The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Prof Mozaffar Ahmad, President of Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon (BAPA), said yesterday that pollution of river water has been causing damages to bio-diversity, human beings and lands throughout the country.

Addressing a press conference, the BAPA president pointed out that most of the industrial units were not utilising their effluent treatment plants. As s result, the effluents of the industrial units were polluting the river water across the country, he added.

The press conference on " the latest condition of rivers around Dhaka city:

Whose responsibility" was organised by BAPA at the VIP auditorium of Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU).

Engineer Iqbal Habib, Joint Secretary of BAPA, presented some video clips of the contaminated rivers surrounding the Dhaka city and explained the reasons for the contamination of river water.

He put forward certain demands for the consideration of the government.

He suggested that the Government should prevail upon the owners of seven thousand industrial units in the capital to take steps for the treatment of effluents at their industrial premises.

Habib asked the Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) to widen its garbage management .DCC must discard the practice of dumping garbage into the surrounding rivers of Dhaka city or on their banks, he said.

He also asked DCC to set up sewerage treatment plant to enhance its capacity to drain out human wastes.

Habib urged the government to approve the report of the River Pollution

Prevention Committee and implements its recommendations.

Speaking at the press conference, Dr Md Abdul Matin, general secretary, BAPA, held EPZ at Savar responsible for the pollution of the water of the river Turag.'

He told the conference that private industries were responsible for the 60 percent pollution of the river water while the state run organizations pollute

30 percent of river water.The members of the public were responsible for the pollution of only 10 percent river water, he noted.

" We don't need such industries which destroy all good things", he added.

Among others, Mihir Bishwas, coordinator of Buriganga Bachao Andolon and Sharef Jamil, Joint Secretary of BAPA attended the conference.