Govt to go tough on river encroachers: Shajahan

Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan on Wednesday said the government will not bow its head to the river encroachers, no matter how tough the task is.
Speaking at a seminar, he also noted that the government is sincere about protecting the rivers and will put its best efforts to stop river encroachment and pollution not only in Dhaka and its surrounding, but also across other parts of the country.
The seminar was organised by National River Protection Commission at Gonopurta Bhaban in the city.
Speaking as the chief guest, the minister said the government has taken a mega plan involving Tk 11,470 crore to dredge rivers for maintaining the navigability of 53 river routes while dredging work of 24 routes have already started.
“We’ve taken many initiatives to resist river encroachment and water pollution. The mouth of the Buriganga has been blocked to a great extent due to the direct waste disposal of Mitford Hospital and the fruit waste disposal of Waizghat,” he added.