Local administration conducted a drive on St Martin's Island and asked 15 illegal resorts to halt the construction work yesterday.

The drive was jointly conducted by Cox's Bazar district administration and the Department of Environment (DoE) in the areas which were declared Environmentally Critical Areas (ECA).

The drive started yesterday around 12:00 pm noon and ended in the afternoon, reports our Cox's Bazar correspondent.

Erfanul Haque Chowdhury, assistant commissioner (land) and executive magistrate of Teknaf upazila, said that they stopped the construction work of 15 illegal resorts.

"We have also collected data on the builders of illegal structures," he said, adding that more strict operations will be conducted from next week.

No more illegal construction will be allowed on the island, said Mohammad Hafizur Rahman, deputy director of Cox's Bazar DoE.

Those involved in the construction of illegal structures will be brought to book, he added.