They live in the city of electricity, but they do not see electricity. Days, months and years pass in the hope that electricity will come or will come. Still, the light of electricity has not come.
Although the village is 200 years old, the residents of Bakichhara Battali Para village in Kuhalong Union of Bandarban Sadar Upazila, have not seen electricity. This is like a story of darkness under a lamp!
Bakichhara Battali Para village is just 10 kilometers away from Bandarban city. The Marma community lives in that village. Most families depend on jum cultivation and agricultural work. The family lives on jum cultivation and uncultivated land in the mountains. But despite being close to the city, they have not seen electricity for ages. The people of that village have survived only by seeing hurricanes and solar light. Although there is a road communication system, in the evening, due to the lack of electricity, they descend into a ghostly pathless country.
To ensure the quality of education of the children of the village, there is a neighborhood center, which was built in 1996 under the Sustainable Social Service Delivery Project under the Chattogram Hill Development Board. However, despite getting the light of education, the residents wait for ages for electricity. To escape the heat, they have planted various plants and solar power in the courtyard of their houses. Again, many families are burning pot lights in their houses due to financial hardship.
The electricity poles and lines have passed through the main gate road of Bakichhara. But even though the connection road of that pole line has been reached, the electricity poles have not yet reached the village. They still have to live in darkness, relying on the assurances of the public representatives. Due to this, the socio-economic development of the area, as well as the education and agriculture of the children, are lagging behind. The residents of that village still do not know when they will see the light of day.
It was learned from talking to the residents of the area that the age of the village of Bakichhara Battali Para is about two hundred years old. Most of the families in the village earn their living by farming. Before dusk, the entire village is shrouded in silence. At night, boys and girls have to study under the light of a lamp. Because more than a hundred people in the village of Bakichhara Battali Para have been living in darkness without electricity since the year of independence. The locals have been waiting for the electricity to come on in their homes since 2022.
Hlamesing Marma, a class nine student of Battali Para village, said, "I have not seen electricity in the village since I was born. I have only seen solar light. And because there is no electricity, we are not able to study properly."
Kuhalong UP Chairman Mongpu Marma said, "Electricity has not yet reached some villages." An application was submitted to the then MP Bir Bahadur to provide electricity. Although electricity poles have been laid along the main gate road, electricity has not reached the villages yet. I do not know when electricity will be available.
Syed Amir Hossain, Executive Engineer of the Project Distribution Department of the Bandarban Power Development Board (BPDB), said, "There are some areas that are close to the city but have not received electricity supply. We have included those areas in the project. We hope to be able to electrify those areas when the project is launched. In addition, the project is ongoing to provide as many small areas as possible according to our capabilities."
