Physiographic and Socio-Economic Profile ofChittagong Hill

Tracts (Rangamati and Bandarban District)

This Study has done for the partial fulfillment ofcourse no. GEE 330 (Map

Projection and Field Study: Local Landscape – Lab).

Authorized by:Ahasan ullah

Reg. no. 20101350183rd Year 1st Semester

Dept. of Geography and Environment

Supervised by:Rony Basak

Asst. ProfessorDept. of Geography and Environment

&

Md. Muyeed HasanAsst. Professor

Dept. of Geography and Environment

Shahjalal University of Science andTechnology

Sylhet – 3114, Bangladesh

Supervisor’s Certificate

This is to certify that, the present report entitled‘Physiographic and Socio-Economic Profile of Chittagong Hill Tracts (Rangamati andBandarban District)’ is a work by Ahasan ullah. As far asI know, it has not been submitted anywhere else for anyreward or degree.

…………………………………………………Rony Basak

Asst. ProfessorDept. of Geography and Environment

Shahjalal University of Science and Technology

………………………………………………...Md. Muyeed HasanAsst. Professor

Dept. of Geography and EnvironmentShahjalal University of Science and Technology

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Apart from the efforts of me, the success of any reportdepends largely on the encouragement and guidelines ofmany others. I take this opportunity to express mygratitude to the people who have been helpful in thesuccessful completion of this report. I would like toexpress my special thanks of gratitude to my teacher

Mr. Rony Basak and Md. Muyeed Hasan, researchsupervisors, for their patient guidance, enthusiasticencouragement and useful critiques of this researchwork. Without their help and direction it was notpossible for me to accomplish such work. I am reallythankful to them. I also gratefully thank them forhaving spent their valuable time. The photos I used inthis report are taken by Mr. Rony Basak, I gratefullythank to him.

I also express my heartfelt thanks to my almighty Allah, my parents and friends who helped me a lot in finishing this report within the limited time.

I am making this report not only for marks but to also increase my knowledge. Thank again to all who helped me.

Content

Title Page no

Acknowledgement IIIList of Tables VList of Acronyms VI List of Figure VI Executive summary VII

Chapter: One – Introduction 1-81.1 Introduction

11.2 Description of Study Area: Rangamati Hill District

11.3 Description of Study Area: Bandarban Hill District

51.4 Aims and Objectives of the Study

8

Chapter: Two – Methodology 9

Chapter: Three – Socio-Economic Status 10-133.1 Economy 103.2Settlement 113.3 Gender 123.4 Food situation 133.5 Transportation 13

Chapter: Four – Physiography of Study Area 14-164.1 Physiographic of Rangamati and Bandarban 144.2 Geological histories of Rangamati and Bandarban 15

Chapter: Five – Climate 17-205.1 Climate of Rangamati 175.2 Climate of Bandarban 19

Chapter six – Soil 216.1 Soil fertility 21

Chapter seven – Culture of Tribal Communities 22-25

7.1 Culture of Chakma Community 227.2 Culture of Marma Community 24

Chapter eight– Biogeography 26

8.1Flora of Study Area268.2 Fauna of Study Area26

Chapter: Eight – Conclusion and Recommendation. 27

References 28

List of Tables

Table 1.1: Ethnic population. 02

Table 3.1: Food situation 13

Table 5.1: Temperature during study period in Rangamati17

Table 5.2: Rainfall during study period in Rangamati 18

Table 5.3: Mean humidity during study period in Rangamati. 19

Table 5.4:Temperature during the study period in Bandarban. 19

Table 5.5: Mean humidity during study period in Bandarban. 20

Table 6.1: Fertility status of Northern & Eastern Hills21

List of Acronyms

CHT- Chittagong Hill TractsBSCIC- Bangladesh Small and Cottage IndustryCorporationDAE – Department of Agriculture ExtensionMOCHTA – Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts AffairsCHTDB – Chittagong Hill Tracts Development BoardCHTDF – Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Facility

List of Figures

Figure 1.1: Map of Rangamati Hill District 3

Figure 1.2: Map of Bandarban Hill District 6

Figure 3.1: A trade centre on the bank of Kaptai Lake 11

Figure 3.2: A typical sample of machaan house. 12

Figure 4.1: Tertiary Period’s rock layer in Rangamati. 15

Figure 4.2: Biological weathering in the rock of Rangamati 16

Figure 4.3: Mass wasting on the bank of Kaptai Lake 16

Figure 5.1: Average Temperature (°c) graph over a year of Rangamati 17

Figure 5.2: Average rainfall (mm graph for Rangamati). 18

Figure 5.3: Temperature graph June 2013 of Bandarban. 19

Figure 5.4: Average temperature (°c) graph for Bandarban. 20

Figure 5.5: Average rainfall (mm) graph for Bandarban. 20

Figure 7.1: Tribal dress 23

EXICUTIVE SUMMARY

Geography is not only the subject to about theoreticalknowledge, but also it has a great deal with practicalwork. There are many ways by which one can apply histheoretical knowledge in the field. Observational studyis one of them. It refers to the inspection of studyarea. As a student of Geography and Environment, I geta chance to apply my theoretical knowledge intopractical field through this study.And Rangamati and Bandarban are the best place of ourcountry for the observational study; we took it as ourstudy area.

In this present report, first chapter contains thedescription of study area and aims & objectives of thestudy. It is mainly based on secondary data. These dataare collected from different research report andwebsite which are cited in the page of references.Chapter two contains the methodology of study.

Methodology is the fundamental structure of any study.Chapter three describes about socio-economic status ofstudy area. I considered about economy, settlements,gender, food situation and transportation system ofRangamati and Bandarban.

Chapter four describes the physiographic of study area.Here, we use many picture to describe the Physicalcharacteristics. Chapter five describes the climaticcondition of study area. Climate refers to the longterm weather condition. But, as the secondary data wasnot found, one year climatic conditions are describedin this report. Chapter six describes about the soilfertility of Rangamati and Bandarban.

Chapter seven contains the culture of tribal people.Here I describe two largest tribes of Bangladesh theChakma and Marma culture. Chapter eight containsbiogeography of Rangamati and Bandarban. Flora-fauna arestates in chapter seven.At the last chapter, conclusion and some recommendationsare noted.

Chapter One:Introduction

1.1 Introduction: The observational studymeans to the inspection of study area without anytechnical instruments and measurement. To write anobservation report, the first thing is to spend asignificant amount of time for observing the topicof the report. While in observation, make notes ofspecific things which are included in the report.So, I have applied mypreviously acquired knowledge and notes that Icollect while observation to study physiographic,climate, soil, culture of local people in RangamatiHill District and Bandarban Hill District. Thisreport shows an observational situation ofRangamati Hill District as well as Bandarban HillDistrict containing physical and culturalphenomena.

1.2 Description of Study Area: RangamatiHill DistrictHistorical Background: Rangamati, a hilly districtof Bangladesh became a subdivision in 1891 and wasupgraded to a district in 1983.Nothing is definitelyknown about the origin of the name of the district. Itis said that the name Rangamati has been originated

from the Radish soil of the land which in Bengali meansRangamati, ‘Ranga’ means red and ‘Mati’ means soil.

Geographical Location: Rangamati lies between22°27΄ and 23°44΄ north latitudes and between 91°56΄and 92°33´ east longitudes.  It is surrounded by Tripuraof India at north, Bandarban at south, Mizoram of Indiaat east and Khagrachari & Chittagong at west.

Area: The total area of the district is 6,116.11 sq.km. (2361.00 sq. miles) of which 4768.49 sq. km. isunder forest.

Population and Education: According to thepopulation census 2011, the total population of thedistrict is 5, 95,979 among which male 3, 01,376 andfemale 2, 82,903. The total number of households is 1,28,496 and the average size of household is 4.6. Thepopulation growth rate is 1.58.The density ofpopulation is 83 per square kilometer (Census 2011).Most of the people are the flower of Buddhist religionwhich is 53.83%, Muslim 39.28%, Hindu 5.62%, Christian1.12%, and others 0.15% . According to 2005 censustribal population is 52% and non-tribal 48%. Many typesof ethnic people live here; such as Chakma, Marma,Tripura,Tanchangya, Lushai, Khyang, Pankhoa, Kuki,khumi etc.

Chakma Marma Tanchangya Others Total2,60,445 51,235 27,052 17,421 3,56,153

Table 1.1: Ethnicpopulation.(Population Census 2011, BBS)

The literacy rate of this district is 41.81%; Male45.8% and female 36.7% (Population Census 2011, BBS).

Administration: Rangamati subdivision was turnedinto a district in 1983. The area of the town is 64.75sq km. The district consists of 10 upazilas, 49 unions,162 mauzas, 1555 villages, 2 paurashava, 18 wards and90 mahallas. The upazilas are Baghaichhai, Barkal,Kawkhali, Belaichhari, Kaptai, Juraichhari, Langadu,Naniarchar, Rajasthali, and Rangamati sadar. Archaeological Heritage and Relics: Palace,dighi and mosque of Raja Jan Bashk Khan, remnants ofthe residence of Raja Harish Chandra Roy and thehanging bridge.

Historical Events: Before the Muslim conquestRangamati region was a contesting ground between thekings of the Tripura and the Arakan. In 1966 thisregion came under the Mughals. It was leased to theEnglish East India Company in 1760-61. In 1737 onetribal leader Sher Mosta Khan took refuge with theMughals. From this time onward the Chakmas settled inthis region that was followed by other ethnicnationals.

Fig 1.1: map of Rangamati

Rivers: Karnafuli, Thega, Horina, Kassalong,Shublang, Chingri, Rainkhiang and Kaptai.

Main Crops: Paddy, jute, potato, cotton, corn andmustard seed.Main Fruits: Mango, jackfruit, banana, pineapple,litchi, black berry.Main Export Items: Timber, jackfruit, pineapple,forest goods.

In Rangamati our main observational area is givenbelow:

o Kaptai Lake:This large man make lake of Bangladesh spanningover an area of approximately 11000km2, was createdas a reservoir when the Kaptai dam was built duringthe 1960s. The lake was created by flooding valleysand plain lands between numerous hills. Thiscreated a picturesque view as forested hills andplateaus rise from beneath the water.

o Shuvolong Falls:Shuvolong a place in Borokol sub district locatedabout 25 kilometers (11kilometers – as the crowflies) away from Rangamati. There arefew waterfalls in Shuvolong area with the largestone falling from as high as 300 feet. In the pastseveral years, this place has turned into a touristdestination due to beautiful waterfalls and thenearby market. Shuvolong is easily accessible byspeed boat or motor boats from Rangamati.

o Tribal Museum: The museum is located near the entry point to thecity. Established in 1978, it is run by the TribalCultural Institute. Traditional ornaments.Costumes, potteries, musical instruments,armaments, paintings and photographs, oldmanuscripts, statues and ancient coins of varioustribes are on display here. It is open Saturday toThursday excluding public holidays.

o Hanging Bridge: This 335feet long bridge across a portion of theKaptai Lake is an icon of Rangamati.

o Rajban Bihar Pagoda:An internationally known Buddhist Temple, where thespiritualist principal monk of Rajban Vihara,Shrimath Sadhana Nanda Mohasthabir(Ban Vante)lives.

o DC Bungalow Area:The District Commissioner’s Bungalow is locatedadjacent to the lake. There is a small light houseand a shelter accessible to the public. This spotprovides a nice view of the lake.

o Others:The local market is also a tourist attraction as itoffers handicrafts, textiles and ornaments made bythe tribal people.

1.3 Description of Study Area: BandarbanHill District

Historical Background: Bandarban was originally asub-division of Chittagong Hill Tracts district. It wasup-graded to a district in 1981. In the remote past thepresent place of the district headquarters was aboundwith a large number of monkeys. The monkeys of thisplace used to cross the adjacent canal every dayforming a chain like line over the canal in quest offruits in the adjoining forest and returned to the sameplace in the same manner. The formation of chain likeline by monkeys drew the attention of the Mugh who usedto term it in their own language moksey. In Bengali Mokmeans Bandars and sey means Bandh, i.e. Bandars Bandh.

Geographical Location: Bandarban lies between 21°11´ and 22°22´ north latitudes and between 92° 04´ and92°41´ east longitudes. It is bounded on the north byRangamati district, on the east by Rangamati districtand Myanmar, on the south by Myanmar and on the west byChittagong and Cox’sbazar district.

Area: The total area of the district is 4,479.01 sq.km. (1729.00 sq.miles) of which 2653.54 sq.km is underforest.

Administration: Bandarban district was established in1983. The area of Bandarban town is 51.80 sq km. Thedistrict consists of 7 upazilas, 30 unions, 96 mauzas,1554 villages, 2 paurashavas, 18 wards and 105mahallas. The upazilas are Bandarban Sadar,

Rowangchhari, Ruma, Thanchi, Lama, Alikadam, andNaikhongchhari.

Fig 1.2: map of Bandarban.Population and Education: According to thepopulation census 2011, the total population of thedistrict is 3, 88,335 among which male 2, 03,350 andfemale 1, 84,985. The total number of households is80,102 and the average size of household is 4.75. Thepopulation growth rate is 1.58.The density ofpopulation is 83 per square kilometer (Census 2011).Most of the people are the flower of Islam religionwhich is 47.62%, Buddhist 38%, Christian 7.27%, Hindu3.52% and others 3.59%. The literacy rate of thisdistrict is 39.81%; Male 49.5%and female 25.4%(Population Census 2011, BBS). Many types of ethnicpeople live here; such as Chakma, Marma,Tripura,Tanchangya, Lushai, Khyang, Pankhoa, Kuki,khumi, chak, and the bawm etc.

Historical Events: The British rulers declared Bandarban as a forest zone because of its vast forest area devoid of human settlement. The Arakanese were permanently settled in Bandarban after the British ascendancy in Arakan.

Main Rivers: Shankha (Sangu), Matamuhuri and Bakkhali.

Main Crops: Paddy, mustard, cotton, tobacco, vegetables. Main Fruits: Banana, pineapple, jackfruit, orange, papaya.

Source: Banglapedia and BBS

In Bandarban, we observed different area. Our main observational area is given below:

o Shoilo Propat, The waterfall named Shoilo Propat atMilanchari, 4 km from the town on the road toThanchi, is also excellent site maintained byBangladesh Parjatan, the national tourism promotioncorporation.

o  Meghla and Nilachal: The site maintained by theDistrict Administration is Meghla, 4 km from thetown on the road to Keranihat, which features amini-safari-park, a zoo, and a hanging bridge. TheDistrict Administration has also developed theNilachal tourist site near Meghla, in Tigerpara.

o Golden temple: The largest Buddhist temple inBangladesh, located in Balaghata, 4 km from thetown, is one excellent place to visit locally knownas 'Swarna Mandir'. This Theravada Buddhist temple.Set atop a 60 meter hill, is made completely in thestyle of South-East Asia and houses a sacred relicand the second largest statue of Buddha inBangladesh.

o Chimbuk Hill and Tribal Villages: Chimbuk is one ofthe tallest peaks in Bangladesh and lies some 14 kmfrom the town. Bawm villages around Chimbuk and Mru

villages a little further off are also lie within aday's journey from the town.

o Nil Giri: Nilgiri is one of the tallest peaks andbeautiful place in Bangladesh and lies some 46 kmfrom the town. It is a wonderful place to see thenatural beauty of Bandarban. One can touch theclouds in this place. There is beautiful resort inthe top of the mountain maintain by the BangladeshArmy. Booking to be done through army officer.

1.4 Aims and Objectives of the Study:

The overall objective of this assignment is to apply the theoretical knowledge that I acquired from the courses of last four semesters.

To gain knowledge of about the procedure of observational study.

To acquire geographical knowledge about hilly region.

To observe about the biogeography of hilly region.

To know the livelihood pattern of the people of Chittagong hill tracts.

Chapter Two: Methodology

Methodology is the systematic, theoretical analysis of the methods applied to a field of study, or the theoretical analysis of the body of methods and principles associated with a branch of knowledge. On the other hand from the methodology the internal environment constitutes by understanding and identifying the right type of research, strategy, philosophy, time horizon, approaches, followed by rightprocedures and techniques based on his or her research work. Actually in observational study there is no bounded method is not being followed. The following steps are followed to construct my report.

a) Define research problem: To conduct a research the first thing is to identifying the research problem. I defined the research problems as well as the aims and objective of this research.

b) Area Definition: It is necessary to define the studyarea.

c) Data collection: Without scientific instrument reconnaissance is the best way to collecting data.

Primary data: I collected primary data by observation method and interview method.

Secondary data: Secondary data are collected from different website and research report.

d) Literary Review: Then I search some previous research reports that are conducted by any organizationor researcher at previous time to gather a concept about this research.

e) Analysis of data: I analyzed data to compare primarydata with secondary data which helps me to reach a decision.

g) Interpretation: Finally, I get ready this study report.

Chapter Three: Socio-Economic Status3.1 Economy:The economy of the area is mainly based on agricultureand main source of livelihood. The traditional shiftingcultivation is based on rain fed condition which iscalled jum cultivation is the most common practice inthis region. There are different kinds of fruits suchas- Banana, Pineapple, Jackfruit, Papaya etc are

produce here. There are many types of masala such as-Ginger, Turmeric, chili, cucurbitaceous etc alsoproduce here. Tobacco and Bamboo cultivates areconsidered as profitable products.

3.1.1 Jum cultivation: Jum cultivation is subsistence farming where thefarmers produce different types of crops for theirdaily living. The main problem of jum cultivationsystem is poor productivity. The seeds are not ofimproved variety & their yield potentiality is nothigh. More over the farmers do not follow differentimprove management practice like weeding, fertilizing,pest management etc. For this the jum farmers don’t getgood harvest. The scarcity of land is another problemof jum. During jum hill preparation, burning destroysall types of living organisms and herb & shrubs. So itdisturbs the biodiversity. If the farmers use spade forcultivation then it may cause soil erosion during rainyseason.

3.1.2 Tobacco cultivation: A discordant note in the development of commercialcrops is the spread of tobacco cultivation, largely inthe valleys while providing substantial income. Thereis a large element of environmental degradationinvolved in tobacco cultivation, as wood from forestsis used for drying and curing tobacco. The tobaccocompanies provide money in advance to the farmers fortobacco cultivation. The land become unfertile &decreases nutrient status. The fertile lands are usedfor tobacco cultivation.Reasons of tobacco cultivation are- Credit facilities from Tobacco Company

- Technical support (seed bed preparation, curing)- Guarantee of marketingDisadvantages are- Negative implication on health- Deforestation- Deflation of soil nutrients.3.1.3Trade and Commerce: In Rangamati and Bandarban, the major exports productsare fruits, masala and tribal textile. Tourism iscommerce at this time which is increasing fast as asource of income. Bamboo craft as well as local-madecigarillos are now exported out of the districts.

Figure 3.1: A trade centre on the bank of Kaptai Lake

3.2 Settlement:

Nature of HouseThe majority of the houses of tribal communities areKutcha, followed bymachaan. Among the Bangalee community, almost all ofthe houses are kuycha. Itis note that, almost all of the houses of Lushai,Khumi, Bawm and Chak community live in machaan house.Chakma community does not live in machaanhouse. As a consequence, the overall percentage ofmachaan house is significantlysmaller than that of kutcha house.

Figure 3.2: A sample of machaan house.

3.3 Gender:

The hill women are very hard working in the home andoutside. Almost 80% women worked during jumcultivation-from plantation to harvest. Every womanprepares their cloths by weaving in handloom in home.They prepare threads from their own produced cotton.They also make color of the cloths from the cultivatedjum plants, seeds and bark etc. In case of handicraftsthey make food preparing materials from bamboo, leavesand woods. The plantation and intercultural managementof field crops are also done by the woman labors. Theybring hygienic drinking water from the different chharasand kua at the bottom of the hills. They also take careof homestead poultry, pig, goat and the cattle rearing.They carry their product to the nearer market and sellit to the consumers. It is true that the women are theonly money saver member of the family in most cases.

3.4 Food situation: According to the population census 2011, the totalpopulation of the district is 5, 95,979 among whichmale 3, 01,376 and female 2, 82,903. The total numberof households is 1, 28, 496 and the average size ofhousehold is 4.6 .The population growth rates is 1.58and population density per sq. km is 97. Rice is thestaple food for all households in CHT. Over 50% foodintake comes from rice followed by vegetables (30%).The area for cereal crop cultivation is not adequate.

So every year the scarcity of food remains in thedistrict. The annual food requirement, productionstatus of the district is given below:

Year Population

Demand(m.ton)

Depreciation(m.ton)

Totaldemand(m.ton)

Production(m.ton)

Surplus(+)/deficit(-)(m.ton)

2009-10

569027 101149 11713 112862 69722 (-)43140

2010-11

596000 105942 12268 118210 73773 (-)44437

2011-12

603986 107362 12433 119795 69804 (-)49991

Table 3.1: Food situation (DAE, Rangamati-2011-2012/2012/2013)

3.5 Transportation: Transportation system of Chittagong hill tracts is notgood. This area is covered by the different types ofhill. So, rickshaw is not available in this region.Three-wheeler taxis and four -wheeler taxis are themajor transport system in this region. Literacy rate ofthis region is low for this poor transportation system.Student cannot go to the school due to poortransportation system. Poor transportation systemhampers to education, communication, research. Kaptai

Lake is the main transportation system of Rangamati.People from far region come to the town by using KaptaiLake. In Bandarban, we can see some four -wheeler taxisthat are called “CHANDER GARI” which are suitable formountain road.

Chapter Four: Physiography ofStudy Area

4.1 Physiography of Rangamati and Bandarban:According to physiographic of Bangladesh, the CHT fallsunder the Northern andEastern Hill unit and High Hill or Mountain Rangessub-unit. On the basis of the land forms, thephysiography of CHT is divided into two parts. Such as-

Mountainous region of tertiary period. Traces of Pleistocene period.

At present, all the mountain ranges of the CHT arealmost hogback ridges. They rise steeply, thus lookingfar more impressive than height would imply. Most ofthe ranges have scarps in the west, with cliffs andwaterfalls.

The region is characterized by a huge network oftrellis and dendrites drainage consisting of some majorrivers draining into the Bay of Bengal. The majorrivers are karnafuli, sangu, matamuhuri and feni.

Within the hill tracts, the Karnafuli has severalimportant tributaries, of which Chengi, kasalong andRainkhiang are the main ones.

Generally the hill ranges and the river valleys arelongitudinally aligned. Four ranges, with an averageelevation of over three hundred meters, strike in anorth-south direction in the northern part of the hilltract districts. These are Phoromain range (Phoromain,463m), Dolajeri range (Langtrai, 429m), Bhuachhari(Changpai, 611m) and Barkal range (Thangnang, 735m).

South of the Karnafuli River within the ChittagongHill Tracts, there are seven main mountain rangeswithin Bangladesh. These are: Muranja range (Basitaung,664m), Wayla range (most of this range is in Myanmar),Chimbook range (Tindu, 898m), Batimain range(Batitaung, 526m), Politai range (Keokradang, 884m;Ramiu Taung 921m, Saichal-Mowdok range (Bilaisari,669m) and Saichal range.

The three highest peak of Bangladesh - Tahjindong(1280m), Mowdok Mual (1052m) and Keokradong (1230m) arelocated in Bandarban District. The Raikhiang Lake, thehighest lake of Bangladesh also situated in Bandarban.Bandarban is dense of hill. Mountain peaks are seenover the all direction in the range of eye.

Geological History:According to geological history of Bangladesh,Rangamati was started to form atTertiary Period of Cenozoic Era. Specially it wasformed at the Oligocene and

Miocene Epoch.

We observed the Rock’s Layer of Tertiary Period inRangamati. The rocks are mostly metamorphic rock. Formany years the weathering processes are continuing. So,these rocks are breakable by small force. They are atthe nearest stage to convert into soil. We also foundclay rock.

Figure 4.1: Tertiary Period’s rock layer in Rangamati.

o Biological weathering are effort to change therock into soil:

Figure 4.2: Biological weathering in the rock ofRangamati.

o Mass wasting may occurred due to physical ,biological weathering and gravity:

Figure 4.3: Mass wasting on the bank of Kaptai Lake

Chapter five: Climate

The weather of Rangamati and Bandarban is characterizedby tropical monsoon climate. The dry and cool season isfrom November to March; pre-monsoon season is April-Maywhich is very hot and sunny and the monsoon season is from June to October, which is warm, cloudy and wet.

5.1 Climate of Rangamati:

5.1.1 Temperature: We carry out my study at 14-15 June 2013 in Rangamati. Weather condition of these two days isgiven below:

Day(June 2013)

MeanTemperature

(°c)

MaximumTemperature

(°c)

MinimumTemperature

(°c)14 28.3 33 2515 29.4 33 25

Table 5.1: Temperature during Study Period in Rangamati

If we study the yearly difference of temperature of Rangamati, we will observe that,Temperature of Rangamati are greatly varies over months.

Figure 5.1: Average Temperature (°c) graph over a year of Rangamati.

From this figure, average temperature rises to thehighest point of 32°c from April to October. Averagetemperature falls into the lowest point of 15°c inJanuary. From April to October temperature exists withalmost a level graph. That means, small variation of

temperature occur during this period in Rangamati.

5.1.2 Precipitation:Rangamati is well precipitated region. Average rainfallin the surrounding area ofKaptai Lake is 100 inches per year. Precipitation condition of my study period isGiven below:

Day(June 2013)

Precipitation amount (mm)

14 11.9415 1.02

Table 5.2: Rainfall during study period in Rangamati

From the average rainfall over a year, we can see heavyrainfall period lies between May to September. Rainfallmay rises to the highest peak of around 300 mm at July.It falls into the lowest point of 0 – 5 mm at December– January. The average rainfall graph over a year ofRangamati hill district is given below:

Figure 5.2: Average rainfall (mm graph for Rangamati)

5.1.3 Humidity:Rangamati Hill District is rich of vegetation. So, thelarge quantity of evapotranspiration is occurring here.There is large water body named Kaptai Lake (356 squaremiles) is situated here. Though June is the warm month,air is affluent of Humidity in Rangamati during ourstudy period.

Day(June 2013)

Mean humidity (%)

14 8415 73

Table 5.3: Mean humidity during studyperiod in Rangamati.

5.2 Climate of Bandarban:

5.2.1 Temperature: Bandarban and Rangamati has almostsimilar physical and climatic feature. We have observedBandarban on 16 – 17 June 2013. Temperature duringstudy period of Bandarban is given below:

Day(June 2013)

Mean maximumtemperature (°c)

Mean minimumtemperature (°c)

16 34 28

17 36 31Table 5.4: Temperature during study period in Bandarban.

Temperature variation over the year of Bandarban ismore likely of Rangamati.

Figure 5.3: Average temperature(0c) graph for Bandarban.

5.2.2 Precipitation:In Bandarban, average rainfall may rises to the highestpeak of 300 mm at July.Rainfall may falls into the lowest point of 0-5mm atDecember – January. FromMay to September, average rainfall occur more than100mm. Average rainfall daysare 20 per month from June to September. A graph ofaverage rainfall over a year is given below:

Figure 4.4: Average rainfall (mm) graph for Bandarban.

5.2.3 Humidity: Humidity in Bandarban during our study period is given below:

Day(June 2013)

Humidity (%)

16 8617 84

Table 5.5: Mean humidity during study period inBandarban.

Chapter Six:

Soil 6.1Soil fertility:Soil is the main supplier of plant nutrient. Soil ofthe CHT is less fertile compare to other parts ofBangladesh because they mostly originated from theweathering and erosion of bed rocks. Moreover, thesoils formed over unconsolidated sedimentary rockscontaining significant amount of kaolinite clay, whichprovides a low capacity to retain nutrients.

The fertility further declines due to sustainableresource management practices. The soils oversiltstones and mudstones are better in this respect,because they have mainly illitic clays, which havehigher nutrient buffering capacities. Due to leachingeffect during high monsoon rainfall the N and K arewashed out. One important cause of soil erosion is thecultivation of some tuberous crops like ginger,turmeric, aroids etc. During seed sowing & harvestingtime the soil is spaded twice which causes soilerosion.

Majorlandtype

SoilpH

SoilOM

Nutrient status of soil

N P K S Ca Mg Zn B Mo

Highland(92%)

4.1-7.1

L-M

VL-L

L L-M L-M L-M L-M L-M L-M L-M

Table 6.1: Fertility status of Northern & Eastern Hills (Source:DAE)

Another reason of less fertility is no or poor use oforganic manure in the crop production system. Sometimesthe farmers use only urea as chemical fertilizer andfew amounts of other chemical fertilizers which causessoil infertility. In most cases farmers uses differentfertilizer without analyzing the soil nutrient status.

To prevent soil erosion, crop should be selectedaccording to the slope of the hill. In gentle slopevegetables, spices; in moderate slope mixed orchard,agro forestry; and in the high steep forest tree can becultivated. Hill surface should always be covered withgreen vegetation to reduce soil erosion.

Chapter seven: Culture of TribalCommunities

7.1 Culture of Chakma Community:Chakmas, is the largest ethnic group ofBangladesh. They also call themselves Changmas.They are concentrated in the central andnorthern parts of the chittagong hill tractswhere they live amidst several other ethnicgroups.

Etymology:The name Chakma derives from Sanskrit wordShakthiman or beholder of power.This name wasgiven to Chakmas by one of the Burmese kingduring the Began era. At one stage, the acceptedname of the tribe was Sakma. Later it wasfurther corrupted to Chakma.

Religion:The vast majority of the Chakma are followers ofTheravada Buddhism, a religion that they havebeen practicing for centuries. Foreign and localmissionaries have been trying to convert theChakmas to Christianity.

LanguageOriginally speaking a language belonging to theTibeto-Burma family, some of the Chakma havebeen influenced by neighboring Chittagongian, aneastern Indo-Aryan language closely related toAssamese. Chakma language known as Changma Vaj orChangma Hodha. Changma Vaj is written in its ownscript, the Chakma script, also known as Ojhopath.

Dress PatternThe Chakma women wear an ankle length clotharound the waist which is called Phinon and also aHaadi wrapped above the waist as well as silverornaments. The Phinon and the Haadi are

colourfully hand weaved with various designs.The design is first embroidered on a piece ofcloth known as Alaam.

Fig 7.1: tribal dress

Festivals:The most important festivals celebrated by theChakmas are Bizu and Buddha Purnima.

Bizu:Bizu is the most important socio-religious festival ofthe Chakma. This festival gave birth to the Bizu dance.The festival lasts for three days and begins on thelast day of the month of Chaitra. The first day isknown as Phool Bizu. On this day, household items,clothes are cleaned and washed, food items arecollected to give the house a new look with the veil ofdifferent flowers. The second day known as Mul Bizu daystarts with the bath in the river. People wear newclothes and make rounds of the village. They also enjoyspecially made vegetable curry known as "Pazon ton",different homemade sweets and take part in differenttraditional sports. The day ends with the Bizu dance.The last day, this is known as Gojjepojje din involvesthe performances of different socio-religiousactivities.

Buddha Purnima:It is celebrated on the full moon day in the month

of Baisakh.It actually encompasses the birth,enlightenment (nirvāna), and passing away (Parinirvāna)of Lord Buddha. On the day of the worship devotees goto the monastery with Siyong (offerings of

rice,vegetable and other fruits and confectionaries).The Buddhist priests known as Bhikkhu lead the devoteesfor chanting of mantra composed in Pali in praise ofthe holy triple gem: The Buddha, The Dharma (histeachings), and The Sangha (his disciples). Apart fromthis,other practices such as lighting of thousands oflamps, releasing of Phanuch Batti (an auspicious lamp madeof paper in the form of a balloon) are also done as andwhen possible.

7.2 Culture of Marma Community:

The Marmas are the second largest ethnic minority inBangladesh. Most Marmas live in the three hilldistricts of Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachari. SomeMarmas, however, live in the coastal districts of Cox'sBazar and Patuakhali. 

Etymology:The Marmas sometimes referred as Mogh and live mostlyin the CHT. They callThemselves ‘Marma lumya’. According to Marma writerKya Shai Pro the word‘Marma’ is derived from ‘mryma’ carrying the concept ofMyanmar’s nationalism.

DemographyThey are the second largest ethnic group in Bangladesh.According to NationalPopulation and Housing Census’91, Bangladesh has aMarma population of1, 57,301.

Race:The Marmas are fair complexioned and nose is slightlyflat. They show similaritieswith the Burmese. They also belong to Mongoloid. Thematerial culture of theMarma society includes many basic tools and weapons ofprimitive societies.

Language:The Marma language belongs to the Burmese group ofTibeto-Burma languagefamily. The Marma alphabet ‘Marmaza’ or ‘Marimacha’originates from the‘ancient sub-continental Brahmin’ alphabet that hadleft-to-right writing style.

Dress Pattern:Both Marma men and women like to be clearly dressed andthe women arecomparatively more fashionable. Marma men used to weara kind of loinclothcalled ‘Deyah’. It is a dress which covers the partfrom waist to ankle. They also wear collarless jacketcalled ‘Barista’ and a turban in head named ‘Gobong’.The Marma women wear a blouse called ‘Bedai ungi’ and atype of brassier called ‘Rangkai’ to cover theirbreast. They wear ‘Thobing’ or ‘Thami’ to cover theirlower organs. Now a day’s both men and women wear‘Lungi’.

Religion

They follow Buddhism. But a common section stillpractices Animism. Their religious book is called‘Khaduttiang’.

Food HabitsThe marmas take fish, meat and variety ofvegetable with rice. They prepare a delicioussoup of chicken and Chalta. Boiled vegetable mixedwith chilies called ‘Tohza’ are a favorable menuto them. They use nappi/awangpi from dried fishto cook curries. They also supplement their foodrequirement by gathering tree leaves, roots andtubers the forests.

Chapter Eight:BiogeographyRangamati and Bandarban district has a uniquebiodiversity with flora and fauna. The hills, valley,forest, lake, water stream, waterfall, birds, animalsetc. are playing a vital role in maintainingbiodiversity.

8.1Flora of Study Area:Most of the trees are of the evergreen type, whereasmost of the tallest trees aredeciduous and semi-deciduous. The most importantcommercial timber species of

the Chittagong Hill Tracts used to be Jarul, Gamar, Garjan,Chapalish, Toon,Koroi, Civit, Champa, Simul, Chandul, etc. that used to grow togiganticProportions. Apart from evergreen and deciduous forest,bamboo and savannah are of immense economic andenvironmental value.

8.2 Fauna of Study Area:There are different kinds of animals are found inChittagong Hill Tracts. Amongthe mammals Elephant (Elephas maximus), monkey (Macacamulatta), Wild Boar(Sus scrofa), Barking Deer ( Muntiacus muntjak), Samvar(Cervus unicolor), andIndian Leopard (Panthera pardus). Among the reptiles Kingcobra (Ophiophagushanna) Monitor Lizard (Varanus salvator) and Bengal MonitorLizard (Varanusbengalensis) are remarkable.

The Kaptai Lake has a large area which preserves hugewater all the year. This water has multipurpose uselike electricity generation, fish production,navigation, irrigation etc. In lake there are manytypes of aquatic animals. In winter, some seasonalbirds come from outside the country which attracts thetourists also.

Bamboo is one of the major forest products. Bambooplantation and conservation helps to keep theenvironment eco-friendly. It absorbs more carbon thanany other trees. Deer, monkeys, elephants, bear; snakes

are the major wild animals of Rangamati. Some animalsand birds come to jum during ripening stage andsometimes damage it.

Chapter nine: Conclusion andRecommendation

9.1 Conclusion: Chittagong Hill Tracts is the important element of thegeographical area ofBangladesh. It is the around 10% of the total area ofcountry. There are so many mountain found in this area.Rangamati and Bandarban both are rich of naturalphenomena. So, it is essential to study this regionproperly. Observational study is not a proper study. Inthis study we did not used any scientific instruments.There is no questioner survey was conducted here.Considered all of this purposes, as a student ofGeography and Environment, I open space to get thechance to apply my theoretical knowledge into practicalfield through this study.

9.2 Recommendation:My recommendation for the further study and the up-coming researcher is givenBelow:

The study which we conducted, it was over a shortperiod of time. Actually this time is not enoughfor research. So, for any further study,researchers have to make available essential timefor his work.

Secondary data are not available. Researcher mustbe collects data from

Authorize agency.

Chittagong Hill Tracts are rich of Malaria bearermosquito. So, it is essentialto provide necessary medical facilities.

Residential facilities of some hotel in Bandarbanare very much poor andnot suitable for tourists and guests.

People of Rangamati and Bandarban are so muchhospitable and friendly.

Transportation system of this area is notsatisfactory.

References:

Talukder, Kazal (2004), consultancy report onagriculture, FAO, Dhaka.

Barkat, Abul et al., Socio-Economic Baseline Surveyof Chittagong Hill Tracts, Dhaka: Human DevelopmentResearch Centre, April 08, 2009.

Socio-economic baseline survey of CHTs April 08,2009, CHTDF, UNDP.

Annual report 2011, BBS.

Ongoing agriculture extension activities - 2011-12,2012-13, DAE, Rangamati.

Rangamati Hill District Council, Overview of Rangamati,Available at:http://www.rhdcbd.org/about_rangamati.php

http://www.bpedia.org/S_0222.php

http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ckama_People.html

www.bbs.gov.bd/.../Rangamati/Rangamati%20at%20a%20glance.pdf