Ever since Bengalis began moving into the Chattogram Hill Tracts, the growing population has steadily thinned the region’s native forests. Against this backdrop, Mahfuz Ahmed Russel — a fashion buyer turned conservationist — and a group of friends took an extraordinary step: they purchased a patch of forest and built a sanctuary rich in biodiversity. Now, as they attempt to expand their conservation effort, they face mounting challenges.
Since its inception in 2017, Pittachhara Trust has been officially recognized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as an Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measure (OECM) — one of the first in Bangladesh. OECMs achieve sustained, effective in-situ biodiversity conservation outside traditional protected networks, contributing to global biodiversity targets such as Aichi Target 11 and the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. Pittachhara Trust serves as a model for community-driven, privately managed forest conservation.
Ever since Bengalis began moving into the Chattogram Hill Tracts, the growing population has steadily thinned the region’s native forests. Against this backdrop, Mahfuz Ahmed Russel — a fashion buyer turned conservationist — and a group of friends took an extraordinary step: they purchased a patch of forest and built a sanctuary rich in biodiversity. Now, as they attempt to expand their conservation effort, they face mounting challenges.
In Pittachhara, a village resisting the spread of monoculture plantations, this struggle is especially visible. The right side of the landscape still clings to natural forest, while the left side is dominated by commercial plantations. At the centre of it all stands Russel’s modest home, tucked inside the surviving greenery.
When Russel shared his location via Google Maps, the screen showed virtually nothing. Even after waiting for the weak mobile network to load, the map revealed no roads, houses, or significant structures. The nearest motorable road ended nearly two kilometres away. Yet, once we trekked along a mud path and climbed the surrounding hillocks, we found a place far richer than the blank map suggested—rich not in human development, but in life.
The biodiversity of this land, located in Matiranga upazila of Khagrachhari, sets it apart. While nearby hills are blanketed by monoculture plantations, this patch of forest thrives with native flora and fauna. Russel and his friends bought these 23 acres specifically for conservation, forming the Pittachhara Forest and Biodiversity Conservation Initiative. Beyond protecting their own forest, they work with nearby villagers to safeguard the scattered remaining fragments—about four square kilometres—encouraging communities to stop hunting and allow wildlife to recover.
Their impact is noticeable: villagers say hunting has decreased. But lack of forest cover remains the biggest threat. As Russel explained, “Even if we stop hunting, where will wildlife go if there is no forest? Last dry season alone, more than 130 acres were cleared for teak and acacia plantations.”
Despite the destruction around it, Pittachhara remains a refuge. Within just two short walks, we encountered a Bengal Slow Loris, multiple squirrel species, three types of snakes, a Pig-tailed Macaque, and numerous birds, including Jungle Fowl. Footprints of wild cats and smaller mammals hinted at the area’s hidden diversity.
According to conservation biologist Sayam U. Chowdhury, Pittachhara’s well-vegetated landscape and active hill stream support around 150 species of resident and migratory birds, including the endemic Cachar Bulbul and the globally Near Threatened Red-breasted Parakeet. The area also shelters globally Endangered Slow Lorises, Vulnerable Pig-tailed Macaques, ten other mammals, and at least twenty species of amphibians and reptiles.
