Rangamati

About Rangamati

Rangamati is the largest district in Bangladesh by area and the central one of the three Chittagong Hill Tracts districts. It borders the Indian states of Tripura and Mizoram and Myanmar's Chin State, making it the only district that touches both neighbouring countries, with Khagrachari and Chattogram to the west and Bandarban to the south. Ten upazilas make up the district: Rangamati Sadar, Kaptai, Kawkhali, Baghaichhari, Barkal, Langadu, Rajasthali, Belaichhari, Juraichhari and Naniarchar.

Its defining feature is Kaptai Lake, a huge reservoir formed when the Karnaphuli was dammed at Kaptai in the early 1960s. The lake winds for many kilometres between forested hills, and much of the district is reached by boat rather than road. The 2022 census counted about 648,000 people. A little over half belong to Indigenous peoples, above all the Chakma, along with Marma, Tanchangya, Tripura, Khyang, Pangkhua and others, and Bengalis make up most of the rest. Rangamati town is often called the capital of the hill tracts, since it is the seat of the regional council and the Chakma Raja.

History

The area was long contested between the kings of Tripura and Arakan before the Mughals and then the British East India Company extended their reach in the eighteenth century. The Chakma chiefs became the leading power here, and Rangamati is the seat of the Chakma Circle, the largest of the three traditional chiefdoms of the hill tracts, whose chief, the Chakma Raja, still plays a role in land and customary matters. The British made the Chittagong Hill Tracts a separate district in 1860 with Rangamati as its headquarters, and Rangamati became a district in its own right in 1983.

The Kaptai hydroelectric dam, completed in the early 1960s, reshaped the district. The rising water submerged a large share of the best farmland, the old Chakma royal palace and many villages, and displaced tens of thousands of people, mostly Chakma, a loss still remembered in the hills. Decades of conflict followed until the 1997 Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord. In 1971 Bir Sreshtho Munshi Abdur Rouf was killed defending a position at Burighat in Naniarchar, where his grave now lies by the lake.

Economy and livelihoods

Most families depend on farming, both jhum cultivation on the slopes and orchards of pineapple, banana, jackfruit, mango and citrus in the valleys; Naniarchar and other lakeside areas send boatloads of fruit to Rangamati town. Kaptai Lake supports a large fishery, including small fish such as kachki and chapila that are also dried. The Kaptai power station supplies electricity to the national grid, and the Karnaphuli paper mill at Chandraghona has long been one of the country's best-known industries. Weaving, bamboo and cane craft and a fast-growing tourism sector, especially around Sajek and the lake, bring in further income.

Food, culture and festivals

Mid-April brings the hill new year, celebrated as Biju by the Chakma, Sangrai by the Marma and Boisuk by the Tripura, when flowers are floated on the lake and rivers, homes cook dozens of dishes, and water play and games fill the streets. Buddhism is central to Chakma and Marma life: the Rajban Vihara in Rangamati town, associated with the revered monk Sadhanananda Mahathera (Ban Bhante), draws thousands for its Kathin Chibar Dan festival, when robes are spun, woven and offered within a single day.

Handloom weaving is the craft most visitors take home. Chakma weavers make the pinon and hadi worn by women, as well as shawls, bed covers and bags with bold geometric patterns, and the Tribal Cultural Institute museum in town introduces the dress, tools and ornaments of the district's peoples. Bamboo shoots, fish from the lake and dishes slow-cooked in bamboo tubes are typical of local kitchens.

Places to visit in Rangamati

1. Kaptai Lake

   The vast reservoir at the heart of the district. Hire a boat from the town's ghats for a day on the water, visiting island restaurants, villages and viewpoints.

2. Hanging bridge, Rangamati

   A bright red suspension footbridge of about 335 feet across an arm of the lake, the best-known landmark in Rangamati town. When the water is very high in the monsoon, parts of it can be submerged.

3. Shuvolong waterfall, Barkal

   A tall waterfall pouring into the lake, about an hour or two by boat from Rangamati town and at its best during and just after the monsoon.

4. Rajban Vihara and Chakma Rajbari

   The large Buddhist monastery and the Chakma Raja's residence close together on the lakeshore in Rangamati town, reached by road or a short boat ride. Dress modestly and respect monastery rules.

5. Sajek Valley, Baghaichhari

   A ridge-top village area near the Mizoram border, famous for seas of cloud at dawn and views from Konglak hill. It is in Rangamati district but reached by road from Khagrachari.

6. Bir Sreshtho Munshi Abdur Rouf's grave, Naniarchar

   The lakeside resting place of the 1971 war hero at Burighat, reached by boat from Rangamati.

What Rangamati is famous for

• Rangamati handloom textiles
• Chakma pinon-hadi
• Kaptai Lake dried fish (kachki, chapila)
• Hill pineapple
• Bamboo and cane crafts

How to get to Rangamati

Direct buses run from Dhaka to Rangamati town, mostly overnight, taking roughly seven to eight hours. From Chattogram, buses from the Oxygen and Bahaddarhat areas take about two and a half to three hours. There is no airport or railway; the nearest airport is in Chattogram. Within the district, boats on Kaptai Lake are the main transport, and Sajek is reached by road through Khagrachari and Dighinala. Bangladeshi visitors can generally travel freely to the main sights, but foreign nationals need permission from the district administration, and the road to Sajek has used army-escorted convoys from Baghaihat. Rules change with the security situation, so check before you go.

Markets and haats

Banarupa bazaar

The main market of Rangamati town, open every day with bigger market days on Saturdays and Wednesdays, when boats bring hill produce, fruit, fish and handwoven cloth from around the lake.

Tabalchhari and Reserve Bazar

Busy lakeside market areas in Rangamati town with shops for handloom textiles, fish and everyday goods, and boat landings for lake traffic.

Rangamati at a glance

Shops from Rangamati on Midmart

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Questions about Rangamati

More districts in Chattogram Division

• Bandarban Cloud-wrapped hills, the Sangu river and the highest peaks in Bangladesh
• Brahmanbaria The Titas, classical music, chhanamukhi and the gas fields that power the east
• Chandpur The home of hilsa, where the Padma, Meghna and Dakatia meet
• Chattogram Port city, green hills and mezban: the commercial capital of Bangladesh
• Cumilla Mainamati's Buddhist ruins, khadi cloth and the rasmalai everyone asks for
• Cox's Bazar An unbroken sea beach, the Marine Drive, dried fish and salt fields
• Feni The gateway between Dhaka and Chattogram, home of Khandal's sweets
• Khagrachari Green hills on the Chengi river, Alutila cave and the road to Sajek
• Lakshmipur Soybean fields, coconut and betel nut groves on the Meghna estuary
• Noakhali New land from the Meghna: Hatiya, Nijhum Dwip and a famous dialect