Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, on Thursday, has urged all—particularly mills and factories—to stop discharging waste into rivers; as water pollution appears to be a severe problem in the country.
"I would like to request you all to stop discharging waste into the rivers. Every industrial unit will have to have a waste management system so that it does not pollute rivers," she said adding that sea and river pollution has become a global problem, reports UNB.
The prime minister stated this while addressing a function organized by the Water Resources Ministry at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the city, marking World Water Day 2019.
Sheikh Hasina stressed the need for regular dredging to maintain river-water flow and address the protracted river-erosion problem.
"It is essential to dredge our rivers regularly to maintain their water flow and enhance their water-holding capacities and thus turn this problem [river erosion] into blessings," she said.
Currently the Water Resources Ministry has 22 dredgers, while the Shipping Ministry and Bangladesh Navy have 44 other dredgers.
"The procurement of 80 more dredgers is underway," she said.
"I think that it is essential to have a dredger for each large river and river port to regularly dredge the rivers and keep river routes operational," she added.
Chaired by State Minister for Water Resources Zaheed Farooque, the function was addressed, among others, by Chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Water Resources Ministry Ramesh Chandra Sen and Deputy Minister for Water Resources AKM Enamul Hoque Shameem, reports UNB.
Water Resources Secretary Kabir Bin Anwar delivered the welcome speech at the event.
The theme of this year World Water Day is “Leaving No One Behind,” which is also the main theme of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
