No rawhide into Hazaribagh from Apr 1

The government has decided not to allow rawhide into Hazaribagh in Dhaka from April 1 this year.

An inter-ministerial meeting to prevent pollution of the rivers Burhiganga, Shitalakkhya, Balu and Turag took the decision on Sunday.

Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan presided over the meeting. Abul Kalam Azad, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister, Rear Admiral Mohammad Nizamuddin Ahmed, Chief of Naval Staff, Dr. Zafar Ahmed Khan, Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources and Ashok Madhob Roy, Secretary of Shipping Ministry, were also present at the meeting.

According to the meeting, 60 percent of the capital city's industrial waste is responsible for the pollution of the rivers around Dhaka. Of this waste, 40 percent comes from tanneries.

The deadline to reallocate the tarreries from Hazaribagh to Savar was extended twice, the last one to Dec 31 last year.

Earlier on January 10, Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu threatened to take away the licences of the tanneries that would not shift within 72 hours.