The Chittagong District Administration (CDA) yesterday evicted about 45 illegal establishments and evacuated 100 families from the Batali hill and AK Khan areas to avert possible loss of lives from landslides.

Many people living in risky hills slopes die in Chittagong during the rainy season every year.

Thousands of people are still living in 29 hills, which are vulnerable to landslides.

The eviction drive was led by Mohammad Delowar Hossain, additional deputy commissioner of the CDA, Abdullah Al Mansoor, assistant commissioner of land (Sadar), Sabbari Rahman Sunny and Sharmin Akhter.  

“We’ve asked those living in the hill slopes to go to safer places. As part of our campaign, we have evicted 45 houses and evacuated about 100 families from the risky hills,“ said Delowar Hossain.

It has been alleged that some politically influential persons built and rented out shanties to poor people on the hill slopes.

The catastrophic landslide of 2007, which claimed 127 lives, prompted the formation of two committees.

Their 36-point recommendations to avert possible loss of lives from landslides includes evacuating people from risky areas and measures to rehabilitate them.

However, most of these recommendations have been ignored.

Landslides triggered by heavy rains in and around Chittagong city have claimed over 250 lives between 1999 and 2014. The death toll includes the 127 who lost their lives in the landslide in 2007.

The disasters took place in Lalkhan Bazar, Motijharna, Tankir Pahar, Batali Hill, Akber Shah and Pahartali areas.