Gamekeeper turns poacher

It is an irony that not only the government but also those who are tasked specifically to save the rivers are hastening their end, wittingly most of the time and unwittingly perhaps, in a few cases. This fact was brought out starkly at a roundtable titled "Protection of River to Save Agricultural Economy, Life-livelihood and Environment: Role of State and Citizens" at the virtual discussion organised jointly by the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers' Association (BELA), Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD), and The Daily Star, marking the World Rivers Day 2020. The underlying, disquieting fact that one gets from the proceedings of the roundtable is that the engagement of the administration in saving the rivers does not comport with the government's declared will, unfortunately. The citizens can only do so much, and even that comes to nothing if government actions are not effective enough in implementing its plans, notwithstanding the glossy policies and pronouncements.

There is little doubt that there is a combined indifference of the local administration and the department of environment, and in some cases their complicity with the perpetrators and collusion of the politically powerful with these agencies, who turn a blind eye to their illegal river filling and river grabbing activities. This, along with the failure of the authorities to provide the promised facilities for industrial estates for treating effluence, and unsupervised river reclamation operations, are gradually putting our rivers and water bodies into the throes of complete extinction. Poor planning has not helped saved the Buriganga, now a scintilla from the ravages of the tanneries; instead, the shifting of the tanneries from Hazaribagh to Savar has only added another of our rivers to the endangered list.

The suggestions made during the virtual discussion deserve the attention of the relevant authorities. The administration should demonstrate more commitment to its declared aim of saving the rivers. The agencies should increase their supervision and monitoring function, and they in turn should be monitored by a central authority. Last but not the least, the River Commission, which sounds very impressive on paper, is virtually ineffective, having no power to punish or penalise. It needs to be empowered. Every single agency and every local administration should remain accountable to a central body, who should have the authority of penal action against the defaulters.