Advisor Fouzul Kabir Khan and Environment Advisor Syeda Rezwana Hasan at a meeting to discuss waterlogging in Chittagong city today. Photo: PID

CHATTOGRAM, Jan 19, 2025 (BSS)- Participants at a meeting here today put emphasis on initiating a holistic approach to mitigate the perennial water logging problem of the port city. 

They identified the illegal hill cutting, re-filling of the canals by garbage with spilled mud from razed hills as the root causes of persisting city floods, urging for taking stern action against those man-made disasters.

The high level meeting was arranged following the recent directives from Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus over the issue.

Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Fouzul Kabir Khan, Forest, Environment and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rezwana Hasan and Disaster Management Adviser Faruk-e-Azam Bir Pratik attended the meeting held at Chattogram circuit house.

The Chief Adviser has assigned the advisers to find out a speedy and pragmatic solution to mitigate the persisting water logging problems of the port city before next monsoon.

Chattogram City Mayor Dr. Shahadat Hosen, experts, political and professional leaders, civil society members, government officials were present.

The advisers for the last two days visited different worst affected areas caused by water logging side by side with the canal and drain excavation activities, illegal encroachment and unhindered hill cutting spree in the city.

The advisers expressed their concern and resentment over negligence, corrupt practice and faulty execution process of city water logging mitigation project by spending crores of public money in the past.

They blamed unbridled corruption during ousted AL government in the name of project execution, undertaking project without taking expert opinion and proper feasibility study and lack of coordination among the public organizations for recurrence of flash floods each year.

To find out a short-term solution they laid importance on removal of garbage from the canals and drains, speed up the re-excavation of 900 meter Baroipara canal at Bahddarhat point, ensure the operations of pump machines, assign specific work and duties to various service providing organizations, introducing basin-wise water disposal system and drive to evict illegal canal and drain occupiers.

Addressing the meeting, Adviser Fouzul Kabir Khan said interim government is going to formulate an action plan for next four months and will provide all-out support to mitigate the water logging problem.  

“We are hopeful about getting a visible result after execution of this short-time action plan,” he said adding that “None will be spared from official action if found responsible for negligence and irregularities.”

Forest and Environment Adviser Syeda Rezwana Hasan said officials of land administration, who are involved in surveying and recording public lands as private property, will be brought under punishment. 

She said that a list of hills has already prepared and handed over to concern departments for their conservation through constant supervision. She asked the officials to arrest the culprits behind hill cutting instead harassing the day-labourers.

Adviser Faruk–E-Azam said there was a great lack of coordination among the utility and service providing agencies working in the city which is one of the main causes to get desired benefit from the projects.

He said government will provide all logistic and financial support despite fund constraint to solve the water logging problem in the port city.

Chattogram Development Authority Chairman Eng, Nourul Karim, Chattogram Port Authority Chairman Rear Admiral S M Moniruzzaman , Adviser to the BNP Chairperson S M Fazlul Haq, City Jamaat Ameer Alhaj Shahjahan Chowdhury, Member Secretary of BNP, Chattogram City chapter Nazimur Rahman , CU Pro-VC Prof. Kamal Uddin, Deputy Commissioner Farida Khanom , Architect Zarina Hosen, Industrialist Syed Mahmudul Haque, journalist Zahidul Karim Kachi, trade body leader S M Nurul Haque, Eng. Delwar Hossen Majumder and Coordinator of Anti-Discrimination Student Movement Zubayer Alam Manik, among other, took part in the discussion which was moderated by Divisional Commissioner Dr. Md Ziauddin.