A forest saved: Inside the restoration of Purbachal's last Sal grove
Once threatened by urban expansion, the 144-acre Sal forest in Purbachal has now been officially designated a ‘Special Biodiversity Area’. With restoration efforts underway, the forest is being revived as a vital ecological haven amid Dhaka’s rapid development
It feels like a world tucked away in green, quiet, calm, almost hidden from the rush of the city just beyond. The air is heavy with the earthy scent of leaves, damp soil and something older still — like memory clinging to bark.
Now and then, the distant hum of a passing vehicle or the faint crackle of power lines overhead disturbs the hush. But mostly, it is birdsong, the soft drone of insects, and the low rustle of Sal trees swaying gently in the breeze.
"I heard from my grandfather that there was a time when deer used to roam freely here," says 42-year-old Hamidur Rahman, a lifelong resident of Purbachal. "Even now, when the forest grows quiet at night, you can hear foxes calling from deep within the trees."
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Spread across 144 acres in the heart of Purbachal, this Sal forest breathes like it is alive. Once part of a vast woodland stretching beyond Dhaka's outskirts, it now stands as one of the last surviving patches of natural forest in the region.
From a bird's eye view, its shape comes into focus — a wide, green mosaic hemmed in by roads, scattered housing plots, and the slow, certain sprawl of urban expansion. A smooth highway runs along its edge, carving a sharp divide between the stillness of the forest and the restless pace of development.
Ponds glimmer in the sunlight, tucked into corners. Open clearings hint at quiet, forgotten human stories — trails long overgrown, makeshift cultivation, perhaps even homes that faded away without a trace.
On one side, new buildings rise — white, orderly, inching ever closer. But within the forest, narrow footpaths vanish into thick undergrowth. A few tin-roofed huts remain, nestled beneath the canopy, part of the forest now rather than intrusions upon it.
And yet, this green haven might have disappeared altogether had help not arrived in time.
"This forest is alive with diversity. You have Sal, yes, but also Chinese Albizia, Lebbeck, Indian Oak, Jhika, and Beleric. These are all trees that belong here… If we lose this forest, we don't just lose a few trees. We lose a functioning ecosystem. We lose clean air. We lose balance."
For years, the forest lay in limbo, tucked inside Sectors 24 and 25 of the sprawling Purbachal New Town Project. It was land on paper, up for grabs — its trees uncounted, its animals overlooked. At one point, RAJUK even planned to absorb it into the second phase of urban expansion.
Earlier this year, the current interim government stepped in. Exercising powers under Section 22(1) of the Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012, it officially declared the 144-acre patch a "Special Biodiversity Area".
Previously in September 2023, RAJUK had handed over the 144-acre Sal forest to the Forest Department for conservation and the implementation of a long-term master plan. Under the agreement, the Forest Department was supposed to manage the land and work to preserve its biodiversity over the next 10 years.
This move had come after a decade of legal and environmental advocacy, most notably by the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA), which had filed a writ petition back in 2013 to stop the clearing of the forest for urban development.
BELA, under the leadership of Syeda Rizwana Hasan as Chief Executive at the time, sustained legal action and applied public pressure that proved crucial in compelling authorities to acknowledge the ecological significance of the forest and commit to its restoration and protection.
And most recently in June this year, Rizwana, now adviser to the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change and the Ministry of Water Resources of the interim government, visited the site and assured that the forest's boundaries would be demarcated without delay.
"There is a relatively vibrant forest here in Purbachal. Now, the demarcation of this forest's boundaries is urgent and will be done quickly," she said. "This could be a forest that Dhaka residents feel is close to them, and they will come to see it."
A lifelong advocate for biodiversity conservation, Rizwana Hasan pointed out that misguided afforestation policies, along with unchecked urbanisation and industrial expansion, had significantly harmed the Sal forest in the area.
"RAJUK had incorporated this forest into the second phase of Purbachal, but we fought hard and through legal battles, we were able to save this forest, which is about 144 acres," she said.
She pledged to prioritise the forest's restoration, primarily through the planting of Sal saplings. The geological characteristic of this area is that it is an elevated region.
"We will try to naturally restore the Sal forest in the vacant areas here. Additionally, to prevent encroachment on these empty spaces, some Sal saplings will be planted in a natural setting. And, from the existing Sal trees, the forest should naturally become complete," Hasan further said.
A 2024 study published in the Bangladesh Journal of Plant Taxonomy also found that more than three-quarters (77%) of respondents believe the loss of the Sal forest would significantly affect the local climate and ecosystem, underscoring widespread public awareness of the forest's role in maintaining environmental stability.
"In conclusion, the survey reveals a clear public mandate for protecting the Purbachal Sal Forest," the study noted.
It further recommended that by acknowledging these public concerns and incorporating them into conservation strategies, policymakers and forest managers can design more effective, community-supported plans to safeguard this critical ecosystem.
And really, now officially safeguarded, the forest is undergoing a careful, science-backed restoration. The plan is to prioritise natural regeneration — reviving the land primarily with Sal trees, which once dominated the region. Illegal settlements within the forest are being evicted, and stretches of barren land will be replanted with native tree species that are known to thrive in the area.
Sharmin Akter, Divisional Forest Officer of the Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Division in Dhaka, noted that some natural foot trails have already formed within the forest. A guard shed has also been established for Forest Department personnel tasked with overseeing the area.
She added that a barbed-wire fence is currently being erected — not to shut nature in, but to keep human interference out.
The fencing design, she explained, was finalised after consulting experts to ensure that wildlife movement remains uninterrupted. "People shouldn't be able to enter and exploit the forest, but the animals must be able to roam free."
She pointed to species like Hijal, alongside Sal, as key to this restoration. "We're giving priority to Sal trees, obviously, because it's a Sal forest. But we're also including other species that are already prominent here — trees that fit the soil, the climate, and the natural rhythm of this land."
Although it makes up just 2.34% of the total 6,150 acres under the Purbachal New Town Project, the forest's ecological value is immense. The rest of the area has already been divided into residential plots, commercial blocks, roads, lakes, educational zones, and infrastructure.
And still, this modest green patch has become the heart of the entire development. Within it, forest officials have identified 128 species of plants and 74 species of animals — many of them endangered, some nearly forgotten.
"This forest is alive with diversity," said Nigar Sultana, Wildlife Inspector involved in the project. "You have Sal, yes, but also Chinese Albizia, Lebbeck, Indian Oak, Jhika, and Beleric. These are all trees that belong here."
Among the animals, she listed names that echo the past: Common Vine Snake, Rat Snake, Indian Cobra, Golden Jackal, Fishing Cat. There are birds, too — Great Cormorants, Jungle Babblers, and more winged reminders of the richness once common across Bengal's landscape.
"If we lose this forest," she added, "we don't just lose a few trees. We lose a functioning ecosystem. We lose clean air. We lose balance."
That is precisely why the restoration now underway feels so urgent. Boundary markers are going in. Field teams are conducting species surveys. Small signs of recovery are already visible.
And for once, it seems, development is not working against nature, but with it.
