Six resource-rich areas in Sylhet to be declared ECAs

SYLHET, May 07: The government has taken initiatives to declare six "natural resource-enriched sites" of Sylhet, including Sada Pathor, a tourist spot in Bholaganj, 35 kilometres away from the city, and Shah Arefin Tila, a historically significant hillock in Companiganj upazila, as Environmentally Critical Areas (ECAs) in a bid to protect their ecosystems, unique biodiversity, and natural heritage from hazardous activities.
The other areas to be declared environmentally critical include Ratanpur, Uttamchara, Lovachara, Sreepur and Lalakhal.
Adorned with exquisite natural beauty, these areas are being robbed of their sand and stone resources indiscriminately.
Uncontrolled stone and sand extraction is not only destroying the beauty of the areas but also threatening their natural environment.
Officials concerned and locals believe that the declaration of ECAs will stop sand and stone looting from the areas and thus help protect their natural environment.
However, environmental activists say that not only the declaration will be necessary, but government surveillance will also have to be increased.
Otherwise, the looters will not be stopped. Earlier, in 2015, the Ministry of Environment and Forests declared Jaflong in Gowainghat upazila, another tourist centre of Sylhet, as an ECA. Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) Sylhet chapter president Zamil Ahmed Chowdhury told this correspondent, "ECA declaration was very important, but we want stringent measures to protect the endangered sites." There should be no more plundering, he added, saying the authorities need to be strict in their decisions.
According to the rules, after the announcement of ECA, various steps are supposed to be taken to protect the relevant areas.
However, no steps have been taken to implement ECA so far. As a result, sand and stone looting has not stopped. In February 2020, the government ordered a ban on the extraction of stone and sand from several quarries in Sylhet. Although legal or official extraction of stone and sand has stopped, their looting is still going on unabated. Last year, the issue of stone looting from Sada Pathor area created a stir across the country.
Since the change of government on August 5, 2024, unprecedented incidents of stone looting continued in the country's renowned Sada Pathor site. Looting left the tourist area at the source of the Dholai River almost empty of stones.
According to media reports, after the Awami League government fell in the face of a mass uprising on August 5, 2024, control of the mines passed to leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and their allies, resulting in open extraction of sand and stone.
On August 24, 2025, the High Court issued a rule asking why the failure to stop destructive stone extraction in Jaflong, Shah Arefin Tila, Bholaganj, Uttamchara, Sreepur, Bichnakandi and Lovachara should not be declared illegal and why these areas should not be declared as ECAs.
Earlier in 2014, the High Court banned mechanical stone extraction from the stone quarries in Sylhet based on a writ petition filed by the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association.
Despite this ban, stone traders have been repeatedly demanding reopening of the mines, citing the livelihood and business interests of dependent workers.
Abul Kalam Azad, Sylhet Divisional Director of the Department of Environment, said that a consulting firm has been given the task of preparing a technical report to assess natural resources and determine the possible scope of the ECA.
He said, "Once the report is received, the department will take steps to declare ECA for conservation." Environmental activists welcomed the move, but expressed concern over the weak implementation of the previously declared ECAs in Sylhet.
Locals said that although a 500-metre area on both banks of the Jaflong-Dawki river has been declared as ECA, illegal extraction of stone and sand continues.
A local resident said, "We applaud the initiative to declare new areas as ECAs. However, such an initiative should have been taken long ago. Because now if Shah Arefin Tila is declared an ECA, it will be almost impossible to restore its biodiversity, because the hill has already been destroyed due to stone quarrying.
Environmentally Critical Areas (ECAs) in Bangladesh are designated under the Environment Conservation Act 1995 to protect biodiversity threatened by degradation. Key ECAs include the Sundarbans (10km buffer zone), St. Martin's Island, Tanguar Haor, and four Dhaka rivers (Buriganga, Sitalakhaya, Turag, Balu). Currently, there are 13 ECAs in the country.
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