There will be jail and fines for pollution in the Mongla port area, Bangladesh
Mongla Port Authority Bill-2022 has passed in the National Assembly to provide severe punishment for environmental pollution. There is a provision for jail-fine if any person or ship pollutes the port.
Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, State Minister for Shipping Bangladesh, proposed to pass the bill in Parliament. Later it was passed by voice vote. Before the bill’s passage, the public opinion on the bill sends to the Verification and Selection Committee, and the amendment proposals have disposed of.
The bill states that if a person or ship allows or discharges any waste, ash, oil or oily substance or any other substance which pollutes the water and environment, aquatic animals, plants, water, beach, shore or land within the port boundary Etc., then it will be a punishable offence.
If one commits such an offence for the first time, he will sentence to a minimum of one year, a maximum of two years imprisonment or a fine of BDT.50,000 to BDT.200,000. Each subsequent offence carries a penalty of 2 to 10 years imprisonment or a fine of Rs 2 lakh to a maximum of Rs 10 lakh.
The bill includes the appointment of any person or entity for the establishment, management and operation near Mongla port. Laws enacted from 1975 to 1978 has repeated by order of the High Court.
For this, a new law instead of the Mongla Port Authority Ordinance-1976 gets enacted. The bill provides six months’ imprisonment or a fine of BDT.1 lakh or both for evading toll, rate, and charges.
Provisions to preserve the work done in good faith has included in the bill. It states that no civil or criminal case may file against the authority or its chairman, any member, officer or employee if a person is harmed or is in danger of getting hurt by any act done in good faith. Nor can any other legal action will take.
To fulfil the purpose of this section, simple belief, whether done with negligence or not, if done honestly, would consider as doing in ‘simple belief’.
