Environment director orders KEPZ to stop hill cutting

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Our Correspondent
CHITTAGONG, Jan 22: The environment directorate has ordered suspension of hill cutting at the Korean EPZ at Anwara on the south bank of the River Karnafuli for two days.
The order was made by Magistrate Muneer Chowdhury, director (enforcement) of the Environment Department today. He made the order for inspecting papers relating to hill cutting earlier approved by the same department.
The management of the Korean Export Processing Zone, an enterprise of Korea's giant business house YoungOne Group of Industries, has been engaged in preparing industrial plots on an area of some 2500 acres, allegedly cutting hills in its EPZ area.
On a tip off, a team headed by Muneer Chowdhury found that the foreign company had earlier been given permission by the Environment Department of Bangladesh.
Muneer said that he has found the approval for cutting hills had earlier been given to the company. "But there might have been lapses in providing the approval. So I have ordered them to stop the hill cutting for two days for inspecting the papers regarding government approval,"
Concerned sources said Director Chowdhury had also detained two employees engaged in hill cutting but they were released as the authority showed relevant permission.