Exploiting prospect of tannery industry

When tanneries should have been fined or sealed for releasing untreated effluent into the Buriganga, the capital's lifeline, foot-dragging over their relocation to a new site has gone on for decades. The ministry of industries has already missed four deadlines for relocation of tanneries from Hazaribagh to Savar in the past eight years; it is most likely to miss the next one of June 2015. If the factory owners have used one after another ploy to stall the move, the authorities are no less to blame for not taking the matter seriously. When the ministry concerned was issuing ultimatum for shifting tanneries or facing dire consequences, its own lapses was grossly exposed. The Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP), according to a report carried in this newspaper in the second week of last month, is yet to be ready. No doubt, the High Court summoned on April 22 the industries secretary to explain why its earlier order to relocate the tanneries was defied.
Playing to the gallery is one thing and meaning business is a completely different issue. Ministers have come and gone but the issue has remained unresolved. By this time the tanners have grown in confidence that all the sound and fury signify little if not nothing. Had anyone of the ministers concerned loved the city, the river Buriganga and cared for the environment and the future of the capital, s/he could not leave the issue unattended. If retailers abroad buying apparels from Bangladesh can take so much interest in improving conditions in garments factories here, their counterparts in leather goods business could very well do so in case of such products here. Managing fund for setting up a CETP at the new location should never have proved an insurmountable task. Even local initiative could be enough for the purpose if the government and the tannery owners cooperated with each other. But it seems, interests of some quarters are best served if irregularities and mismanagement in the sector can be prolonged. Such circles however miss the wood for the trees. Or, else all would have fully cooperated in the relocation endeavour.
The fact is leather goods have an enviable prospect abroad. Some of the local companies have proved that they can compete with celebrated foreign brands, so far as leather products are concerned. If the leather industry had to penetrate foreign markets, the tanners were required to get their acts together. In a shambles, the factories have to be mindful of their responsibilities to improve the labour condition and working environment. The many stages the country's garments industry has passed should be a guide to the leather industry. Here is an opportunity for the tanners to take them to a new level of processing and manufacturing. Non-compliance with the labour or environment laws will only make the matter worse for them. If they delay, their competitors will thankfully grab the opportunity to have access to the lucrative markets in Europe and other continents. Finally, defiance of the country's law is a crime and anyone found flouting the laws should be punished for the offence. The tannery owners cannot enjoy impunity any further.