Editorial
Another onslaught on Buriganga
Save the river, please
The story of our river banks being encroached upon and filling up of the adjoining areas to grab parcels of land is nothing new. Of late this is being done along the river Buriganga by dumping all kinds of household and industrial wastes. The encroachers have found a novel way of encouraging people of the locality to dump wastes on the pretext that there are no garbage dumping sites marked out on the river bank by the city corporation. Once filled, the encroachers emerge on the scene as virtual developers or real estate dealers. It appears as that there exists a nexus between the encroachers and the relevant authorities of the administration. Such encroachments are not only narrowing down the banks of the river but also causing havoc to our environment. These have the potential for serious consequences not just for us but also for generations to come. The dumping of toxic wastes of all kinds has already polluted the river water to a dangerous level. This is seriously affecting the health of the people of the locality who are compelled to use murky water of the river for different purposes. The administration simply must address this problem of encroachment of river banks on a priority basis. It is our understanding that an administrative arrangement exists by the name of a task force, headed by the shipping minister, to checkmate this type of land grabbing. The DCC has already confessed its inability to tackle this issue of garbage-ridden land expropriation due to shortage of manpower. It is now up to the high-power task force to act expeditiously and stop this menace from progressing further. Surely, given the will and the commitment we should be able to effectively deal with the issue in greater interest of the people who are already reeling in numerous other problems of governance.
|
|
