Proposal to scrap Bangabandhu Safari Park project in Moulvibazar to be placed at Ecnec meeting
A proposal to cancel the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Safari Park project in Moulvibazar will be placed at the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) meeting today (23 December).
The meeting, chaired by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, is scheduled to take place at the NEC conference room in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar today (23 December).
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change had earlier proposed implementing the project, titled Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Safari Park, Moulvibazar (1st Phase), through the Forest Department.
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The project received conditional approval during the Ecnec meeting on 9 November 2023, according to sources from the Planning Commission.
Following Ecnec's conditions, the ministry formed a committee to assess the potential impacts of the project on the forest, wildlife, and natural biodiversity of the proposed site in the Lathitila forest.
The committee's findings highlighted that Lathitila is a priority landscape for tiger surveys within the Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot and serves as a transboundary elephant corridor.
The report further stated that establishing a safari park in the area would adversely affect the biodiversity of the entire forest.
Acting on the committee's recommendations, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change proposed cancelling the project's approval.
The Forest Department had planned to develop the safari park in a 5,631-acre area of the evergreen reserved forest in Lathitila, Juri upazila, at a cost of Tk364.11 crore.
This included a core safari park and safari kingdom in a 270-acre section of the forest, intended to boost ecotourism.
However, the Planning Commission's Agriculture, Water Resources, and Rural Institution Division has noted the committee's assessment, which underscores the severe adverse impact the project would have on the biodiversity of the Lathitila forest.
Considering these findings, the division has recommended cancelling the project approval to prioritise the conservation of the forest's biodiversity. The decision is now pending Ecnec's final review.
