River authorities began the massive task on Wednesday of extracting hundreds of thousands of tonnes of garbage from Dhaka's Buriganga river that being slowly choked by waste, mostly non-biodegradable polythene bags.

The three-month pilot project will cost Tk 5.75 crore, funded by Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), and span 500 metres on either side of the Second Buriganga Bridge at Nayabazar.

The BIWTA estimates the project will involve removal of some 300,000 cubic metres of waste, weighing roughly the same in tonnes when wet, from the riverbed of the capital's main river.

The waste removed from the river will be transported by trawlers to Dhaka City Corporation's Amin Bazar dumping ground and there the polythene will be sorted and properly disposed, said officials.

The clean-up was launched at 12:15pm near the bridge as shipping minister Shajahan Khan, water resources minister Ramesh Chandra Sen and environment minister Hasan Mahmud looked on.

BIWTA chairman Abdul Malek Miah and Prof Abdullah Abu Sayeed, representing environmental forums, were also present.

'We have taken up this programme to protect the water of the Buriganga and the environment," Abdul Malek told bdnews24.com.

If the pilot project goes well, BIWTA will launch a full-scale programme with the help of imported modern excavators to complete the clean-up of a 10-kilometre stretch of the Buriganga riverbed, he said.

BIWTA has already submitted a Tk 24 crore proposal to the department of environment to save Dhaka's major river.

If that is approved by the department, BIWTA will eventually include all rivers around Dhaka in an extended clean-up programme.

'DUMPING INTO RIVERS MUST STOP'

The BIWTA chief said the government must coordinate activities of the local government, health, water resources, shipping ministries with DCC and WASA in keeping the rivers clean.

He also stressed that the public must stop dumping polythene, an environmental menace, and other waste into the rivers.

The government has also taken steps to create awareness so that no waste by hospitals is dumped into the river. Dustbins have also been set up at launch, steamers and ferries to prevent garbage being thrown into rivers.

A meeting of the River Protection Taskforce on Oct 15 decided on the Buriganga clean-up plan after prime minister Sheikh Hasina directed officials to take necessary steps to save the river.

Polythene bags have been banned in Bangladesh but continue to be manufactured and widely used.

Source: bdnews24.com

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