Inhabitants of Narayanganj have been living in highly air-polluted environment because the industries that are situated on the banks of the rivers emit smoke and dust causing pollution. The World Environment Day comes and goes every year with some rally and firebrands’ speech for improving environment but later Narayanganj experiences more rough then previous.
Cement factories on the bank of the Shitalakhaya and Buriganga rivers, dockyard and brick kilns are principal part of air pollution and river grabbing. Besides different industries in all places even in residential area, bring the citizen under health risk. The administration had already identified a total of four hundred and fifty six land grabbers who encroached the river shore land and also constructed large scale industries and even small shops.
Deputy Commissioner of Narayanganj Md. Jasimuddin disclosed the name of river grabbers on December 4 in 2019 while assistant commissioner (land) Hasan Bin Mohammad Ali mentioned a list of river grabbers on February 16 in 2020. Though, the separate survey conducted to identify the encroachers but the same rivers included in the survey.
Five rivers crossed the district- Shitalakhaya, Buriganga, Dhaleshari, Meghna and Brahmaputra. Among the four rivers the Shitalakhya mostly grabbed and almost dyeing. Big industries including cement factories, salt industries, knit dyeing factories and dockyard constructed grabbing shitalakhaya river and their wastage poisoning water.
Brick kilns grabbed the river land of Buriganga and its part is grabbed by cement factories named shah cement and crown cement. Recent revealed list of the river grabbers by AC (land) became known a fatal scenario that branded cement factories and medicine company ACI also the grabber of Shitalakhya river.
There are fourteen cement factories in the district, of which majority constructed on river bank encroached the river shore even in a portion of river. A knit garments composite factory named Crony grabbed an old river that connected Shitalakhya and Buriganga. The enforcement wing of environment immediately fined 70 lakh taka to the factory for river grab.
Deputy Commissioner office named 127 land grabbers while recent Narayanganj sadar AC(land) disclosed list of 229 river grabbers. Narayanganj people extremely blaming the environment department desire to immediate effective action to improve environment including air pollution.