30 illegal structures demolished in Ctg

Chattogram district administration officials today removed at least 30 illegal structures built on the Kalirchara canal and hills in the port city's Akbar Shah area amid protests.

Arafat Siddiquee, executive magistrate and assistant commissioner (Kattali circle), led the drive from 10:00am till 5:00pm with help from several state agencies, said

"We evicted these structures from the canal and hills amid protest by locals," said Md Momin Bhuiyan, assistant director (metro unit) of the environment department who helped the district administration during the drive.

About five kilometres of the canal were encroached. Drives will continue till all illegal structures on it are demolished, he added.

According to Monira Parveen, a coordinator of the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association who was present at the spot, locals started protesting after officials started demolishing structures on the canal. They even attacked Shafiqul Islam, an environmental activist and journalist, for his initiatives to conserve the canal and the hills.

Chattogram's Hill Management Committee, during its 29th meeting on October 17, decided to run the eviction drive. Three structures, built by former Chattogram City Corporation councilor Zahurul Alam Jashim, were demolished during the drive, said DoE official Md Momin Bhuiyan.