Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board
Profile
- Head
- Major General (retd) Anup Kumar Chakma
- Role
- Chairman
- Annual budget
- —
- Staff
- —
- Established
- 1976
- Legal basis
- Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board Ordinance, 1976 (Ordinance No. LXXVII of 1976); parent legislation amended and supplemented by the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regulation (Amendment) 1979 and relevant provisions of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord, 1997
Actively coordinating with Ministry of CHT Affairs under Minister Dipen Dewan on a 180-day balanced development initiative for the three hill districts; CHTDB Chairman Anup Kumar Chakma represented Bangladesh at the April 2026 UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues; the board's current priorities span Rangamati eco-tourism facilitation (Kaptai Lake boat terminal, Shuvolong Waterfall renovation, foreign-tourist access reform), the Kaptai Lake and Karnaphuli river dredging project (Tk 6.89 billion, July 2025-June 2029, implementing agency BWDB), a 2-million-tree afforestation plan across the three CHT districts, and implementation of the remaining provisions of the 1997 CHT Peace Accord; the Ministry of CHT Affairs received Tk 1,362 crore in the proposed FY2025-26 national budget (Tk 475 crore operational, Tk 887 crore development).
Recent activity
- 2026-02-27 policy CHT Affairs Minister Dipen Dewan made his first constituency visit to Rangamati after appointment; met with CHTDB Chairman Anup Kumar Chakma, Rangamati Hill District Council Chairman Kajal Talukder, Rangamati Region Commander Brig Gen Mohammad Nazmul Haque, and DC Nazma Ashrafi; declared a 180-day special development initiative for historically underserved CHT areas and pledged no discrimination in development between plains and hill regions. ↗↗
- 2026-04-06 policy Minister Dewan attended the five-day traditional indigenous cultural fair (Biju, Boisabi, Sangrai, Bihu, Changkran, Bisu, Sanglan) in Rangamati (6-10 April 2026) organised by the Rangamati Small Ethnic Groups Cultural Institute with support from the Rangamati Hill District Council and Ministry of Cultural Affairs; CHTDB Chairman Anup Kumar Chakma was present; Dewan affirmed policy commitment to preserving indigenous cultural identity alongside development goals. ↗
- 2026-04-17 policy State Minister for Land and CHT Affairs Barrister Mir Mohammad Helal Uddin attended the Marma Sangrai water festival (Jolkeli) at Ching Hla Mong Mari Stadium in Rangamati; CHT Affairs Minister Dewan present; both officials reiterated the government's balanced development agenda for hill and plains regions under PM Tarique Rahman. ↗
- 2026-04-29 international Bangladesh delegation at the 25th session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York included CHTDB Chairman Major General (retd) Anup Kumar Chakma; CHT Secretary Mohammad Mizanur Rahman told the forum that 65 of the 72 clauses of the 1997 CHT Peace Accord are fully implemented, 3 partially implemented, and 4 under implementation; Bangladesh cited expanded social safety nets, rural infrastructure, digital connectivity, multilingual e-learning, and a 2-million-tree plantation plan for the three CHT hill districts as development achievements. ↗↗
- 2026-05-11 policy CHT Affairs Minister Dipen Dewan addressed a views-exchange meeting of the Resort Owners Association Rangamati at Bargee Lake Valley Resort; identified Kaptai Lake as a 'huge asset for the country' and announced special plans to attract foreign tourists; noted administrative barriers to foreign tourist movement are under discussion at the highest levels of government; urged coordinated action by district administration, the three hill district councils, police, and resort owners on tourist safety. ↗↗
- 2026-05-11 other Resort owners at the Rangamati meeting formally demanded: construction of public toilets for tourists along the Asambasti-Kaptai road, establishment of a boat terminal in Rangamati town, renovation of Shuvolong Waterfall and the Hanging Bridge, and development of a skilled hospitality workforce; Dewan indicated these will be taken up with relevant agencies. ↗
Provenance & notes
established_year = 1976 confirmed by two independent sources (Wikipedia, ecolex.org). head_since = 2025-01-21 is per Wikipedia (January 2025 appointment) confirmed by multiple 2026 news reports citing Anup Kumar Chakma as incumbent chairman; exact gazette date not independently confirmed, so this date carries partial-confidence. staff_count is null: CHTDB publishes officer lists but no aggregate sanctioned-post count is available in public sources reviewed. annual_budget_bdt is null: the CHTDB does not have a separately published own-budget line; the Tk 1,362 crore FY2025-26 allocation is for the Ministry of CHT Affairs as a whole and is therefore recorded in budget_actions. The Kaptai Lake dredging project (Tk 6.89 billion) is being implemented by BWDB, not CHTDB directly, but falls within CHTDB's geographic mandate and was announced by Minister Dewan as a CHT development milestone. parent_id_ref = 'Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs' matching the official mochta.gov.bd parent ministry. The board's mandate post-1997 Peace Accord has expanded from a conflict-management role to a broader socio-economic development function; this is reflected in the current mandate text. admin_level = 'national' retained per schema convention since CHTDB is a national statutory body despite its geographic mandate being the three CHT hill districts.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chittagong_Hill_Tracts_Development_Board
- https://chtdb.gov.bd
- https://chtdb.gov.bd/site/view/officer_list/%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%95%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%97%E0%A6%A3
- https://www.ecolex.org/details/legislation/chittagong-hill-tracts-development-board-ordinance-1976-ordinance-no-lxxvii-of-1976-lex-faoc035953/
- https://www.bssnews.net/news/364386
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/404313/dipen-govt-to-deliver-development-benefits-to
- https://www.bssnews.net/news/375120
- https://www.bssnews.net/news/378864
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/408949/bangladesh-highlights-cht-accord-progress-at-un
- https://www.bssnews.net/news/382538
- https://www.bssnews.net/news/385977
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/409914/cht-affairs-minister-calls-for-coordination-to
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/408669/dipen-development-projects-taken-up-for-hill
- https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/national/government-to-revive-kaptai-lake-dredge-surrounding-rivers
- https://www.bssnews.net/national-budget-2025-2026/279449
- https://mochta.gov.bd