Asia’s largest Haor slowly returning to its past glory
Md Mosabbir Ali, Moulvibazar :
Asia’s largest freshwater haor, Hakaluki Haor, stretches across five upazilas in the Sylhet and Moulvibazar districts of Bangladesh. Covering approximately 18,150 hectares, this vast wetland is deeply rooted in local tradition and sustains three vital elements of rural life: aquatic biodiversity, fisheries and agriculture.
The haor contains approximately 236 small and large beels. Numerous canals criss-cross the area, providing irrigation for crops and serving as habitats for a wide variety of fish species. During the monsoon, the beels and canals merge into one expansive body of water.
In winter, the haor transforms into a sanctuary for migratory birds arriving from snow-covered regions such as Siberia, Mongolia, Tibet and Russia. As the cold season ends, these birds return to their native lands.
Hakaluki is particularly renowned for Boro and Aman cultivation. In the biting winter cold, farmers head to the fields at sunrise to tend their crops.
During the rainy season, the haor remains submerged, providing a natural breeding ground for thousands of indigenous fish species. As water levels recede after the monsoon, fish take refuge in the beels. The Government of Bangladesh earns crores of taka in revenue each year by leasing out these water bodies.
Three to four decades ago, Hakaluki was rich in forest cover alongside its fisheries and farmlands. The forests were home to various wildlife species, including fishing cats (locally known as Mechho bagh), foxes and different types of snakes.
The Hijal-Karach forests once resembled dense woodland. Fish would lay eggs beneath these trees, offering natural protection for hatchlings and maintaining ecological balance.
However, following the leasing (auction) of the haor, large areas of forest were cleared by leaseholders and converted into grazing and agricultural land.
Although Hakaluki was declared an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) in 1999, tree felling continued under various pretexts. In 2021 alone, Around 20,000 trees were reportedly cut down in Malam Beel in the name of embankment construction.
The non-governmental organization Centre for Natural Resource Studies (CNRS), with funding support from the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), has undertaken initiatives to restore the haor’s forest ecosystem. Over the past few years, around 50,000 Hijal, Karach and Barun trees have been planted.
To ensure protection, guards have been appointed to monitor the area, making it difficult for leaseholders to cut trees indiscriminately as before. Local residents are calling for sustained protection of the forest to preserve the natural environment and secure breeding grounds for fish.
Dhirendra Biswas, a resident of the haor, said that in the past dense tree cover made fishing more challenging, but it provided ecological balance. He believes the recent plantation efforts have begun to restore some of the lost beauty.
Md Touhidur Rahman, Field Manager of CNRS’s Nab Pallab Project, noted that aquatic tree species once flourished in Hakaluki. After independence, responsibility for haor land was transferred from the Forest Department to the Ministry of Land, and due to weak supervision, extensive tree cutting followed.
He observed that the restoration initiatives under the Nab Pallab project are showing promising results and expressed hope that Hakaluki will regain its aquatic forest heritage.
