How a community is striving to protect a natural forest in Bandarban

Acute water shortages affect residents of Chimbuk Hill during the dry season. But the Kapru Mro Para natural forest provides a constant source of water

With time, a section of the hill tracts in Bandarban has become ever more barren due to deforestation as it gradually alters the landscape.

The effects are far-reaching.

The destruction of forests is jeopardising vital water reservoirs, and the ecological balance is also being disturbed.

Faced with the double dangers, the native Mro community in Bandarban's Chimbuk Hill has taken it upon themselves to safeguard a natural forest.

The forest, spanning almost 200 acres, runs along the Kapru Mro Para in Lama Upazila's Lemupalong Mauza, some 45 km away from the district town.

There isn't another natural forest like it in the area. It is home to a diverse array of vegetation, including various species of centennial trees.

The majority of Chimbuk Hill's inhabitants suffer from acute water shortages during the dry season. But due to its characteristics, the forest provides a ready source of water throughout the year.

As many as 52 families live in Kapru Mro Para, which sits on a hill about 2,000 feet above sea level. But even the community's elders cannot say exactly when the village was established, with some estimating that it was around 150-200 years old.

There is no provision for villagers to cut down trees in the forest. However, they are allowed to collect bamboo from the forest for the construction of houses and other social needs with the permission of the village head.

The forest teems with massive, century-old trees with sprawling roots as a smattering of towering dead wood cast haunting shadows across the ground. The villagers could not name all of the trees in the forest but said some of them died of 'old age'. Large stones cover almost the entire surface of the hill, storing water for the dry season.

In 2016, a group of environmental workers from Dhaka came to survey the natural forest, says Longi Mro, a resident of Kapru Mro Para. After a few days, they reported finding 99 species of trees.

Villagers said they chop down trees in other forests or private gardens for wood to build their houses. But the trees in the natural forest are off-limits to them. Not even a stone can be removed for fear of losing the forest.

The forest was once home to various types of wildlife, according to Longi Mro. "Even three years ago, a tiger was found here. It attacked a pig at a villager's house at night. Some people, including the owner of the house, beat the tiger to death.

"It was not clear where the tiger had suddenly come from. Many deer and bears also roamed the forest. But you can't find them anymore."

The forest was much denser around 30-40 years ago, filled with tall trees that could block the sunlight, according to him.

"Many trees have died out, while others were felled by some people who didn't realise the consequences at the time. This forest would have been bigger if logging had been banned back then. It was filled with different kinds of trees."

In a bid to conserve the natural forest, locals also refrain from Jhum, or slash and burn, cultivation in its vicinity, according to a villager. They are mindful of the risks of starting a fire in the forest and disturbing its wildlife. As a result, no one is allowed to conduct Jhum cultivation near the forest.

During the summer, villages in the Chimbuk Hill area grapple with a water crisis as all springs and waterfalls dry up. Women have to walk about 1.5km to collect a jug of water. But residents of Kapru Mro Para don't face these problems as even in the dry season, clear water flows through the cracks in the rocks of the natural forest.

"Many villages in Chimbuk Hill have suffered from a water crisis for three months. You have to travel great distances to find water. But water is always available here," said Chamrung Mro, a woman who came to collect water from the forest.

"I can wash clothes and take a bath in a small well downhill. But there isn't as much water as before. It decreases a little every year," said another woman, Songle Mro.

A committee was formed by an NGO to conserve the natural forest, according to Yingchong Mro, the village head. People are barred from felling trees in the forest to stave off water crises during the dry season.

The Aranyak Foundation started a project to preserve the Kapru Para natural forest around 2009, said Mangmansi Marma, executive director of the Humanitarian Foundation, a local NGO.

Various awareness programmes were launched to persuade villagers to protect the natural forest under the supervision of a committee.

"Otherwise, the natural forest would have become barren like other forests. It would have been destroyed by now. A gang of rogues is still cutting down trees near the natural forest. They have destroyed many forests.

He stressed the need to take steps to ensure that no one in the village falls prey to these practices. "This century-old natural forest will only survive through the awareness of the villagers."

In many areas, villagers have created forests to meet their own needs, according to Lama Divisional Forest Officer Ariful Haque Belal. "Ecosystems are created through afforestation. The environmental balance is being restored."

"The villagers have taken a very commendable initiative to sustain a century-old natural. If the trees are cut down, and the environmental balance is unharmed, water sources will return to the hills, along with biodiverse habitats."

[Writing in English by Turaj Ahmad]