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National environment policy being ‘softened up’

By Mahfuz Ullah
The Ministry of Environment and Forests is softening up' the' national environment policy for its approval by the cabinet before the current month is out
Earlier, the cabinet refused to approve the draft of the policy for being ’too harsh, difficult to implement and authoritarian' in nature, cabinet sources say.
The cabinet, according to sources, raised objection to the environmental action plan, which contains proposals for 'implementing the policy by different ministries. Some of the cabinet members termed the proposed action plan a weapon to supervise the activities of other ministries. Such an action plan, according to them, would give the Ministry of Environment and Forests a
'supra-ministiy' status.
People involved in different stages of the drafting of the policy claim the observation by a section of cabinet members 'unfounded'.
-All ministries, they claim, were required to have environmental Impact as a component before approving any development plan and the action plan concerned was nothing but a collation of all those measures.
Incidentally, the process of drafting the national environment plan was initiated in 1989 and the final draft prepared in 1990 after many deliberations at different stages and comments made by different ministries.
The objectives of the draft policy arc: maintenance of the ecological balance and overall
progress of the country through protection and development of the environment, protection of the country ’ against natural disasters, prevention of all types of activities related to pollution and degradation of the environment ensuring environmentally sound development In al! spheres and ensuring sustainable, longterm and environmentally congenial utilisation of all national resources.
The proposed action plan deals with measures for agriculture. industry, health and sanitation, energy and fuel, water development, flood control and irrigation, land, forest wildlife and bio-diversity. fish and livestock, food, coastal and marine environment, crommunicatton and
transport, housing and urbanization. population. public awareness, education and research. legal framework and Institutional arrangements.
The failure to approve the policy has already delayed the publication of a status paper entitled The state of the envi-•ronmenf. The first In a series of this report was planned for publication before December 31 last year.
Ministry sources say if the plan is not approved immediately disbursement of the aid money for many of the development. projects will be delayed. Donors are attaching importance to the policy, sources add.
When contacted, Abdullah Al Noman. Minister for Environment and Forests told The Daily Star that the policy would be approved by the cabinet very soon. There would be some changes in the policy before it was again sent for cabinet approval, he added
It Is interesting to note that since the draft of the policy was approved all ministers holding the portfolio of the ministry while making public statements on any occasion as sured that the policy would be approved in two months' time
Environmentalists believe the policy will be approved before the World Summit on Environment to be held in Brazil 1rt June as the Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia is expected to lead the 14 member Bangladesh team there.