Shitalakshya pollution: HC orders power, gas disconnection for 20 factories without ETPs

The High Court today (5 March) ordered the disconnection of electricity and gas connections of 20 industrial factories operating without effluent treatment plants (ETPs) and polluting the Shitalakshya River in Narayanganj.

The court directed the chairman of the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), the director general of the Department of Environment (DoE), and the Narayanganj deputy commissioner to implement the order and submit a compliance report by 30 April.

The directive came following a hearing on a supplementary petition in an ongoing writ filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB).

The order was issued by a High Court bench of Justice Fahmida Quader and Justice Md Ashif Hasan.

Senior Advocate Monjil Morshed represented the petitioner during the hearing. Advocate Muntasir Uddin Ahmed appeared for the Department of Environment, while Deputy Attorney General Mohammed Shafiqur Rahman represented the state.

HRPB filed the public interest writ last year, attaching reports that several industrial units along the Shitalakshya River were operating without ETPs and discharging waste into the river.

On 6 May last year, the High Court issued a rule asking the authorities to monitor the polluting factories and assess the extent of environmental damage.

Following the court order, the Department of Environment submitted a report to the court on 8 December detailing the status of several industrial establishments. The report found that 20 factories were operating without ETPs.

Among them are Khaleque Textile, Lina Paper Mills, RSK Dyeing, Khan Brothers Textile, SRS Need Dyeing, M/S Rubel Dyeing, New Alam Dyeing, Mayer Doa Dyeing, MR Dyeing and Bismillah Knit Dyeing.

After reviewing the report, HRPB filed a supplementary petition seeking a directive to disconnect the electricity and gas connections of factories operating without ETPs along the river.