practice in CHT, mainly following the traditional system (v) Inter-sectoral coordination among the PF agencies and necessary service provision by GO and NGO agencies were almost absent. Strong linkages through inter-sectoral coordination for both GO and NGO agencies must be undertaken in order to involve related agencies in land-based development interventions.

Prioritization of Storm Water Drain Construction for an Urban Area in the Chittagong Hill Tracts Region of Bangladesh

Prioritization of Storm Water Drain Construction for an Urban Area in the Chittagong Hill Tracts Region of Bangladesh

Use and perceived importance of forest ecosystem services in rural livelihoods of Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh

This study examines the relative benefits (provisioning) and importance (regulating and cultural) of forest ecosystem services to households in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region of Bangladesh. Our results from 300 household interviews in three rural locations stratified by wealth shows that wealth levels of the respondents play a key role in explaining variations in the perceptions and use of forest ecosystem services. Considering the direct benefits, the importance of provisioning ecosystem services (i.e. fuel wood, food, timber, bamboo, thatch grass and fodder) varies according to their relative use (i.e. subsistence and cash income) among households of different wealth groups. No significant difference was found in perceptions of indirect benefits of forest ecosystem services of water purification, regulating air quality, crop pollination, soil fertility, aesthetic and spiritual services. But the higher wealth groups perceived soil protection, soil fertility, pest and disease control as important for crop production as they have large landholdings for agricultural uses and tree cover. This study suggests local wealth conditions of the rural households characterise the demand of the use and perceived importance of forest ecosystem services. Differences in levels of wealth and ecosystem service provision imply careful consideration of social and economic factors in decision-making and making appropriate interventions for forest and tree management. The ecosystem services approach appears to be useful in capturing the broader diversity of benefits of forests and trees (i.e. material and non-material) as well as in supporting their integrated management at the landscape scale.

Recent trends of forest cover change and ecosystem services in eastern upland region of Bangladesh

Forest cover changes have diverse outcomes for the livelihoods of rural people across the developing world. However, these outcomes are poorly characterized across varying landscapes. This study examined forest cover changes, associated drivers, and impacts on ecosystem services supporting livelihoods in three distinct areas (i.e. remote, intermediate and on-road) in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region of Bangladesh. The three zones had features of decreasing distance to major roads, decreasing levels of forest cover, and increasing levels of agricultural change. Data was collected from satellite images for 1989–2014, structured household interviews, and group discussions using Participatory Rural Appraisal approaches with local communities to integrate and contrast local people's perceptions of forest cover and ecosystem service change with commonly used methods for mapping forest dynamics. Satellite image analysis showed a net gain of forest areas from 1989 to 2003 followed by a net loss from 2003 to 2014. The gain was slightly higher in intermediate (1.68%) and on-road (1.33%) zones than in the remote (0.5%) zone. By contrast, almost 90% of households perceived severe forest loss and 75% of respondents observed concomitant declines in the availability of fuel wood, construction materials, wild foods, and fresh water. People also reported traveling further from the household to harvest forest products. The main drivers of forest loss identified included increased harvesting of timber and fuel wood over time in the intermediate and on-road zones, whereas swidden farming persisted as the major driver of change over time in the remote zone. The contrast between remotely-sensed forest gains and household-perceived forest loss shows community experiences may be a critical addition to satellite imagery analysis by revealing the livelihood outcomes linked to patterns of forest loss and gain. Community experiences may also evoke solutions by characterizing local drivers of forest change. Failing to disaggregate the impacts of forest loss and gains on ecosystems services over time may lead to uninformed management and further negative consequences for human well-being.

Mobility aspirations and indigenous belonging among Chakma students in Dhaka

ABSTRACTIn recent decades, indigenous people from the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) in South-east Bangladesh have experienced increased social and spatial mobility. This article investigates how indigenous students from the CHT region who have migrated to Dhaka redefine indigenous belonging. By highlighting the juxtaposition of different forms of mobility (physical and social) the paper responds to a recent trend which has only rarely been the subject of scholarly enquiry. In particular, it examines the experiences of mobility of individual students and explores the ways in which these students justify their quest for higher education to fulfil their aspirations for a better future. The paper also reveals the obstacles students experience in their everyday lives, mainly in the form of stereotypical, often racist talk. It discusses the structural disadvantages indigenous students face as members of ethnic minorities as well as the strategies employed by the students to counter them. Furthermore, the paper illustrates how indigenous students negotiate urban lifestyles and redefine modernity and indigeneity simultaneously and how migrants face exclusion based on static interpretations of people from the CHT as put forward in mainstream discourses as well as by transnational indigenous activist networks. These lead to feelings of alienation between indigenous students and their Bengali Bangladeshi peers, leaving students to increasingly draw on indigenous networks to achieve mobility.

From knowing our needs to enacting change: findings from community consultations with indigenous communities in Bangladesh.

IntroductionIndigenous peoples are among the most marginalized peoples in the world due to issues relating to well-being, political representation, and economic production. The research consortium Goals and Governance for Global Health (Go4Health) conducted a community consultation process among marginalized groups across the global South aimed at including their voices in the global discourse around health in the post-2015 development agenda. This paper presents findings from the consultations carried out among indigenous communities in Bangladesh.MethodsFor this qualitative study, our research team consulted the Tripura and Mro communities in Bandarban district living in the isolated Chittagong Hill Tracts region. Community members, leaders, and key informants working in health service delivery were interviewed. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis.FindingsOur findings show that remoteness shapes the daily lives of the communities, and their lack of access to natural resources and basic services prevents them from following health promotion messages. The communities feel that their needs are impossible to secure in a politically indifferent and sometimes hostile environment.ConclusionCommunities are keen to participate and work with duty bearers in creating the conditions that will lead to their improved quality of life. Clear policies that recognize the status of indigenous peoples are necessary in the Bangladeshi context to allow for the development of services and infrastructure.

Problems and prospects of rice based cropping patterns in Chittagong areas

Eight districts represent Chittagong and Rangamati agricultural regions having 30637 sq km areas. These regions face natural calamities like Sidr, Aila, Resmi, salinity and soil erosion. Crops are grown in 852436 ha of land. Single crop is grown in 58.48% areas in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region, while in Chittagong agriculture region two crops are grown in about 51% areas. Rice production or its expansion is hindered because of factors like excessive or no rainfall in pre-monsoon season, soil and water salinity, water stagnation in wet season, lack of suitable rice varieties and fresh water in dry season, good income source other than farming, soil erosion, absentee farmers etc. Growing of salt tolerant varieties, organic amendments, use of cover crop, improved irrigation system can be adopted among others for land productivity improvement in coastal areas. Sorjan or ditch and pyramid or ridge systems can be utilized in coastal tidal areas. Installing subsurface drainage system and floating beds could be used in water stagnant conditions. Zero or minimum tillage following dibbling/pegging method, rain water harvesting, improved Jhum, community based seepage water harvesting, homestead gardening and floriculture are the adaptation options in hill agriculture.Bangladesh Rice j. 2014, 18(1&2): 54-64

Constitutionality of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord 1997: Is the Peace Process Valid?

Bangladesh attained sovereign statehood in 1971 through a war of liberation against Pakistan and adopted its Constitution in 1972. The Constitution of Bangladesh proclaims that it is a democratic country established on the notion of Bengali nationalism. ‘Bengali’ is the mother tongue of the majority of the people of Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Constitution contemplates a unitary state integrated on the basis of a common culture. The Constitution purposefully ignored the existence of a distinct ethnic culture practiced by the tribal indigenous people living in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region. The Chittagong Hill Tracts region is comprised of the Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachari districts. It is the home of eleven different ethnic indigenous groups. Since Bangladesh's nationhood, the indigenous people living in the CHT region have been demanding recognition of their separate identity and autonomy from Bangladesh. They also wanted to ban Bengali settlement in the CHT region. The indigenous people organised themselves into an armed separatist group ‘Parbotya Chottogram Jono Sanghati Somiti’ (PCJSS) in a movement to attain autonomy for the CHT region. This movement was a serious threat against the sovereignty and indivisibility of Bangladesh as a unitary state. The Government of Bangladesh has implemented different initiatives over the last 42 years to resolve this movement including a policy of militarisation resulting in genocide. Indigenous people were denied civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. The Government of Bangladesh has also tried to resolve this issue through dialogue. However, both approaches have failed to settle this problem. In this context, the CHT Peace Accord (‘Accord’) was executed between the Government and the indigenous tribal people of the CHT region in 1997. Both parties agreed to end the conflict and establish peace in the region. Accordingly, the Government declared a general amnesty with the armed tribal persons on the condition that they surrender their arms. The Accord established a distinct administration for the CHT region which is completely different from other parts of the country. The local administration of the CHT region was given the power to autonomously function without interference from the Bengali Government. The Accord was successful in quelling the rebellion in the CHT region. It was acclaimed as a major peace initiative by the international community. New statutes were passed in order to implement the promises made in the Accord. These are the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council Act 1998 and the Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarban Hill District Council Amendment Act 1998. The Hill District Council Amendment Acts 1998 brought changes to the original Hill District Council Acts 1989. Pursuant to these new laws, the Hill District Councils are no longer expressly characterised as local government institutions. At the same time, the amending acts also increased the power of the Hill District Councils to decide local administrative matters. Nevertheless, none of the promises made in the Accord has been realised. In the mean-time, the Accord itself has been challenged in the High Court Division (HCD) of the Supreme Court (SC) of Bangladesh for allegedly infringing provisions of the Constitution. The High Court Division has stated that some of the Accord provisions implemented through subsequent statues were also unconstitutional. The Court held that the Accord’s promise to established an administration framework was contradictory to the unitary nature of the Republic, which is a fundamental feature contemplated by the Bangladeshi Constitution. The judgment also held that provisions of the Accord and the implementing statutes result in discrimination against other citizens of Bangladesh, therefore violating the constitutional principle of equality before the law. The Appellate Division of Bangladesh Supreme Court granted a stay on the High Court Division judgment concerning this matter. Consequently, the Accord retains de jure validity. However, the HCD Judgment remains a threat to the legality and validity of the whole peace process that the Bangladesh Government is trying to establish in the CHT region. This paper critically analyses the constitutionality of the Accord in light of the HCD judgment. Firstly, it will discuss the contents of the Accord and its constitutionality. Sections two and three set out a detailed discussion of the administrative system in the CHT region and the main grounds of conflict between the Constitution and the provisions of the Accord as discussed in the HCD judgment focused on the issue of the unitary character of the Republic. The paper will then discuss the decision and reasoning of the High Court Division and critically analyse the arguments and counter-arguments. The underlying tenet of this paper is that the Accord and the implementing statutes are not unconstitutional.