(TAN): The forest department of Bangladesh has banned the watchtower at Ratargul swamp forest, citing security reasons. The watchtower was built six years ago in the middle of the core zone of the Swamp Forest in Sylhet district, one of the most popular tourist destinations of Bangladesh, The Daily Star reported.
Saad Uddin Ahmed, forester of Sylhet Forest Division, said, “It [the watchtower] has been risky for a long time and we earlier put up a signboard instructing that only four to five persons can climb up at a time.” However, according to Ahmed, almost 10 times that number regularly climbed up on the tower. The authorities finally decided to close it down officially.
Ratargul Swamp Forest, situated over 504.50 acres in Gowainghat area of Sylhet district, was declared as a “reserve forest” in 1973. Following some media reports on it in 2012, tourist footfall in the forest increased significantly.
The forest department built the watchtower and several other structures even though local environmentalists were against the construction in the core zone of a reserve forest from the very beginning. They alleged that the construction was done without even consulting with experts, according to local media reports.
Forester Ahmed, however, said the tower may be reopened after renovation.
