Editorial
Land grabbing menace
Deterrent punishment called for
The government decision to launch a drive to recover about 1000 acres of khas lands of Bhawal forest illegally occupied by industrialists and other individuals in the past is a move in the right direction.
The land ministry identified 93 usurpers of forest lands worth around Taka 1000 crore during the preceding government. The decision to recover the land remained suspended for sometime due to unknown reasons. The grabbers submitted fake documents and false statements to validate their action.
The parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Land will meet this week to discuss the progress on implementation of its recommendations.
Not only are government lands in Bhawal forest under illegal occupation, similar cases of usurpation of all kinds of government lands have also been going on across the country.
Apart from forest lands, plain and hilly lands are also poached upon by the opportunists. The foreshores of rivers and canals are the latest targets, causing immense damage to the rivers of the country. Grabbing of hill lands in Chittagong led to mudslides and loss of lives.
There seems to be a strong nexus at work between vested interest and officials to flout government orders. For its part, the government has not been successful in dealing with them effectively. Half hearted measures have run out of steam; the concerned authorities will have to be tough to prevent the grabbers from continuing their illegal activities and recover not only the particular forest land, but all kinds of land that they have already usurped.
While giving kudos to the land ministry for its decision to recover lost lands, we urge the government to take legal action against the grabbers so as to deter those who are waiting in the wings to follow in their footsteps should they slip though the loopholes of law.
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