An important inter-ministerial meeting was held on Tuesday at the conference room of Ministry of Land in the Secretariat to resolve long-standing legal and administrative complexities in shrimp farm management across the country, boost government revenue, and restore discipline to the sector.
Land Minister Md Mizanur Rahman Minu chaired the meeting, where Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed was present as chief guest.
Speaking as chief guest, Salahuddin stressed that the proper and coordinated management of shrimp estates and the formulation of an effective policy are extremely urgent.
Mentioning that there must be no disruption to government revenue collection under any circumstances, he said even while litigation over leased land remains ongoing, the government can continue collecting revenue until legal resolution.
He urged the prompt settlement and allotment of khas land suitable for or currently under shrimp farming and stressed the reconstitution of shrimp estate committees.
Citing the severe environmental damage caused by the destruction of the Sundarbans in Chokoria, Cox’s Bazar, during the 1980s, the home minister added that identifying coastal forests and demarcating their boundaries to take necessary action is vital in the current context.
In his presidential address, Minu said despite the enormous economic potential of the shrimp sector, administrative and legal entanglements over the past few decades have deprived the government of vast revenue while placing farmers under severe challenges.
To resolve this situation, management committees at upazila, district, and national levels will be reconstituted, and relevant laws and policies will be amended.
He highlighted that the government’s aim is not only to increase revenue, but also to ensure the protection of the livelihoods and interests of the large population dependent on this sector.
Briefing journalists at the meeting, State Minister for Land Barrister Mir Mohammed Helal Uddin informed that decisions were taken on how to effectively collect revenue from the country’s shrimp estates and eliminate past irregularities and mismanagement.
He said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s core vow is to deliver services transparently to the country’s deprived citizens without any harassment.
Necessary legal amendments are being made to restore discipline in shrimp farm management and transform the Ministry of Land into a fully transparent, service-oriented institution.
A number of key decisions were unanimously adopted at the meeting regarding various complexities surrounding shrimp estates in Cox’s Bazar district and their implementation.
It was decided to exclude land without forest cover from the Forest Department’s gazette and release it for shrimp cultivation, alongside placing emphasis on returning 195,000 acres of land currently under the Ministry of Forest, Fisheries and Livestock to the Ministry of Land.
Moreover, effective measures will be taken for the swift disposal of writ petition filed in the High Court by Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA), which has stalled the operations of 1,466 shrimp estates in Cox’s Bazar from the 2012-13 to 2025-26 financial years, in order to reactivate them.
Decisions were also taken to reconstitute the 1992 Shrimp Estate Committee, fix new land rent, and grant a full waiver on all previously accrued unpaid interest.
The meeting was also attended by Land Secretary Md Emdadul Haque Chowdhury, Cox’s Bazar-2 MP Alamgir Mohammad Mahfuz Ullah Farid, Cox’s Bazar-3 MP Lutfor Rahman Kajol, Cox’s Bazar-4 MP Shahjahan Chowdhury, relevant divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners, and senior officials from various departments.
