Stop eviction of Korail slum dwellers

Human rights activists yesterday called on the government to stop the process of evicting about 1.2 lakh dwellers from Korail slum in the city.
The move might be a part of conspiracy as such an initiative was taken at the fag end of the caretaker government's tenure, they said at a press conference.
Presenting a keynote paper, Executive Director of Ain O Salish Kendra Sultana Kamal said about 25 to 30 lakh people reside in different slums in Dhaka city. Of them, 10 lakh are garments workers and the remaining work as rickshawpuller, domestic help and as day labourer.
The caretaker government had earlier conducted slum eviction drives in different areas without taking any rehabilitation measures, she said, adding that the representatives of human rights organisations then met the housing and public works adviser who assured them of not carrying out further eviction without rehabilitating the slum dwellers.
But the housing and public works department on November 16 issued a notice on the Korail slum dwellers to evacuate immediately, Sultana Kamal said, adding that the slum dwellers have been residing there for around 35 years.
She said a writ petition was also filed with the High Court on behalf of the slum dwellers recently, and the court issued a rule upon the government to explain why the government's order to evacuate Korail slum should not be declared illegal.
The court also asked the government to maintain status quo regarding eviction of the slum until January 5, she added.
Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST), Coalition for the Urban Poor (CUP), Bangladesh Environment Lawyers' Association (BELA) and Centre for Urban Studies (CUS) organised the press conference at Dhaka Reporters Unity auditorium.
BLAST Director ANM Mahmud, CUP Executive Director Mostofa Qayum Khan, Salma A Shafi of CUS, Taslima Islam of BELA and Dr Hameeda Hossain of ASK also spoke.