No Economic Zones Will be On River Land: State Minister for Shipping, Bangladesh
Adnan Mahfuz
Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, State Minister for Shipping, said, “The river cannot be occupied for power plants, economic zones or any other development.” We are evicting the illegal occupants of the river. It would never be acceptable for anyone to occupy the river land for a business establishment.’
The state minister was responding to a question from reporters while inspecting the Laxmirchar-Alurbazar-Ishanbala-Hijla-Ulania-Miyarchar waterway in Chandpur on the Dhaka-Barisal waterway on Saturday.
In the first week of February this year, evictions were carried out in parts of the power plant of the ruling party MP Aslamul Haque in Charwashpur Mouza adjacent to the bridge on the west bank of the Turag River.
News of the development of an economic zone next to the power plant on the riverbank came to the media two weeks ago.
When reporters asked the state minister about this while inspecting the waterways, he said that economic zones would not be built by occupying the river.
Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said that due to excessive currents and siltation, the river was flooded, and the waterway at Miarchar on the Barisal route was also closed.
Now I have to go to Barisal through Bhola’s Ilisha. In that situation, we have held two meetings on behalf of our ministry to decide whether there is a waterway from Alu Bazar to Hijla. At the meeting, I decided how to navigate the dredging. So I came to visit the spot.
The state minister said, “We are not excluding any of the three channels of Dhaka-Barisal waterway, Miyarchar, Kaliganj and Alu Bazar.” I also want to keep the Alubazar channel running.
We want to have a multi-dimensional path (link) on the Dhaka-Barisal waterway. Because if, for some reason, obstacles are created, then we can use alternative routes. That’s why I want to launch all the way.
