UNB, Dhaka :
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday warned the tannery owners at Hazaribag of the capital of dire consequence if they failed to relocate their tanneries in Savar within the stipulated time.
“Construction of the central ETP in Savar has already begun. You’ve to relocate your industries there in time. Otherwise, we’ll have to shut down the industries,” she said.
The PM issued the warning while inaugurating the World Environment Day-2014 as well as National Tree Plantation Campaign and Tree Fair 2014 at a function at Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC).
Forests and Environment Minister Anwar Hossain Manju, who chaired the function, also spoke among others. Forests and Environment secretary Shafiqur Rahman Patwary gave the welcome address.
The Prime Minister said that in the interest of environment, ETPs have been set up in 812 industries so far. She hoped that her government would be able to set up ETPs in all the industries in the country by the year 2018.
Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) under the Industries Ministry is implementing the entire ‘Dhaka Tannery Estate’ project on 199.40 acres of land in Savar at a cost of Tk 1078.71 crore.
A China-Bangladesh joint venture company, JLEPCL-DCL is now setting up the CETP and Dumping Yard at the Tannery Estate where the Dhaka city’s tanneries in Hazaribagh area will be relocated.
The joint venture company was awarded the job on October 2012 to complete the CETP construction by 18 months.
Officials said, that a total of 205 industrial plots were allocated to 155 tannery industries to be relocated from Dhaka’s Hazaribagh to the Tannery Estate in Savar.
Bureau of Research, Testing and Consultation, a commercially operated technical wing of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), will work as consultant for the central Effluent Treatment plant (CETP) of the proposed Dhaka Tannery Estate in Savar.
The BUET’s technical wing will supervise the environment, structural, foundation, chemical, electrical and mechanical job of the CETP scheme at a contract value of Tk 5 crore.
The Tannery Estate project is a longstanding one, undertaken by the government in 2003 for implementation by 2005 against the backdrop of growing concern for environmental pollution.
The Prime Minister also called upon the developed countries to fulfill their commitment in facing the adverse impacts of the climate change and urged the world community to be more vocal in this regard.
She said, Bangladesh is the worst sufferer of the adverse impacts of the climate change although it has no role in causing it.
Sheikh Hasina said, the industrially rich countries have been emitting Carbon in the air for millions of years, increasing the temperature of the surface of the Earth.
As a result, she said, coastal countries like Bangladesh are experiencing various natural disasters including frequent cyclone and tidal surge although the country is not at all responsible for industrial Carbon emission.
