SC: Shut down Hazaribagh tanneries by April 6

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the owners of Hazaribagh tanneries to stop all kinds of operations there by April 6. After the closure of all tanneries at Hazaribagh, the apex court will hear a petition seeking review of its order that directed the tannery owners to pay Tk10,000 per day for damaging and polluting the environment. A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha fixed April 9 for the hearing. It will also hear the petition filed by the tannery owners seeking a stay on a High Court order that asked the owners to pay the overdue fines of Tk30.85crore, on the same day. During hearing, lawyer of the tannery owners Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh informed the court that the owners had decided to close down all tanneries by April 6. He prayed the court to reconsider the fines. The court asked him to close the tanneries first by April 6 and said it may consider the fine after that. It asked the Department of Environment to submit a report on the closure of the tanneries by April 6. The High Court on Wednesday upheld its previous order to shut down all tanneries in Hazaribagh, and snap their utility connections as it rejected a petition the tanners had filed seeking permission to continue operation there until Eid-ul-Azha. In July last year, the Appellate Division asked every tannery to pay Tk 10,000 per day for damaging and polluting the environment. Later, the tannery owners filed a petition with the Supreme Court seeking review of the order. The High Court in 2001 ordered the 154 tanneries to relocate to Savar but the order was not executed. The court on June 23, 2009 again ordered the relocation to be completed within February 24, 2010. However, the deadline was extended to April 30, 2011 at the government’s request, prompting the Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB) to move the court. In a February 13 report, the industry secretary said that 154 tanneries had not relocated to their designated sites while another tannery had shut down.