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therefore recommended taking necessary actions so that people committing environmental crimes can be sent to jail instantly,” ruling Awami League MP and the committee chairman Saber Hossain Chowdhury said.

The meeting was held at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban.

About enforcement of Environment Conservation Act, he said, “We have told officials of the department of forest and environment that no one is above the law and violators will be reined in, with no exceptions.

“We often see people are cutting trees indiscriminately or mills and factories are polluting the environment. But instantly we cannot send the offenders to jail ... .”

Saber, also former chairman of Inter Parliamentary Union said, “Environmental law enforcement is a major focus for us and we are also examining how best technology may be leveraged to this end.”

About the Unesco’s observations regarding the Sundarbans, the parliamentary watchdog asked the ministry to fulfil the UN body’s requirement to keep the world’s largest mangrove forest on the world heritage list.

The committee also asked the ministry to take necessary preparations for taking part in the Convention on Biological Diversity which is scheduled to be held in Kunming in October this year.

The main theme of the convention is “Ecological Civilization: building a shared future for all life on earth.”

Post 2020 biodiversity framework is likely to be adopted in the convention which will play an important role in saving bio-diversity and prevent main causes of the damage to ecology.