Master plan a must to save rivers

A river master plan is very necessary to save the rivers across the country, said speakers at a dialogue yesterday.

They also demanded that the government formulate a policy to protect the rivers from encroachers and pollution.

ActionAid organised the dialogue titled “Rights of River and Right to River” in Cirdap auditorium of the capital.

Many rivers were destroyed due to construction of embankments or sluice gates on the rivers in the 1980s, said Prof Md Monzoorul Kibria of Chittagong University.

“If we want to save our rivers, a master plan is very necessary; otherwise, constructing embankments or bridges on the rivers will destroy more rivers of the country,” said Monzoorul.

He also suggested making a separate ministry for rivers and strengthening the River Commission so that it can prepare the master plan.

M Inamul Haque, chairman of the Institute of Water and Environment, said there are 1,182 rivers across the country; the main reasons behind destruction of the rivers include excessive extraction, grabbing and pollution.

Prof Rezaur Rahman of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) said bridges are constructed on the rivers without proper planning, damaging the rivers.

General Secretary of Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon Abdul Matin said the projects taken by Bangladesh Water Development Board for controlling flood have nothing to do with protecting rivers.

He said there is no specific policy or law to save rivers.

Lawmaker Tipu Sultan said people kill rivers for their own interest. Due to the vote politics, lawmakers in many cases cannot go tough on the grabbers, he said. 

Sharmeen Murshid, member of the National River Conservation Commission (NRCC) and CEO of BROTEE, said the River Commission was formed to protect rivers, but it is a weak organisation.

She said its chairman post is vacant for the last three months for which it is not functioning properly.

To save the rivers, she said, giving emphasis on research work is a must.

But reality is that the River Commission does not have proper budget to conduct research work, she said.

Stressing the need for water diplomacy to save rivers, Sharmeen said river issue is not high on the agenda of the foreign ministry, but it must be.

Emphasising the need for a river policy, advocate Hasnat Quayum of the Supreme Court said though there are over 100 policies on different subjects, there is no policy on rivers.

He said there is a water policy which is against the rivers and it has to be changed.

About river-linking project of India, Hasnat said though India is saying it is a river-linking project, it is actually a basin-linking project -- connecting Himalaya basin to Peninsula basin.

Bangladesh will have to stand against it, he said.

Lawmaker Fazle Hossain Badsha said bringing all the 54 transboundary rivers back to its earlier navigable stage is necessary.