Highway through haor makes a huge impression on people, tourists

For a road that opened to the public during a pandemic, the Itna-Mithamoin-Astagram highway has already made a huge impression on people, in more ways than one, reports UNB.

As lockdown measures gradually ease, travel bloggers and thrill-seekers, or just normal people who like nothing better than to let their hair down and drive out of town, have been making a beeline due north of the capital, and on towards Kishoreganj.

All of them seem to return with one message to deliver above all else: they have seen 'the most beautiful road in Bangladesh!'

Almost half of Kishoreganj district, including four of its 6 upazilas - Itna, Mithamoin, Oshtogram, and Nikli - is designated as a completely haor area: unique wetland ecosystems that during the monsoon resemble vast inland seas.

Though much-romanticised and recognised for the stunningly beautiful vistas they offer as well as the tremendous biodiversity they contain, the haor and its inhabitants have never seen the levels of development witnessed in other parts of the country reach their locality.

Infrastructure in particular has always been a problem. Yet recognising that infrastructure cannot be bypassed as a necessity for meaningful growth and development in any region, the government is now engaged in a serious push for development in the country's haor areas.

The Itna-Mithamoin-Austagram highway, that connects these 3 upazilas of Kishoreganj by going straight through the haor, can be seen as part of that push, although work on the project was inaugurated in 2016 by President Abdul Hamid - the district's most famous son.

The 'haor road', as it is also called, paves the way for direct road connectivity between the haor region and other parts of the country including Dhaka, Sylhet and Chattogram. In providing connectivity with surrounding areas and beyond even during the monsoon months, the newly built road has come as a sheer lifeline for the three upazilas.

Drone shots give the impression of staring out at a giant infinity pool. Almost everyone reported they had never seen anything like it before - although a similar road has been built through the ChalanBeelin Sylhet.

A traveller, Rashib Ahmed, said visiting the area following construction of the road has been a totally different experience.