Nurul Amin Khan, Sylhet: Ratargul is the only freshwater reservoir in Sylhet, one of the most attractive tourist destinations in Bangladesh. Half of the year the forest is floating in water. And in winter it is found under the forest floor.
In the last 3 and half years, the government has collected about Tk 3 crore in revenue as entry fee from the Ratargul reservoir. Ratargul Jalaban is located in Fatehpur Union of Goainghat Upazila of Sylhet. Ratargul is one of the 22 freshwater reservoirs in the world. The area of this wetland is 33325.61 acres.
In 1973, 504 acres of this vast forest was declared a wildlife sanctuary. On May 31, 2015, the Bangladesh Forest Department declared 204.25 hectares of forest land as a Special Biodiversity Conservation Area. This evergreen forest is located on the banks of the Gwain River. Karachi trees are the most abundant in the forest. The vegetation here remains under water for 4 to 7 months in a year. So every day thousands of local and foreign nature lovers come to Ratargul.
The government published the gazette fixing the revenue collection fee from Ratargul tourist center in 2020 considering the presence of regular tourists. The entrance fee is fixed at Tk 50 for adults, Tk 25 for children below 12 years and Tk 500 for foreign nationals from Ratargul under the control of Sylhet Forest Department.

According to the annual report of the Ratargul co-management executive committee, 1 lakh 78 thousand 441 adults, 2 lakh 29 thousand 83 minors and 751 foreigners entered Ratargul from 2021 to 31 October 2024. In the financial year 2020-21, the government was collecting revenue of Tk 4 lakh 88 thousand 405 from the entry fee. Due to the global corona, the revenue collection was less in that financial year. In the financial year 2021-22, the amount of revenue collected is 94 lakh 42 thousand 103 taka. In the 2022-23 fiscal year 77 lakh 96 thousand 51 taka and in 2023-2024 financial year and 2024-2025 financial year up to October 31, the income is 91 lakh 30 thousand 310 taka.