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Published: 12:09 AM, 16 February 2020

Seeking amendment to The Chittagong Hill Tracts Transit Rules

https://dailyasianage.com/news/218868/seeking-amendment-to-the-chittagong-hill-tracts-transit-rules

M S Siddiqui Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), a hilly region in Bangladesh has been facing a serious problem of degradation of natural resources particularly forest because of settlement of plain land people and huge demand of wood in entire country. The problem started since British rule and to protect the forest resources from overexploitation by indigenous people almost entire forest of CHT was nationalized during the British colonial period. The management of these resources was vested with the two central government organizations Forest Department (FD) and Deputy Commissioner (DC), bureaucratic head of a district with full property rights. British were also formalize some Rules and regulations and codified in the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regulation, 1900 and Forest Act, 1927. Now the settlers from plain land and traders along with indigenous people due to huge demand for wood are active in the region causing deforestations. There are four Acts including 3 Ordinances, 16 Rules, and some other amendments of the forest laws passed to protect the forest and forest resources of Bangladesh. The most widely known forest related law was enacted in 1927. In 1989, the forest act was amended to strengthen forest protection by providing for stiffer penalties for offenders and restricting the discretionary powers of the forest officials and local magistrates. The authority also issued two rules: The Chittagong Hill Tracts Transit Rules, 1973 and The Forest Transit Rules, 2011.The Brick Burning (Control) Act enacted in July 1989 to ban firewood for brick burning that has been substituted by the Brick Manufacturing and Kiln Construction (Control) Act, 2013 with effect from July 1, 2014 to protect forest resources and many other law and rules. The forest Act were passed in 1927 in order to consolidate the law relating to forests, the transit of forest produce and the duty leviable on timber and other forest produce. This Act was amended in 1930. Since the partition in 1947, the Act was amended in 1949 and 1962. After the independence of Bangladesh, the forest Act was further amended in 1974 but the major changes was taken place in1989. The forest Act was enacted to preserve and safeguard forest in general, both public and private. In exercise of power given in The Forest Act (sec 41, 42 and 76), government has issued rule under "The Chittagong Hill Tract Transit rule 1973"set to regulate the transit of timber and other forest resources through land or water within, into or from the districts of Chittagong hill Tracts (new divided in to 3 districts) and to control saw pit and timber depot in these areas.

There should be no removal of timer without permission and payment of scheduled rate of fees (s3). The authorised office will mark the wood 'sale' at stump site as far as practicable but divisional officer can relax the rule as in case he and where he deeps fit. Any person importing, exporting or removing woods from within or out of the area should obtain certificate of origin or permit, transit pass from Forest officer or Police Officer. It is a separate Rules for the purpose of felling trees and removal of trees from the CHT and for rest of the country is 'The Forest Transit Rules, 2011'. The tribes of CHT can cut and procure wood without frees from unclassified forests for bonafide home consumption only from regular forest under control of Deputy Commissioners but not from reserved forests. All the saw pits and depots shall have to take permission from the forest department (s4) paying scheduled fees. Weak application and loopholes of the law and rule pave the way of rampant cutting of wood and transit to other part of the country with corrupt practices. According to study report of TIB "Transparency and Accountability in Forest Conservation and Management: Problems and Way Out" in 2008 observed that illegal logs are again carried to various markets of Chittagong and Dhaka cities by trucks or covered vans. To transport these illegal logs, traffickers have to collect transit pass(TP) from the forest office paying bribes. They also have to pay bribes or toll to the DC office, local police station, press club, government and opposition party, various government intelligence agencies, check-post of Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and several check-posts of the FD. They have to pay double if they do not have any valid document. Moreover, almost 80% logs that are processed in the sawmills of Banderban are collected from reserve forests illegally. In Chakaria of Cox's Bazar, one third of logs processed in saw-mills are illegally collected from reserve forests. But there are also strong allegations, published in print media, about their connivance (assisting) in illegal trafficking by law enforcers. Besides, many agencies are also alleged to have involved in getting monetary benefit from illegal timber trafficking as reflected in the disclosure of TIB. TIB report also found that the control of such illegal timber business depends on the attitude and leadership of the local administration. The current moratorium on natural forest cutting with a view to conserve biodiversity cannot be effective without strict handling of timber theft and strong commitment of the top management. It was seen from this research, which was conducted between December 2006 and March 2008 that various types of irregularities and corruption existed in the sector. These included smuggling of timber from reserved forests, collusion between saw-mills and furniture shops in the illegal use and trafficking of timber, excessive extraction of forestry resources, irregularities in auctioning of forestry resource, anomalies in project implementation, irregularities filing and handling of cases etc. The research showed that bribes worth Tk 125 thousands had to be paid at 14 places including the Forest Department and the Deputy Commissioner's Office for smuggling out 1500 CFT of timber to Rangamati town from the reserved forest under the cover of permit. Besides, timber worth Tk 150 crore are smuggled out each year on an average from the Sundarbans through fishermen's boats. In only a single incident at Rangamati Circle in 2005, the government incurred a revenue loss of Tk 27 crore due to illegal sale of 650 thousand CFT of smuggled timber to traders. The study depicted the failures in conservation of forests. At present, 270,570.98 acres of forest lands are under illegal occupation in the country. Institutional weakness of the Department of Forest is one of the causes for resource depletion. The Department of Forests is not as strong as the other departments. The diversified duties such

as protection, exploitation, forestation, extension, planning and training are assigned to a single professional cadre. The lack of institutional accountability adds to the panic. The Chittagong Hill Tracts Transit Rules, 1973 has been issued authorised by the Forest Act 1927 but the s42 of the act impose (Sub section 1) imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall not be less than two months and shall also be liable to fine which may extend to ten thousand Taka and shall not be less than two thousand Taka. Such (sub-section 2) Such may provide there penalties which are double of those mentioned in sub-section (1) may be inflicted in cases where the offence is committed after sunset and before sunrise, or after preparation for resistance to lawful authority, or where the offender has been previously convicted of a like offence. The rule of 1973 has impose lighter punishment than the Forest act 1973. The law and rules have contradictory punishment for same offence. In a land mark judgment by Chief Judicial Magistrate Mr Muhammad Shamsuddin Khalid of Rangamati Hill Tract District on 1st March 2016 in case no: Forest 09/2009 in a case of trafficking of wood without permit has given some observations: According to judgment in Bangla (translated by author) that apart from 3 Hill Tract Districts, the rule of transportation forest goods are regulated by rule of 2011 applied in all 61 districts has penalty of illegal transportation of forest goods are (s14) 3 years jail and penalty of Tk10,000 on the other hand the penalty for same office under rule of 1973 applicable in 3 hilly districts are jail for 6 months and penalty of Tk500 only. The honourable judge questions the two different rule with different punishment and recommended the change in rule. The judgment should be considered as historical since the District Court hardly uses to give observation on anomaly of law or rule in our country. Since this is a rule and the relevant regulating Ministry can amend the rule to maintain infirmity in the rule. Chittagong Hill Tracts Transit Rules, 1973should immediately be amended in line with the provisions of section - 42 of the Forest Act, 1927 to eliminate contradiction with both The Forest Act 1927 Law and The Forest Transit Rules, 2011. The writer is a legal economist

Email: mssiddiqui2035@gmail.com