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Conservation of Nature

DoE, environment courts must expand work: Greens

Though all districts must have environment courts as per law, only three are seen active

Staff Correspondent
Bangladesh Environment Lawyers' Association (BELA) yesterday laid emphasis on the expansion of the activities of the Department of Environment (DoE) and environment courts in all districts to protect the environment from all sorts of hazards.
"The activities of the DoE are not being conducted properly in the country, as it lacks adequate number of offices and staff in all districts,” said Sayeed Ahmed Kabir, a lawyer of BELA while presenting a paper on "Bangladesh Environment Courts: Outcomes and Challenges” at an open discussion in the capital's Forest Department auditorium.
The programme was jointly organised by Bela, Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (Bapa), Transparency International Bangladesh, BARSIC, Peace, Unnayan Dhara Trust, Eco-
Society, United Peoples Trust, Hunger Free World, Bangladesh Paus, and Dhaka Wasa. The DoE gave assistance to organise the programme on the
occasion ofWorld Environment Day.
Asked about the current status of the environment courts, Bela's Kabir said the Environment Court Act 2010 stated that all districts must have environment courts but the activities of the district courts were not visible. "Only three courts at divisional headquarters in Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet are now active," he told The Daily Star.
The act aims to expedite the trial of the environment-related offences and provides for setting up of environment courts at every district headquarters with expanded jurisdiction to take stern action against polluters.
Sayeed said the law spoke about punishment for emission of harmful smokes from vehicles, production of health hazardous products, cutting hills, filling marshlands, setting up of factories without clearances. According to the law, a violator might be jailed for a maximum of five years and a fine of up to Tk 5 lakh.
Meteorologist Rasheduzzaman of
the Department of Meteorology presented a paper on "Thunderstorm, lightening and tornado: Present situation and necessary actions to reduce death risks". Without giving any exact figure of the losses of human lives and properties, he narrated the reasons of occurrence of the natural events every year in the country.
Speaking on the occasion, columnist Syed Abul Moksud said an "influential quarter” was involved in destroying the environment in different ways like encroaching on rivers.
Former Jahangirnagar University Vice Chancellor Kazi Saleh Uddin Ahmed chaired the programme.