BIWTA takes down illegal building, walls

Reclaiming Turag River
BIWTA takes down illegal building, walls
A Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) team in a drive yesterday knocked down a building and six boundary walls and
detained nine workers from seven dredgers and a sand carrying vessel in the Turag river.
Dhaka district Magistrate Abu Sayeed of the team also seized six sections of

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Rivers officially made thinner

Faulty demarcation encourages encroachers; ministerial recommendations for pillar relocation ignored
The rivers of Dhaka are destined to remain narrow as the shipping ministry has expressed its inability to fully rectify the faulty demarcation of the streams despite a High Court order and subsequent ministerial decision.
An extensive visit revealed that relevant district administrations and officials of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) had demarcated the Turag, Balu and Buriganga rivers, leaving out the foreshores at many places.
As a result, land grabbers

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Green abroad, polluter at home

He is a Bangladesh born Spaniard. His family members campaign to protect and conserve the environment abroad. But back in his own country, his garment factory in Gazipur pollutes the river Turag. His name is Giasuddin Murad.
The Department of Environment yesterday fined him Tk 39 lakh for emptying his factory’s

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Bishwa Ijtema concludes with Akheri Munajat

Thousands of people from home and abroad sought forgiveness from the Almighty Allah and prayed for peace, progress and prosperity of the Muslims in the final prayers (Akheri Munajat) of the three-day second-phase Bishwa Ijtema that ended at Tongi in Gazipur on Sunday.
Maulana Jobaerul Hasan from Delhi, a member of the Tabligh Jamaat advisory committee

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First phase Ijtema ends with Akheri Munajat

The first phase of Biswa Ijtema at Tongi near the capital ended yesterday afternoon with the offering of Akheri Munajat (concluding prayers) seeking divine blessings for the people of Bangladesh and the Muslim Ummah. The Ijtema venue on the banks of the Turag river and its adjoining areas reverberated with the word ”Amin” repeatedly uttered by lakhs of devotees from home and abroad raising their hands

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Concluding prayers today

Biswa Ijtema
Concluding prayers today
The three-day-long first phase of Biswa Ijtema, the second largest congregation of the Muslims, will conclude today through offering Akheri Munajat (concluding prayers) on the banks of the Turag.
Hundreds of thousands of devotees from home and abroad will pray for spiritual progress, exaltation and welfare of the Muslim community

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Biswa Ijtema begins

6 devotees die
Prayers and sermons marked the first day of Biswa Ijtema — one of the largest congregations of Muslims — as it opened on the banks of the river Turag at Tongi yesterday morning.
Six participants died of cardiac arrest and old age complications on Thursday night and early yesterday, organisers said, as the Ijtema opened after Fajr prayers.
Lakhs of devotees from home and abroad are attending the congregation being held in two phases. The banks of Turag — 20 km from the capital — turned into

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No water yet for Buriganga, Turag from Jamuna river

The “Buriganga River Restoration Project (New Dhaleswari-Pungli-Bangshi-Turag-Buriganga river system)” has been virtually stalled for various reasons, including delay in funds allocation, non-availability of dredgers and non-participation of bidders in the tender process. The Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) project, worth Tk. 944.09 crore, was supposed to take off in December last

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Pollution of rivers around Dhaka

Increasing threats to life
Mohammad Tareq Hasan
With a population of over 15 million Dhaka is one of the most congested cities of the world. This rapidly growing city is located on the northern bank of the river Buriganga and surrounded by other rivers, namely, the Turag to the west, the Tongi Khal to the north and the Balu to the east. The rivers surrounding Dhaka are an advantage to it and essential for the survival of the mega city as these provide drainage system, drinking water, different kinds of fishes and also waterways for traveling. However, being the capital of Bangladesh

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Encroachers gobble up Atir Khal

An NGO team in a visit yesterday found grabbers have been filling the whole Atir Khal (canal) and its adjoining vast wetlands in Basila of the city.
The team of Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (Bapa) also found Dumini canal in Khilkhet is being filled and narrowed at many points for different housing projects.
Bapa general secretary Abdul Matin led the team during its visit to the two canals and the river Turag from 10:00am to 2:00pm to inspect the water bodies’ present

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Result close to ZERO

Court Directives, Govt Warnings, Public Outcry
Result close to ZERO
Pinaki Roy
Encroachment and pollution of the Buriganga, Shitalakhya, Turag and Balu rivers in and around the capital continue despite the government’s pledges to put an end to those.
In response to a campaign by the media, the government in June 2009 pledged to restore water flow in the rivers, stop pollution and encroachment, and recover the grabbed land.
In May-June that year The Daily Star ran two series of reports on encroachment and pollution of the four rivers–the lifeline for the densely

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Akheri Munajat today

Ijtema 2nd Phase
Akheri Munajat today
Thousands of Muslims from home and abroad will pray seeking divine blessings from Allah on the bank of river Turag as the second phase of Biswa Ijtema ends today with the Akheri Munajat (concluding prayer).
The concluding prayer is expected to start any moment before the Johar prayers following sermons by eminent Islamic scholars on various aspects of the religion for two

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Devotees throng Ijtema ground

3-day congregation of Muslims begins
A large number of devotees thronged the bank of Turag in Tongi yesterday as the first phase of Biswa Ijtema, one of the largest congregations of the Muslims, got underway.
The Ijtema venue literally turned into a human sea during the Juma prayers. Pesh Imam (prayer leader) of Kakrail Mosque Hafez Maulana Md Jobayer led the

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Bishwa Ijtema begins today

The annual Bishwa Ijtema of Tablig Jamaat—one of the worled’s largest congregations of muslim devotees—begins today on the bank of the river Turag in Tongi amid religious fervour and tight security measures taken by the authorities.
This will be the first of the two phases of prayers as the organisers for the first time decided

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