Who'll stop hill cutting?

Hill cutting is a common affair in Bangladesh. Violating environmental laws, some people, who supposedly enjoy political favour, have been demolishing hills or hilly areas around Bangladesh for years. Cutting of hills goes unabated in Chattogram, Tangail, Khagrachhari, and Rangamati. Khulshi, Panchlaish, Sholoshahar, Bayezid Bostami, Foy's Lake, Akbar Shah, Lalkhan Bazar, and Pahartali. The areas are affected by mindless hill cutting. Hills are being razed in the name of development --- for implementing housing projects or other commercial purposes --- which is prohibited by the laws. They excavate soil from there and sell it to brick kiln owners or real estate developers to fill lowlands, or for road construction purposes. Indiscriminate hill cutting triggers calamities like landslides almost every year during the monsoon.
According to the Environment Conservation (Amendment) Act 2010, hill cutting is a punishable offence. Even no government, semi-government or autonomous organisation is allowed to cut or raze hills without prior permission from the authorities concerned. Therefore, we urge the government to ensure that laws are strictly enforced against the illegal act of destruction of hills. Indiscriminate hill cutting, which has a negative impact on a particular area's ecosystem and poses a great risk of landslide, must stop once and for all.

Imran Hossain,
Student of Jagannath University, Dhaka,
imranhossain64.bd@gmail.com