Strict laws to be framed to evict river encroachers

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The National Taskforce on Rivers Wednesday decided to frame strict laws by reforming the existing laws to protect the navigability of the rivers including Buriganga, Turag and Balu around Dhaka city and their normal flow as well as to take action against the river encroachers, reports BSS. To this end, deputy commissioners of Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur and Munshiganj would submit proposals for reformation of the laws to the next meeting of the taskforce. Later, the draft law will be sent to the Law Ministry after review. The National Taskforce on Rivers took the decisions at its 12th meeting with Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan in the chair. Water Resources Minister Ramesh Chandra Sen, State Minister for Land Mostafizur Rahman, Aslamul Haque, MP, AKM Mozammel Haque, MP, and deputy commissioners of Dhaka, Gazipur and Narayanganj were also present at the meeting. After the meeting, the shipping minister said there is a provision of only six-month jail for the river encroachers in the existing law, while the amount of fine is very small. "Besides paying a huge amount of fine, the encroachers would have to bear all costs of eviction drive if they do not shift their establishments within the stipulated time of getting notice," he said. Khan said a petition will be submitted to the High Court for extending the time-limit of its directives for setting up of boundary pillars on the river banks and freeing the rivers from encroachment. He also said the work for setting up the boundary pillars is going on. A nine-member team headed by Land Minister Rezaul Karim Hira would take decisions about the areas where land disputes exist. The shipping minister said observation teams to be led by magistrates would be sent twice every month to check dumping of industrial and human waste at 138 points of the rivers in Dhaka, Narayanganj and Tongi areas. "The team would realize fines on the spot from the persons and organizations responsible for river pollution," he said. Khan said monitoring teams would be pressed to free the canals of Dhaka city from the grabbers.