'Do not lease Tanguar Haor'

Local public representatives and leaders of professional groups attended the meeting, held at Sunamganj Circuit House on Wednesday. A sub-committee on the Ministry of Forest and Environment led by Nazimuddin Alam organised the meeting after its day-long visit to the haor.

A documentary video on Tanguar Haor was screened at the meeting.

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The speakers suggested formation of a special force comprising BDR, police and Ansar to guard the haor from being plundered.

The 3868 acre haor, a Ramser site, with 60,000 birds, 140 species of sweet water fish and a variety of rare watery plants is the largest fresh water body in the country. Over one lakh guest birds flock there during the winter.

Plundered for years, the vast water body was declared an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) in 2000 and taken up as a Ramsar site. But the Ramsar project is yet to be implemented due to the policymakers' indecision and failure in selecting financial investors.

The meeting suggested that new 'water lords' should not be created in the name of leasing it.

Nazimuddin Alam told the meeting that Tanguar Haor is a national asset and it should be preserved as per the plan.

The land ministry placed the haor under the disposal of the environment ministry for three years for implementation of the Ramsar programme. The three-year period ends on February 10.

They also suggested increasing the number of water transports and other logistics to guard it.

They lauded deployment of BDR, Ansar and Police in the haor months back by the district administration, which stopped over four years' plundering by organised gangs backed by influential quarters.

The district administration also deputed magistrates. The measures earned peoples' support, the speakers said.

Sunamganj Deputy Commissioner Jafar Siddique conducted the meeting, also addressed by, among others, Sunamganj Pourashava BNP President advocate Humayun Kabir Jahanur, writer Hossain Toufique Chowdhury, Advocate Ali Yunus, Advocate Bazlul Majid Chowdhury Khoshru, Sunamgaj Police Superintendent Mir Shahidul Islam, BDR Officer Major Saber, Sunamganj Bar General Secretary Advocate Matiur Rahman Pir, Advocate Jahir Ahmed, Union Parishad chairmen Ashrafuzzaman and Abdul Khaleque.