The New Nation - Internet Edition

Our Correspondent, Miresarai (Chittagong)

The brick kilns at Mirersarai of Chittagong bother little for the government environment policy though there is a definite policy in the country.

The owners of the brick kilns are setting up kilns wherever they like defying the environment policy and polluting the environment.

A letter has already been set to the upazila authority from the Ministry of Forest and Environment.

It was gathered that the government is not offering ner permission for setting brick kilns from September 2006 as the number of brick kilns has already gone than that of required. But some people at Miresarai have planned setting up brock kilns in several places prior getting the permission.

The work of setting up of a brick kiln has already been started near Mitachara without government permission for the kiln. The kiln is being set up 50 feet away from a hill, but the policy stipulates that no brick kiln should be set up withing two kilometres from a hill.

Different brick kilns set up near schools and madrasas, which are creating problems for the school children. Many of the kiln owners are collecting mud from farm lands, which is telling on the fertility of the lands and this would discourage farmers from paddy cultivation.

Some of the kiln owners are collecting mud cutting hills, which has been banned by the government for stopping mudslide during the monsoon.