Tannery relocation
HC �seeks� defaulters� list
Deadline expired on June 30
ANISUR RAHMAN KHAN
Taking a tough stance against tannery owners for missing several deadlines for shifting their tanneries to Savar Tannery Industrial City from Hazaribagh, the countrys apex court is now likely to issue summons against those who have failed to comply with the High Court order in this regard yet, industries ministry sources said.
The latest deadline set by the High Court for shifting tanneries from Hazaribagh to Savar expired on June 30. Now, the government has said that tanneries that fail to relocate by December could face disconnection of their electricity and gas lines by the concerned departments.
We have received a letter from the High Court. The HC has sought a list of tannery owners who have not complied with the HC order yet. The concerned department is preparing the list, a top official of the industries ministry told The Independent last week on the condition of anonymity.
The HC had on June 23, 2009, ordered all tanneries in Hazaribagh to vacate the area by Feb 28, 2010. Following a petition by environmental and human rights groups, the court also made installation of a central effluent treatment plant (CETP) mandatory for all industries, including the tanneries, by June 2010. Several deadlines have passed since then December 25, 2014; March 31 and June 30, 2015) but tannery owners have conveniently ignored the directives.
About 205 plots have already been allocated to the tannery owners in Savar for relocation. The February 2010 deadline was extended several times following governments prayers before the High Court. On July 3, 2011, the government sought a final extension of two years for relocation of tanneries in another prayer. As usual, the commitment was not met.
Besides the shifting of tanneries, the courts order regarding mandatory CETP is yet to be complied with. Ten years
have passed but the Bangladesh Small Cottage and Industries Corporation (BSCIC) is yet to complete the construction of the pivotal CETP for the Hazaribagh tanneries relocated to their new site in Savar. This, despite completion of land development, roads, electrical lines, offices and other necessary infrastructure.
The shifting of tanneries will not be possible before December. The decision on expiry of deadline will be taken after our Chairmans return from China, Abu Bakar Siddique, Deputy Chief Engineer and in-charge of the tannery transfer project of the BSCIC, told The Independent.
He further informed that it will only be possible to shift one or two factories to Savar in the said period. Shifting the tannery project from Hazaribagh to Savar will be done by June 2016. We are trying to shift the tanneries within the shortest possible time. It would take two more months to complete the construction of the CETP, Industries Secretary Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told The Independent.
The government had initially set a target to complete the shifting process of tanneries by December this year. We have already completed construction of all necessary infrastructures like road, and gas and power links. The tannery owners have also shown interest in shifting their factories, he added.
The gas and electricity lines of factory owners who do not shift their tanneries within the stipulated period will be disconnected, the Secretary said in response to a query regarding possible action against those who fail to shift their factories within the given time period.
It took decades of lobbying by environmental groups to convince the authorities to shift the tanneries in 2003. These factories had virtually turned the river Buriganga into a pool of septic water with free flow of untreated waste from over 200 industries.
According to sources in the Environment Ministry, around 22,000 cubic metre of highly toxic untreated liquid waste from tanneries flows into the Buriganga through various canals and drains.
