The High Court on Sunday directed the government bodies concerned to identify and take action against those responsible for encroachment on and pollution at Dhaleshwari River at Dakhkin Dariapur at Savar, on the outskirts of Dhaka.
The bench of Justice Md Akram Hossain Chowdhury and Justice Foyej Ahmed directed the National River Conservation Commission, the deputy commissioner of Dhaka and the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority to jointly investigate and submit a list of individuals, industries and entities responsible for polluting and encroaching on the river.
The court issued the directive after hearing a public interest litigation writ petition filed by the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association.
The High Court also ordered the deputy commissioner and the superintendent of police, Dhaka, to formulate a comprehensive action plan to restore the river鈥檚 original state by dismantling all illegal structures at Dariapur mouza and submit the plan.
The court directed the respondents to submit all the compliance reports within four months.
BELA鈥檚 counsel, Md Minhazul Hoque Chowdhury, argued that the Dhaleshwari鈥檚 natural flow at Savar had been obstructed by unauthorised constructions, including Sheikh Rusel Mini Stadium.
Additionally, the river is facing severe ecological degradation due to industrial pollution, with many factories operating without functional effluent treatment plants or pollution control systems.
The court directed the Department of Environment to monitor industrial units along the river to ensure that ETPs and other pollution control mechanisms are both installed and operational.
The department was asked to maintain surveillance and report on compliance in four months.
The court also issued a rule asking respondents to explain why their failure to prevent illegal encroachment on and pollution at the Dhaleshwari 鈥� despite environmental laws and Supreme Court verdicts against such activities 鈥� should not be deemed unlawful.
Furthermore, the court questioned why the 292-kilometre long Dhaleshari River flowing through Manikganj in Dhaka district and Gazaria in Munshiganj should not be declared an ecologically critical area once all illegal structures at Dariapur mouza are removed.
The High Court directed the respondents to explain why they would not be asked to demarcate the river based on its original course and cadastral survey maps, and called on the authorities to take lasting measures to protect the river鈥檚 ecological health.
BELA termed the court鈥檚 directive a critical step towards restoring the ecological balance of the Dhaleshwari, a lifeline for biodiversity and communities in the region, now under severe threat from uncontrolled industrial wastes and encroachers.
