The operation to vacate the illegal structures occupying the bank of Bankkhali River in Cox's Bazar continued on the second day as well. Hundreds more illegal structures were demolished in the second day of operations on Wednesday.
The eviction drive started from Tuesday under the leadership of Additional Deputy Commissioner General and Additional District Magistrate on the orders of the High Court. So far, more than 400 illegal structures have been demolished and 300 acres of river bank has been freed, said Abu Sufian, Additional
District Magistrate of the district administration.
Additional District Magistrate of Cox's Bazar district administration led the evacuation. Abu Sufian said, in Kasturaghat of Cox's Bazar city, more than 400 hectares of river, canal and sandbanks have been destroyed and filled and constructions have been constructed, where more than 600 buildings have been built. There is an eviction order from the High Court. According to the directive, the evacuation operation was started from 10 am on Tuesday. Which continues till 6 pm. At this time, more than 300 illegal structures were demolished. The operation started again from Wednesday morning. Humiliation continues till Wednesday evening. At this time, more than ten illegal structures were demolished. Along with that, some of its unfinished structures were also demolished on Tuesday.
He said that the evacuation operation is going on in the presence of the officials of various departments including the Department of Environment, Forest Department, BIWTA. It will be explained to BIWTA by eviction of the illegal structures built on the banks of Bakkhali River from Kastura Ghat to Ramu in Cox's Bazar. He also said that the operation will continue until these illegal structures are vacated.
Rashedul Majid, Chief Executive Officer of Environment People, a voluntary organization on environmental issues, said, "Even though it is late, the administration deserves to be applauded for starting the Bankkhali river encroachment and eviction process. However, the entire area must be recovered and returned to the river. Otherwise the occupiers will take advantage and raise questions about the operation. 146 acres of Bankkhali river government land of river, canal and sand category in 5 spots from Badar Mokam of Kasturaghat in Cox's Bazar to Peshkarpara has been openly encroached in the last two years. 100 acres of Para forest, biodiversity and bird habitats of these lands have been destroyed. These encroachments involve two gangs centered on Badramokam in Kasturaghat and one centered on Peshkar Para.
According to the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), the government appointed BIWTA as the custodian of the Bankkhali River Port through a notification dated 6 February 2010. The notification contained instructions to convey 721 acres of riverside land to BIDBUTA. Later, due to the objection of the district administration of that time, the land was re-jointly surveyed on December 20, 2020. 269.425 acres of land were determined in the survey.
According to a report sent to various organizations on behalf of BIDBUTA, the Bankkhali river port is not being implemented and the bank land is becoming vacant. Influential people in Cox's Bazar are associated with river occupation. The organization identified 131 people involved in river encroachment in its investigation report and wrote to the concerned departments including the district administration to evict the encroachers.
After the full hearing of a writ of the High Court in this regard, in 2016, instructions were given to convey the river banks to BIDBUTA within 60 days of the verdict. But it has not been implemented till date.