The only tourist spot in Lama upazila of Bandarban district—the Mirinja Tourist Complex—is failing to attract visitors owing to it being underdeveloped, neglected, and lacking basic facilities.
With a view to developing tourism in Bandarban, Mirinja tourist spot was established on September 17, 2003, on 33 acres of land.
However, the site does not attract many tourists, as the authorities failed to undertake necessary development projects, in order to provide services, and facilities to visitors.
The site has poor infrastructure which lacks basic facilities like toilets, clean water service, places to sit, let alone any entertainment facilities.
Even though with hills and rivers surrounding the place, the site offered a unique view different than many other tourist spots in the district. Bandarban district administration sources said, the government is losing tax money because of non-existent revenue.
On a visit to the Mirinja Tourist Complex, this correspondent found that the site was easy to reach, being only six kilometres away from the town, with well-developed road communication.
Nishat Sultana, a tourist from Moheshkhali, Cox's Bazar said: "We have known about Mirinja Tourist Complex for a long time, so I came to visit the spot with my family. But there are no benches here to sit, no clean water services, and no toilets."
Mohammad Kamal Hossain, another tourist from Cox's Bazar said: "The spot does not have any security, and certainly lacks cleanliness. I wish the authorities do something about the matter."
Md Kamal Hossain, a tourist from Dhaka said: "The place only has hills and trees. I paid Tk20 to enter. But I don't think they should charge us any money as they are not providing any services."
Lama municipality Mayor Md Jahirul Islam said: "Mirinja spot is under the jurisdiction of the district and upazila administration, and is neglected completely. But if the authorities improve the facilities, the spot will attract hundreds and thousands of tourists every year."
Bandarban Deputy Commissioner Md Daud Ul Islam said: "To develop Mirinja we will submit a project to Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, and the government, to develop the site to enrich our tourism industry."
When asked about the neglected state of the spot, he said that they had frequently asked for funding from the authorities to develop the site but did not receive any such financing.
