HC issues rule nisi to save Lakutia Canal from encroachers

The High Court (HC) on Sunday issued a rule nisi to save Barisal’s historical Lakutia Canal, also known as Rayer Khal, from encroachers. The division bench, comprising Justice Zinat Ara and Justice JN Deb Chowdhury, also ordered the defendants to reply to the rule within the next four weeks and submit a list of occupants and a report on the present condition of the canal within the next six weeks.
Lincoln Bayen, Barisal district coordinator of the Bangladesh Environment Lawyers’ Association (BELA), said the rule nisi was issued after a writ petition was filed by BELA for saving Lakutia Khal. Advocate Minhazul Huq Chowdhury moved the petition on behalf of the plaintiff on Sunday.
The secretaries of the land, forests and environment, water resources, local government, rural development and cooperative ministries, chairman of the National River Saving Commission, directors general of the Directorate of Environment (DoE), the Water Development Board, chief engineer of the Local Government Engineering department, Barisal deputy commissioner, the DoE director in Barisal, upazila nirbahi officer (Barisal Sadar) and assistant commissioner (land) of the upazila land office of Barisal were named defendants in the writ petition.
A ‘rule nisi’ is a court order that does not have any force unless a particular condition is met. Once the condition is met, the ruling becomes a rule absolute, and is binding.
The six-km-long Rayer Khal was excavated from Lakutia Zamindar Bari in the British period. It joined Jail Khal in Natun Bazaar area of the city, connecting Kirtankhola river with the Sugandha and Taltali rivers.
Local people and environment activists have been organising a movement for a long time now to save the canal from land-grabbers and encroachers and those who dump waste and block its flow. They are trying to prevent water bodies from being filled up and the environment from being polluted under the pretext of various types of public and private ‘developmental’ activities, said a BELA official.
The BELA official said Barisal town was once known as ‘Venice of Bengal’. It had nearly 600 ponds and water bodies and more than 22 canals in the pre-Liberation period. In the post-Liberation period, there were 17 canals in and around the city. The Kirtankhola was more than four km wide 50 years ago.
However, these water bodies have been filled up in a rampant manner, causing four canals to dry up, and leaving only 40 ponds in and around the 45-sq.-km area of Barisal city. The width of Kirtankhola has shrunk to less than one km, causing the water bodies to rapidly die.
Not only have the environmental and local government authorities been inactive, unplanned and inoperative sluice gates have been built, and small cross-dams, bridges and culverts have been constructed on the canals. Encroachment for pisciculture and construction of houses and shops have worsened the problem further, transforming water bodies like Rayer Khal into narrow sewerage drains.

HC issues rule nisi to save Lakutia Canal from encroachers

The High Court (HC) on Sunday issued a rule nisi to save Barisals historical Lakutia Canal, also known as Rayer Khal, from encroachers. The division bench, comprising Justice Zinat Ara and Justice JN Deb Chowdhury, also ordered the defendants to reply to the rule within the next four weeks and submit a list of occupants and a report on the present condition of the canal within the next six weeks. Lincoln Bayen, Barisal district coordinator of the Bangladesh Environment Lawyers Association (BELA), said the rule nisi was issued after a writ petition was filed by BELA for saving Lakutia Khal. Advocate Minhazul Huq Chowdhury moved the petition on behalf of the plaintiff on Sunday. The secretaries of the land, forests and environment, water resources, local government, rural development and cooperative ministries, chairman of the National River Saving Commission, directors general of the Directorate of Environment (DoE), the Water Development Board, chief engineer of the Local Government Engineering department, Barisal deputy commissioner, the DoE director in Barisal, upazila nirbahi officer (Barisal Sadar) and assistant commissioner (land) of the upazila land office of Barisal were named defendants in the writ petition. A rule nisi is a court order that does not have any force unless a particular condition is met. Once the condition is met, the ruling becomes a rule absolute, and is binding. The six-km-long Rayer Khal was excavated from Lakutia Zamindar Bari in the British period. It joined Jail Khal in Natun Bazaar area of the city, connecting Kirtankhola river with the Sugandha and Taltali rivers. Local people and environment activists have been organising a movement for a long time now to save the canal from land-grabbers and encroachers and those who dump waste and block its flow. They are trying to prevent water bodies from being filled up and the environment from being polluted under the pretext of various types of public and private developmental activities, said a BELA official. The BELA official said Barisal town was once known as Venice of Bengal. It had nearly 600 ponds and water bodies and more than 22 canals in the pre-Liberation period. In the post-Liberation period, there were 17 canals in and around the city. The Kirtankhola was more than four km wide 50 years ago. However, these water bodies have been filled up in a rampant manner, causing four canals to dry up, and leaving only 40 ponds in and around the 45-sq.-km area of Barisal city. The width of Kirtankhola has shrunk to less than one km, causing the water bodies to rapidly die. Not only have the environmental and local government authorities been inactive, unplanned and inoperative sluice gates have been built, and small cross-dams, bridges and culverts have been constructed on the canals. Encroachment for pisciculture and construction of houses and shops have worsened the problem further, transforming water bodies like Rayer Khal into narrow sewerage drains.