Green activists on Friday alleged that banned polythene bags continued to be manufactured and sold in the country in the absence of regular monitoring.
They also urged the government to take initiative to implement the Bangladesh Environment Protection Act, 1995 by closing all the polythene manufacturing industries and increase drives against those bags.
They made the call from a citizens’ gathering organised by Bangladesh Paribesh Andolan and environment-friendly shopping bag manufacturing organisations in front of the National Press Club.
The speakers said the government banned the polythene bags on March 1, 2002 but no permanent step was taken in the past eight years against those banned bags.
They said the polythene bags were not perishable and added that a big evidence of how polythene bags affect the environment is the wastes, which filled the River Buriganga, were nothing but those bags.
The speakers urged the government to close all the banned polythene bag manufacturing units and both the people and the media to remain alert to the situation.
They also said both the workers who produce polythene bags and the users were facing different health problems like — eye and skin diseases, headache, bronchitis, cough, insomnia and respiratory problem.
They also demanded initiatives to make people aware, broadcast the environment act, establish market monitoring cell, market environmental-friendly bags and punish the polythene bag manufacturers.
BAPA’s joint secretary Jibon Kumar Baral and Zakir Hossain, Alamgir Kabir and environment-friendly shopping bag manufacturing organisation secretary general Kazi Mujahid Haseem were also present at the meeting.
Representatives from Green Voice, CEDAS and CATS Bangladesh expressed their solidarities with the gathering.
