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In the remote hill settlements of Dhopachhari union, Chandanaish upazila, time appears to have stood still for indigenous communities. Fifty-four years after Bangladesh's independence, many families from the Khyang, Tripura, Tanchangya, and Chakma ethnic groups remain cut off from basic services.

When illness strikes, residents must often carry patients on their shoulders for several kilometers along rugged, hilly trails to seek medical help. A recent visit revealed the depth of their isolation. In Ward 2, about 100 Khyang families reside in Gunguru West Khyang Para. Ward 3 hosts three Khyang settlements with 48 families, while Ward 4 is home to over 250 indigenous people from various communities. Their livelihoods depend on shifting cultivation, fruit orchards, and vegetable farming within the Samai Reserve Forest.

Reaching the upazila headquarters for official matters is both difficult and costly. Locals estimate a round trip can cost Tk 1,000-1,200 per person. Aungshau Khyang, 46, shared that his family has lived in the area since before British rule. He alleged that after his grandfather's death in 1985, outsiders from Gachbaria and Barkal areas claimed their ancestral lands, totaling around 95 acres of paddy fields and 15 acres of homesteads, using settlement documents. "Since then, we have not been able to cultivate those lands," he stated, explaining that they later established a new settlement in the reserve forest.

In Monglamukh Para, 100-year-old Khechai Khyang resides with his family. His son, Chinggya Khyang, confirmed that Khyang Beel and Mongla Beel were their ancestral lands. The settlement lacks a government school or health center. However, Khechai Ti Menai Primary School was established in 2021 through the initiative of local entrepreneur Hlakraing Khyang. Deeper within the Dhopachhari Reserve Forest lies Dhopachhari Bikramoni Tripura Para, home to about 70 Tripura families. Residents reported that over 100 Tripura families relocated there in 1988 under an initiative by the Bangladesh Army, led by Headman Bikram Moni Tripura.

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Since then, we have not been able to cultivate those lands.