After a month and half of staying closed following inundation, the iconic hanging bridge on Kaptai Lake, known as a “symbol of Rangamati”, has opened to tourists and visitors. The local administration withdrew the ban on tourist movement on the bridge on Friday (October 20, 2023) after the water receded. Several lakh tourists from across the country and abroad come to Rangamati every year and the hanging bridge is a must-see attraction. During monsoon, the district administration restricts the movement of tourists on Kaptai Lake hanging bridge due to inundation every year. Water transports banned in Kaptai Lake On September 3, the local administration suspended movement on the bridge in Rangamati as it went under water following a rise in water level in the lake due to heavy rain. Water level rises in Kaptai lake after heavy rains; power generation increased

A teenage student in Karnafuli Hydropower Station of Rangamati’s Kaptai was found dead in her house, her family said on Friday  The deceased was identified as Mamtaz Jahan Riya, 19, a third-year student of Mechanical Department of Bangladesh Sweden Polytechnic Institute and daughter of Nazrul Islam of Ward-8, block -A inside Hydropower Station area. Riya's body was found hanging from the ceiling of her bedroom at around 8.45 pm on Thursday.  Family members found her rushed her to Kaptai Upazila Hospital where the on-duty doctor declared her dead. READ: Couple ‘commits suicide’ in Bagerhat Kaptai Police officer-in-charge (OC) Mohammad Nasir Uddin said she committed suicide due to a family feud. She was scolded by her elder brother regarding her alleged love affair. Police suspected it might have led her to take her life. The body was in police custody and further legal action would be taken, the OC said. READ: Teenage girl ‘commits suicide’ in Dhaka

Do you want to see the mountains and waterfalls? Or do you have the wish to float over blue water? The outdoor enthusiasts often fall into dilemmas to choose between these two desires. Kaptai Lake in Rangamati can save you from this situation. Here you will instantly mingle with the winding mountain roads, waterfalls, and the alliance of water-green. Let's go into details about this largest in volume artificial lake in South Asia with an area of up to 11,000 sq-km. Historical background of Kaptai Lake From 1956 to 1962, the then government of Pakistan constructed the Kaptai Dam on the Karnafuli River for a hydroelectric power plant with US funding. As a result, 54,000 acres of agricultural land in the Rangamati district was flooded and this Kaptai Lake was created. In addition, 606 sq-km of unclassified forests and 75 sq-km of government-protected forests were drowned. A total of one lakh people from about 18,000 families were displaced. The dam is 670.6 meters long and 54.7 meters high and has a 745 feet long spillway with 16 water gates attached to it. This spillway can discharge 5 lakh 25 thousand cusec feet of water per second. The specialty of Kaptai Lake, Rangamati The tourism industry of the Rangamati district has developed around Kaptai Lake. There is a famous 335-feet long hanging bridge over this lake. You have to buy a ticket for BDT 30 for getting on the bridge. The entire lake is surrounded by high and low hills and creepy winding paths. With this fear in mind, when you see the clouds surrounding the mountains are playing as a reflection in a huge pond, your travel-thirsty mind will want to stay there like a bird or an aquatic duck. Read: Visit Kaptai Lake for a breather The lake can be traveled by renting a trawler. On the way, you can enjoy the angelic beauty of the Shuvlong waterfall, coming down from a hill about 140 feet high. Besides these, a Buddhist temple and the new Chakma palace stand on the shores of the lake. The old Chakma palace sank into the lake during the construction of the Kaptai Dam. Here mother nature presents a wonderful combination of various flora and fauna in the overhead mountains as well as diverse species of fish and endless biodiversity living inside the deep waters of the lake. The livelihood of the water-centered people, the environment around the lake including the variety of birds, the hanging bridge, the small islands, etc will fascinate you every moment. Despite being an artificial lake, nature has poured all its beauty into Kaptai Lake. When to visit Kaptai Lake in Rangamati You can have a journey to Kaptai Lake all year round. But in the rainy season, the beauty of waterfalls along the lake is at its peak.

Kaptai Lake, the largest manmade freshwater body in Bangladesh, was created in 1956 when a dam was constructed on the Karnaphuli River for the Kaptai hydropower plant. The dam obstructed regular water flow in the river and inundated vast swathes of farmlands which later transformed into a lake.