Hill Voice, 20 July 2025, Special Correspondent: The 10th meeting of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Accord Implementation and Monitoring Committee was held at the CHT Development Board’s rest house in Rangamati at 11 am on July 19, 2025. The meeting, chaired by the Convener of the Committee and the foreign affairs advisor to the interim government, Touhid Hossain, was attended by two other members of the Committee, Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma, president of the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Samhati Samiti, and Sudatta Chakma, chairman of the Task Force on the Rehabilitation of India-Returnee Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons.
In addition, the meeting was attended by Supradip Chakma, Advisor to the Ministry of CHT Affairs, Goutam Kumar Chakma, Member of the CHT Regional Council, Konkan Chakma, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of CHT Affairs, Deputy Secretary Mangal Chandra Pal and Deputy Secretary Shamsul Haque.
The meeting discussed the approval of the minutes of the previous 9th meeting and the implementation of the decisions. At the beginning of the meeting, the task force on the rehabilitation of India returnee refugees and internally displaced persons was discussed. Among these, it was decided to rehabilitate the Jumma displaced persons already identified by the task force and to appoint the Chief Executive Officer of the task force as the member-secretary of the task force instead of the Chittagong Divisional Commissioner.
The meeting discussed the appointment of the Chairman of the CHT Land Dispute Resolution Commission and the formulation of the Rules of the Land Commission. It was decided to send the draft Rules to the Land Ministry again for the formulation of the Rules of the Land Commission.
On the other hand, it was decided to form a committee regarding the transfer of functions in the three Hill District Councils as per the CHT Accord. The decision was taken to form the committee with Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma, President of the Jana Sanghati Samiti, as the head and Goutam Kumar Chakma, Member of the Regional Council, and concerned officials of the CHT Affairs Ministry as members.
The meeting discussed the establishment of the office of the CHT Accord Implementation and Monitoring Committee and the recruitment of manpower for its office. It was decided to recruit a 27-member manpower and establish the office of the CHT Accord Implementation Committee in the CHT Complex in Dhaka.
In the previous 9th meeting, the proposal to conduct a cadastral survey of the CHT by the Secretary of the Ministry of Land was rejected in the 10th committee meeting. It was reviewed that the cadastral survey can be conducted only after the resolution of land disputes and the rehabilitation of India returnee Jumma refugees and internally Jumma displaced families.
According to the relevant sources, the meeting was held in a cordial atmosphere for about two and a half hours from 11 am. It was decided that the committee meeting will be held again after the next 2/3 months.
