Move to Free Kalyanpur Canal
Drive abandoned as MP weighs in
A joint team of Dhaka Wasa and district administration had to abandon a scheduled eviction drive to recover the Kalyanpur canal from encroachers yesterday in the face of opposition from the local lawmaker.
“We were all set to carry out the drive and went to the site, but higher authorities called us back as the lawmaker opposed it,” said Mainul, executive magistrate of Dhaka, designated to lead the drive.
The drive was aimed at freeing the 2.5-kilometre canal from illegal occupancy.
At least 60 to 70 police personnel, including officials from Darussalam Police Station and riot police under the executive magistrate had arrived on the scene to maintain law and order.
Led by Executive Engineer Ruhul Amin, officials concerned and labourers of Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) were present to conduct the drive.
“No sooner had we reached the site than the deputy commissioner asked me to withhold the drive,” said Mainul Amin. Now, the higher authorities would discuss the matter, he said.
The drive was scheduled for today as well.
At a meeting on September 29, the high-powered committee of the national taskforce on river recovery led by the shipping minister decided to reclaim four canals by October, said Taqsem A Khan, Dhaka Wasa managing director.
Local lawmaker Aslamul Haq, however, said only a 300-foot stretch of the canal was occupied with earth filling. There was no need for such a gathering of administration and police to recover a stretch of canal that still flows.
“The Kalyanpur canal will be freed anytime I desire; it does not need deployment of officials and law enforcers,” he said, “I would have freed it from encroachment had Wasa requested me.”
He claimed that the taskforce had asked the authorities to retrieve those canals where water flow is obstructed due to encroachments.
The priority should be reclaiming the stretch between Mirpur main road and Basupara, which was illegally occupied by his predecessor MP, said Aslamul Haq.
The canal stretches from Mirpur main road to sluice gate.
Dhaka Deputy Commissioner Mohibul Haque said the drive had been postponed due to confusion over the position of the canal.
“But we think the position we have ascertained is correct,” he said, “Still, we have sit today [yesterday] to review it.”
In a similar incident, the joint authorities on October 18 had to withdraw from evicting the encroachers from Ramchandrapur canal in Mohammadpur in the face of opposition by some “freedom fighters”.
“It is unfortunate and undesirable to give up a scheduled eviction drive,” said Mohibul.
It takes several lakh taka to arrange and carry out an eviction programme, he said.
The district administration abandoned another drive along the Kantashur canal on October 20 without any specific reason.
DRIVE ON
SHYAMOLI CANAL
Dhaka district administration and Bangladesh Water Development Board demolished 27 illegal structures on Shyamoli canal yesterday.
“We have so far demolished around 72 structures, including the 27, in the three-day drive that started on October 27,” said Mohammad Al-Amin, executive magistrate of Dhaka DC office, who led the drive.
At least 40 labourers and around 45 police personnel took part in the drive with two excavators from morning to 5:00pm.
He said they had also started the excavation work on Saturday and they have excavated already 500 feet out of 1.50 km of the canal.
“We have already finished the demolition of the illegal structures constructed on 1.5km and the drive will continue today,” he said.
The high-ups would decide about the eviction of the illegal structures on the Shyampur canal, he said.
