HC bans fish-farming in WASA lagoons
Sunday, 6 September 2015
The High Court (HC) has banned fish farming in the lagoon of Dhaka WASA’s Syedabad sewage treatment plant. The bench of Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Md Ashraful Kamal also issued 7 directives to that end on Sunday.
They include:
1. Erection of boundary walls around the lagoon within the next two years.
2. Eradication of fish in the lagoon every two months in presence of a magistrate, fisheries department officials, law enforcers and journalists.
3. Appointment of adequate Ansar and security personnel to keep watch on the lagoon.
4. The strengthening of night patrols in the area.
5. The hoisting of signboards for public awareness, indicating that the fish are poisonous and harmful, together with a notice about the ban on fish farming in the lagoon and that it is a punishable offence.
6. WASA authorities renovate and preserve the lagoon area.
7. The public representatives of the area to form a citizens’ committee and take steps to stop farming of fish.
A national daily on July 13, 2011, ran a report about Dhaka-residents being supplied ‘poisonous’ fish from the lagoon. Two lawyers, on behalf of Human Rights for Peace and Bangladesh, moved the High Court that year. The HC issued a rule on the matter on November 14, 2011. Following five hearings on the rule, the HC kept the matter pending for verdict on August 30. Manzill Murshid argued for HRPB while Kamrun Nesa represented WASA and Jahanara Shila stood for the city corporation in the hearing. Murshid said there were several WASA lagoons and ponds in the 246-acre Syedabad-Pagla-Kadamtali stretch meant for sewage treatment. Although these water bodies are unfit for fish farming due to their high lead, mercury and zinc contents released by the waste products, certain influential people were supplying fish from these bodies to various markets in the capital. During the time of the last caretaker government, magistrates had gone on a fish-eradication drive in these water bodies. The HPRB moved court, as the farming continued even after that, according to bdnews24.com.
- biplab