Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has ordered an urgent, joint rescue plan for Dhaka’s heavily polluted rivers, warning that the environmental damage has now reached an “unbearable” stage.
Speaking on Thursday, he directed authorities to quickly draw up and execute a co-ordinated strategy to clean up Buriganga, Turag, Balu, and Shitalakshya.
Addressing a high-level meeting on “Water and Environmental Development of Buriganga River” at Secretariat’s Cabinet Division conference room at noon, the prime minister warned that the government would be held accountable to future generations if they failed to act immediately.
He said there is no room for negligence, and that the new plan must be effectively implemented on the ground.
Following his directive, a special inter-agency co-ordination committee will be set up under the supervision of Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to draft and run a time-bound action plan.
According to the Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Shahadat Hossain Shadhin, this committee will oversee and align the work of all relevant ministries and agencies, submitting regular progress reports to PMO.
The prime minister highlighted the need for seamless teamwork, bringing together Department of Environment, Bangladesh Water Development Board, Dhaka WASA, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), RAJUK, Dhaka North and South City Corporations, and the district administration.
He also ordered that environmentalist organisations, volunteer groups, educational institutions, and local citizens be actively involved in these efforts.
During the meeting, officials discussed the current state of capital-adjacent rivers and identified the primary drivers of river pollution:
- The discharge of untreated industrial waste
- Inadequate sewerage and drainage networks
- Siltation and a loss of depth in city canals
- Weaknesses in solid waste management
To tackle these problems, the meeting prioritised ensuring the effective operation of Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs) in factories, restoring canals and drainage, launching regular drives against polluters, strictly applying existing environmental laws, and building public awareness.
The high-level meeting was attended by Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Commerce Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, State Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Sheikh Faridul Islam, Dhaka Naval Area Commander Rear Admiral Abdullah-Al-Maksus, and Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary ABM Abdus Sattar, alongside other senior officials.
