Bhasan Char taken out of Hatia, placed under Sandwip: land ministry

The land ministry has decided that six Mouzas of Bhasan Char will fall under Sandwip Upazila of Chattogram, not Hatia in Noakhali.

On Saturday, the ministry issued instructions to the Chattogram divisional commissioner to take necessary steps to implement the decision.

Sandwip Upazila administrator (UNO) Mong Chinu Marma told bdnews24.com that residents had long demanded Bhasan Char be placed under Sandwip.

“After a lengthy process, six Mouzas of Bhasan Char will now be included in Sandwip. The land ministry has directed the divisional commissioner’s office to take the required measures,” he said.

A Mouza is essentially a surveyed land unit or revenue village used in South Asia for land records and taxation.

In a directive issued on Jan 13, the land ministry said the decision was taken based on a report by a technical committee formed to resolve inter-district boundary disputes.

It requested that necessary steps be taken to include the six Mouzas under Sandwip Upazila.

According to the 2016–17 diara survey, Bhasan Char -- which emerged in the Bay of Bengal near Sandwip -- was previously placed under Noakhali’s Hatia Upazila.

The sandbar currently houses Rohingya refugees relocated from Myanmar.

Sandwip residents have long claimed Bhasan Char as part of their Upazila, arguing that most of the land emerged from areas historically eroded from the island, based on Revisional Survey and Cadastral Survey records.

A writ petition was also filed in the High Court over the dispute.

Following this, the Department of Land Records and Surveys assigned the Chattogram divisional commissioner to resolve the matter.

A 19-member committee, headed by Additional Divisional Commissioner Md Nurullah Nuri, was formed and heard arguments from both sides.

After site inspections and overall assessment, the technical committee concluded that the six Mouzas of Bhasan Char fall under Sandwip, paving the way for the land ministry’s decision.