With bright lights all around, colourful seating arrangements to watch the sun rise or set, ample number of jetties stretching from shore into the water and a wide boardwalk to stroll with family or friends, Patenga beach has become a much sought-after destination not just for port city residents but for others too.

There isn’t a more beautiful way to end one’s day than by watching the vibrant sunset colours at the beach, and thanks to an initiative of the Chattogram Development Authority (CDA), the newly-refurbished Patenga beach is now offering people a much-needed space to unwind.

Every day, hundreds of people are thronging the area; the crowd doubles during holidays.

Not so long ago, the beach used to be flooded with shops set up haphazardly, barring tourists from relishing its scenic beauty. The area also lacked visitor-friendly services.

During a recent visit, this correspondent saw people of all ages enjoying at the beach. Children were seen running along the shore while their watchful parents smiled heartily. Many were cycling, riding horses or sitting on the boardwalk.

Asaduzzaman Mukteyar, an expatriate, said, “CDA has done a great job by revamping the beach. What I most appreciate is the fact that they also ensured safety of visitors. I saw law enforcers patrolling the area even at midnight.”

Many visitors echoed him. They, however, mentioned at some spots tiles along the seating places got damaged.

They said at some places, people try to go to the beach from the boardwalk by climbing down rocks, which is risky as those get slippery due to rain or waves.

Though Chattogram is a city to which nature has endowed all its beauties, its residents are deprived of parks and planned recreational places. As a result, people, especially children, are unable to spend their pastimes in a healthy way, Mukteyar said.

“So, CDA must stay alert and make sure this place remains the way it is now -- safe and beautiful,” he added.

The initiative is part of CDA’s City Outer Ring Road project.

The initiative has already started drawing visitors in large numbers. The photos were taken recently. Photo: Rajib Raihan

CDA is almost done building a 17km embankment road from Patenga to Faujdarhat, Sitakunda. Around 5km of it will be for tourists. Due to the project, people will get access to many uncharted beach areas, Kazi Hasan Bin Shams, chief engineer of CDA, told The Daily Star recently.

He said they divided the area into two zones. “Once completed, people from all over the country will flock here. It will be no less than Cox’s Bazar,” he prided.

There will be a zone for children, special facilities for the elderly, walkway and jetties as part of the project, worth Tk 500 crore, the chief engineer added. The work will end this year, he hoped.

Contacted, Wahidul Haque, president of Patenga sea beach traders’ association, said because of the development work, number of visitors has increased significantly.

“People feel safe to visit the area, which is very important. Earlier, visitors left before evening; now some even stay till midnight,” he said.

Wahidul, however, said businesses which were evicted during the development work are yet to be rehabilitated. “We urge the authorities concerned to look into it,” he added.

Asked, the CDA chief engineer said under the project, they have dedicated a zone for vendors, where they can conduct their businesses.