Several illegal Structures Evicted to Keep St. Martin Clean

The Department of Environment, Bangladesh, and Cox’s Bazar District Administration jointly stopped the construction of 9 illegal resorts on St. Martin’s Island in Cox’s Bazar, the declared Environmentally Critical Area (ECA) of Bangladesh.

Apart from this, both authorities evicted the illegal structures built by encroaching sand on the beach. Md Azharul Islam, Additional Assistant Director of the Department of Environment, St. Martin, confirmed this information.

Also, ten temporary shops built illegally occupying the beach evacuate. Later, an awareness campaign has conducted on various issues, including not driving motorbikes on St. Martin’s beach, not damaging the trees, keeping the beach clean, and protecting the environment and surroundings. Leaflets were distributed among tourists visiting the island on these issues.

A short consultation meeting also took place with the islanders and local public representatives on keeping St. Martin clean.

The officials of both organizations, including UNDP’s representative, gave various directions in the consultation meeting. Such operations of the Department of Environment will continue in the future.