Bangladesh slips in global ranking
THE country has dipped nearly 40 points in the Global Environment Performance Index 2014 and Bangladesh now stands 9th from the bottom in the survey conducted worldwide encompassing 179 nations. The study is a report published every two years and brought out jointly by Yale and Columbia universities. Global environment takes into account nine indices that include water and sanitation, quality of air, forestry, water resources to name but a few. In terms of quality of air we scored nearly 14 points on a scale of 100. To state the situation as being dire is somewhat of an understatement, especially when considering the fact that Bangladesh lags behind every other country in the South Asian region.
What concerns health specialists in the country is that quality of air is consistently getting worse.
The steady increase of mono-oxide and sulphur dioxide in the air has brought with them an alarming rise in lung-related diseases like cancer. Health practitioners contend that as the country lacks a central environment directorate, the authorities are at a disadvantage when dealing with leading polluters like industry and business. This is best highlighted by the failure to relocate the tanneries away from Hazaribagh despite several High Court rulings and inability of authorities to tackle the pollution caused by errant brick fields. Health risks associated with irresponsible businesses and industries are a well established fact. Unless policymakers are willing to arm authorities with necessary powers, pollution cannot be expected to recede and public woes are set to continue.
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