The government has decided to cancel the allotment of land for setting up the headquarters of Rapid Action Battalion 10 in the Buriganga River at Kamrangirchar aiming to recover the main channel of the river.
The decision was taken in an inter-ministerial meeting held at the Housing and Public Works Ministry yesterday with Housing Minister Mosharraf Hossain in the chair. Five senior ministers were also present.
Terming the existing laws insufficient, the meeting decided to amend the laws to protect the environment and prevent river pollution.
The meeting was held as the prime minister in the last cabinet meeting gave instructions to save the rivers and protect the environment.
Earlier on Sunday, the ministers visited Kamrangirchar area where land was allotted to RAB 10.
Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan said the meeting had decided to cancel the allotment of land for RAB to save the river and its main channel. “We have decided to demolish the buildings and infrastructures which were constructed grabbing the rivers.”
A 13-member subcommittee, headed by the BIWTA chairman, was formed at the meeting. Three representatives from leading environmental organisations Bapa, Poba and BELA, the deputy commissioner of Dhaka and officials from other ministries concerned will be its members. Shajahan said the committee would demarcate the main channel of the Buriganga, remove the infrastructures and dredge the river.
All infrastructures such as RAB office, housing company office and factories would be removed from the river by June. The committee would also seek directives from the higher court in this regard. Physical work would start within next seven days, he added.
The minister also said house owners living beside the river would be issued notice to close the canals which were used for dumping waste into the rivers.
“A RAB representative has informed the meeting that they have no objection if the government allots land to them elsewhere for building the RAB 10 headquarters. The committee will find out new site to be allocated to the elite force. It can be in Kamrangirchar or any other area,” he added.
The RAB authorities wanted the district administration of Dhaka to allocate seven acres of land at Kamrangirchar to them. The administration later allocated the land. But it was not handed over to them as there was no sufficient land and it was inside the river. A technical committee proposed that a plot of 2.40 acres of land be allocated to RAB.
Water Resources Minister Anisul Islam Mahmud, Land Minister Shamsur Rahman Sharif, Food Minister Quamrul Islam and local MP Haji Selim attended the meeting.
