The Department of Environment (DoE) has fined four individuals Tk 12 lakh for flattening hills illegally in Pahartali of the port city.
Mohammad Nurullah Noori, DoE Director (Chittagong Metro) slapped on the fine following a hearing at his office on Monday.
The errant individuals were identified as Golam Md, Rehana Akter, Md Raju and Md Emlak Uddin.
Of them, Emlak Uddin was individually fined Tk 6 lakh for razing 6,000 cubic feet hills, while the three others together were fined Tk 6 lakh for razing 6000 cubic feet hills in Pahartali mouza under Akbarshah police station in the city.
Previously on June 22, the DoE fined three individuals Tk 3 lakh for flattening hills in the Pahartali area in the city.
As per the Environment Conservation (Amendment) Act 2010, hill cutting is a cognizable offence and no government, semi-government, or autonomous organization is allowed to cut or raze hills without prior permission from the authorities concerned.
Under the terms of Building Construction Rules 1996, clearance certificates must be obtained from the Department of Environment for razing or cutting any hill.
According to urban planners, hills are mainly razed for building construction, developing residential areas, and road networks.
The hills of the country are basically composed of unconsolidated sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, siltstone, shale, and conglomerate. The hills of the port city were formed in the early Cenozoic Era.
