Masterplan undertaken to curb river pollutio

State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Faruque yesterday told the parliament that the government has undertaken a masterplan to curb pollution of rivers.

The initiative was taken as per the instruction of the Prime Minister, he said in reply to a query from AL lawmaker Moazzem Hossen Ratan from Sunamganj-1.

The masterplan includes short, medium and long-term plans and it would be implemented in ten years, said the state minister, adding that a draft has already been finalised to bring navigability alongside checking pollution and encroachment of Buriganga, Shitalakhya, Turag, Balu around Dhaka and Karnaphuli in Chattogram.

He also said the ministries of shipping and water resources have begun a joint programme to make riverbanks of Karnaphuli and Buriganga free from illegal encroachment. The eviction programme is already ongoing, he added.

64 SPECIES OF FRESHWATER FISH UNDER THREAT

State Minister for Fisheries and Livestock M Ashraf Ali Khan Khosru yesterday told the House that some 64 species of freshwater fish are under threat in the country.

Of them, nine are critically endangered, 30 are endangered and 25 are vulnerable.

Khosru cited the statistics from a report of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) while replying to a question by ruling AL MP Manjur Hossain.

He also said about 13 species of fish at Kaptai Lake in Rangamati and Khagrachari districts are on the verge of extinction.