River authorities guilty too

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), the organisation responsible to protect the rivers from encroachers, has set up structures on the filled-up land and rented out those, apparently encouraging these greedy people to violate the laws.

In a recent visit to Sadarghat, it was seen encroachment on the Buriganga continues on both sides of the BIWTA office.

The Buckland embankment constructed along the riverbank in Sadarghat has now become a narrow lane. Every day the embankment faces huge traffic congestion as the BIWTA authorities have built several markets on it in two rows.

Asked about construction of commercial installations on the filled-up land and riverbanks, BIWTA Chairman Abdul Mannan Chowdhury during a recent visit to The Daily Star said, "It has stopped since I took office.

"At the moment BIWTA is not making any business sheds," he said.

However, recent visits to the embankment revealed that filling up of the river continues on both sides of the BIWTA office.

Local vegetable grocers have long been dumping rubbish, rotten vegetables and fruits, and coconut shells on the riverbank in Shyambazar and Badamtali around the BIWTA office, contributing to pollution and filling up of the Buriganga.

An area stretching up to 50 feet in the river from the embankment has already been filled up where BIWTA and other religious and private organisations have set up establishments.

Under the Port Act, 1908, BIWTA was made the regulatory body of the rivers flowing around the capital in a gazette notification in 1960. But the authorities were not given magistracy power to stop encroachment and river filling activities.

Under the laws, BIWTA is responsible for protection and use of riverbanks.

As many as 27 mosques and madrasas have been built over the years on the bank of the Buriganga encroaching riverbed, revealed a government-formed taskforce report in 2003.

On the other side of the river more than 50 dockyards have been set up in Char Mirerbagh.

Intriguingly, other government agencies also take part in abusing river land instead of helping BIWTA.

In the taskforce report, it was also mentioned that the district administration of Dhaka and Narayanganj have set up some markets and business sheds in the river land which BIWTA could not recover.

The district administration also allocated 27 acres of land to the Armed Forces Division in Alibaharchar in Shyampur and BIWTA failed to recover the land as well.

"Fresh encroachment is going on behind every structure along the Buriganga by filling up the river. Once a significant portion is filled up, either the BIWTA or local influential people build structures on it. Land is very expensive here," says a businessman who rented a room under a market shed in Shyambazar.

Moreover, locals are encroaching on the river in Chan Mia Ghat area. The Shyambazar mosque was also built long ago on a filled-up portion of the river.

The BIWTA authorities have rented out its market sheds in Shyambazar to a multipurpose cloth traders' association and vegetable and fruit wholesalers.

There are 22 rooms under shed 1, 22 under shed 4, 11 under shed 2 and 15 under shed 3 for these business people.

Space under these sheds is very expensive, comments a cloth trader. He had to pay Tk 50,000 in advance to get a portion of a shed and now pays Tk 3,000 a month for a small room of 10 feet by 10 feet.

Just behind the sheds, the river has been filled up further for a few feet where a rickshaw garage has been set up.
Sources say a number of high officials and union leaders of BIWTA have made a fast buck through setting up of the markets.

THE BUCKLAND EMBANKMENT

The Buckland embankment was initiated in 1864 during the British rule when CT Buckland was appointed the commissioner of Dhaka.

Buckland collected Tk 65,000 from the city's rich residents including Abdul Gani, Kali Narayan Roy, Jagannath Roy Chowdhury, Mohini Mohon Das for construction of the embankment, historian Muntasir Mamun mentions in his book 'Purano Dhakar Ghorbari' (the buildings of old Dhaka).

Construction of the embankment was completed during the term of next commissioner Mr Simpson.