No industry in 10km of Sundarbans: HC

The High Court today directed the government not to approve any industry within 10 kilometres in the Sundarbans area.

The court also ordered the government to submit a list of the industries and factories set up within the 10 kilometres in the area to this court within ten months.

The HC bench of Justice Moinul Islam Chowdhury and Justice JBM Hassan passed the order following a writ petition filed by Dr Sheikh Faridul Islam, president of Save the Sundarbans Foundation.

READ more: 18 areas not declared sanctuaries

He submitted the petition seeking its directives on the authorities concerned to relocate the industries set up in 10 kilometres of the largest mangrove forest in the world.

In the petition, he said that environment and forest ministry issued a gazette notification on August 30 in 1999 declaring the 10-km area surrounding the Sundarbans as ecologically critical area.

But the Department of Environment has reportedly issued site clearance certificate for 150 industries in that area over the years.