Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday expressed displeasure over the unnecessary delay in relocating tanneries from the city’s Hazaribagh area by their owners although the government has provided them with various facilities at Savar.
“We don’t know why they’re delaying (in relocating tanneries), this is not fair,” she said. The Prime Minister was speaking at a programme held at Krishibid Institution, Bangladesh here marking ‘The National Tree Plantation Campaign and Tree Fair 2016’ and ‘World Environment Day and Environmemt Fair-2016’.
She said, the government has established a tannery estate at Savar for the relocation of tanneries from Hazaribagh. “We’ve also arranged waste treatment facilities there, but the tanners are making unnecessary delay,” said an irked Prime Minister. Although the government asked them several times to shift their factories to Savar, the owners are delaying unnecessarily resorting to tricks, the Prime Minister said adding, “We don’t know; why are they delaying? But there shouldn’t be any delay.”
Hasina said, the quicker the tannery owners relocate their factories the faster the environment of Hazaribagh and adjacent areas will improve. The Supreme Court has ordered each of the 154 tannery owners at Hazaribagh to pay the government Tk 10,000 a day as fine for not relocating their factories to the tannery estate at Savar within the given time. The court also ordered the government to donate 50 percent of the fine to National Liver Foundation of Bangladesh.
Earlier on June 28, the Supreme Court stayed till 17 July its earlier order that penalised 154 Hazaribagh-based tanneries for not relocating to the Tannery Estate within the stipulated time after Bangladesh
Tanners Association (BTA) filed an appeal with the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the High Court order. On 16 June, the High Court directed 154 tannery owners at Hazaribagh to pay the fine of Tk 50,000 each per day to the government as the Industries Ministry submitted a report to the HC mentioning that a total of 154 tanneries were yet to be shifted to the designated site in Savar.
Following the report, the High Court said each of the 154 tannery owners will have to pay Tk 50,000 as fine every day until the relocation of their factories to Savar. Earlier on April 1, the government suspended rawhide supply to Hazaribagh tanneries as the tanners had failed to meet the March 31 deadline, the latest in a line of several such deadlines missed in the past. The government then again extended the March 31 deadline till April 10 following a request from the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC), the implementing agency of the tannery estate project.
Sheikh Hasina said 3Rs-reduce, reuse and recycle-projects were taken in industries to control environment pollution. Industry owners will have to be more sincere and take initiative in waste management as the government has made mandatory establishment of ETP at all waste generating industries, she said.
About her government’s initiatives to set up 100 economic zones in the country, the Prime Minister stressed the need for keeping in mind the issues of protecting the environment and building water bodies and other facilities there. She also asked the Forest and Environment Ministry to strictly monitor the issue.
Highlighting the adverse impact of greenhouse effects, Hasina directed all the ministries and departments to work with the Ministry of Environment and Forest in a coordinated manner. The Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also called upon all concerned to stop the indiscriminate felling of trees, filling water bodies and cutting hills to protect the country’s biodiversity and environment. She also reiterated her call to every citizen to plant at least three saplings-one of timber, one of fruit and one of herbal-to protect the environment and ecology of the country. Hasina laid emphasis on taking various programmes and projects considering the country’s huge population and its geographical location. Mentioned her government success in achieving food autarky, she said environment and afforestation are interlinked. “So, the government has taken steps for the conservation of the existing forests and creating new forests under public and private sectors.”
The Prime Minister said the country’s forest areas have increased to 17 percent from 9 percent after the Awami League government assumed office in 2009, while it is working to further increase the forest coverage to 25 percent. Mentioning that the government has brought the environmental and ecological issues to the mainstream of development, the Prime Minister said Bangladesh allocated around Tk 3000 crore to deal with the climate-induced disasters instead of relying on others. Referring to the recent flood that hit different areas in northern Bangladesh, she urged all to come forward to help the flood victims.
At the function, Hasina handed over Prime Minister’s National Award-2015 for tree plantation and Bangabandhu Award for Wildlife Conservation-2016 individuals, educational institutions, local government bodies, government departments and NGOs in various categories. The Prime Minister also handed over benefit-sharing cheques among the beneficiaries. Environment and Forests Anwar Hossain Manju, Deputy Minister Abdullah Al Islam Jakob, Secretary Dr Kamal Uddin Ahmed, Director General of the Department of Environment Md Raisul Alam Mondal and Chief Conservator of Forests Md Yunus Ali also spoke at the programme.
