Prime Minister`s announcement about Sagardighi is being implement

Many people know the name of Baniachang, one of the upazilas of Habiganj district. Baniachong now holds the reputation of the largest village in the world as the world's largest village became the city of Chicago.

There are many ancient monuments here. One of these is Sagardighi of Baniachang or Dighi of Kamalarani. Tourists and locals have been demanding to convert this lake into tourism for a long time.

On September 19, 1997, the then Prime Minister and current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced to make this lake of Baniachong a tourist center in a public meeting at the local LR Government High School grounds. There, the only demand of Baniachang residents to the Prime Minister was to make Dighi of Kamalarani a tourist center.

In view of this demand, the Prime Minister announced the implementation of Kamalarani Dighi as a tourist center in a public meeting. But even then the people of Baniachang did not see any implementation of it.

Even after 26 years of this announcement by the Prime Minister, there has been no implementation of that announcement till now. As a result, the issue of becoming a tourist center has gone to the freezer, Baniachang residents and travelers think.

Later, Advocate Mahbub Ali MP, State Minister of Civil Aviation and Tourism of the Government of Bangladesh, visited this lake on October 26, 2019. He told the mediapersons there that the Prime Minister's assurance will be implemented soon.

But the government could not move forward due to the case of the people around Sagardighi with the government. However, the residents of Charpar have applied for a review of that case in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court. The review hearing is currently in its final stages.

It has been confirmed from the sources of information received from the Ministry of Tourism and RM (Revenue) Branch of Habiganj that the hearing may take place any day.

It is also known from the sources that in the past year 2000 Jahangir Alam Gong filed a property case against the government on behalf of Sagar Dighi Charpar. Case No-75. After hearing the case, the verdict was given in favor of the local residents.

Later, the government appealed against this verdict in 2006. Case No-6. On appeal, the verdict came in favor of the government. On October 11, 2007, the then Additional District Judge Shafi Ullah delivered this verdict. Later, when the plaintiff filed a revision in the High Court Chamber Judge's Court against this verdict, the judge allowed the party to use light, air and water.

When the government appealed against this order, on July 26, 2022, His Highness High Court canceled the order and gave an order saying that there is no obstacle for the government to lease Dighi. Jahangir Alam Gongra, on behalf of the local residents, reviewed the order in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court. Their review application is at the final stage for hearing.

The Government believes that the Hon'ble Supreme Court will reject the review hearing and uphold the verdict given by the High Court. As a result, there will be no obstacles to form tourism. It is known that in the twelfth century, King Padmanabha dug this lake in the middle to solve the water problem of the subjects.

There is a legend in this region that King Padmanav's wife Kamalavati committed self-immolation in a dream when the water did not rise after digging this lake. For this reason this Dighi is also called Dighi of Kamalarani. Bengali movies and stage plays have been written about this Dighi.

Sitting on its banks, poet Jasimuddin composed a poem called 'Rani Kamalavati's Dighi'. That poem is included in his poetry book 'Suchayani'. This lake is reputed to be the second largest in Bangladesh. In 1986, the then Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Minister Sirajul Hossain Khan re-excavated the lake. At present the lake is spread over an area of 66.00 acres.

It has a water area of 40.00 acres. Many visitors or tourists are of the opinion that it will become attractive if a tourist park is built on the model of Dinajpur's Ramsagar on its four banks. This lake of Baniachong has become widely known to the new generation as well.

Local and foreign tourists visit Sagardighi almost all year round. Baniachong residents and travel enthusiasts are hoping that the promises made by the Prime Minister will be implemented during the current government.

When speaking to Baniachong Upazila Nirbahi Officer Padmasan Singh, he said that there was no progress due to the ongoing case with the residents of Sagardighi.

At one time they were only allowed to use water. Now that His Excellency is awaiting the hearing of the review petition in the Supreme Court, we hope that the Prime Minister's promise to convert Sagardighi into tourism will soon materialize.
When I spoke to the Deputy Commissioner Ishrat Jahan for details, he said that the government has given a lease to the Baniachang lake. But we are not sitting.

We are working to implement the Prime Minister's announcement during the current government. Eviction operations will be conducted against illegal encroachers in the vicinity to build a tourist center.

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