Who will rein in industrial pollution in Gazipur?
In two decades, more than 2,000 industrial units have been established in Gazipur, particularly after the 1988 floods, leaving it vulnerable to environmental degradation
From where we stood near the dying Labandaha canal at Mawna of Gazipur, you could see the vast swamp, green horizon in the distance and scattered palm trees.
The sight was however deceiving. Tonnes of municipal waste lay all around us, emitting a strong, foul smell. The canal, which goes past several industrial units, drains out pitch-black water into the swamp.
It was difficult to breathe in the air. But 66-year-old Abdur Rahim did not seem bothered by it. His malnourished cow was grazing nearby on what should have been a pasture.
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"I have gotten used to this smell. But I am no longer engaged in agriculture. I was compelled to sell my cropland at a low price," said Rahim.
Rahim had a 1.75-bigha land on the bank of Labandaha. 10 years ago, he could grow more than 2,000kg of rice from his two-crop land.
When the canal became polluted and the Sreepur Municipality transformed the swamp to a landfill, it started affecting his land as well as the livestock.
Waste collectors working for the municipality say more than 1,000kg of waste is dumped daily into the lowland.
People from the neighbouring villages, including Beltali, Bedjuri, Sirichal and Beraiderchala, complained that uncontrolled pollution has stopped them from engaging in agriculture on their lands located in the swamp.
"Three years ago, my father planted paddy on his one-bigha land, which was the last time we did it. It yielded only 12kg grain. The land now only produces grass. We hear the grass has also become 'poisonous' for cattle and human beings," said Miskat Russel, a Bangla language graduate and green activist who lives in neighbouring Dokhola locality.
Russel complained that one apparel industry - Dignity Textiles Mills that falls on the Labandaha course - has not only encroached the canal but also transformed it into a drain for its untreated effluent (liquid waste).
AB Moniruddin Hossain, former owner of Dignity Textiles, told TBS that under his management 10 years back, the knitting-dyeing company used a treatment plant to treat the waste. He said maybe the plant is not working now.
Moniruddin sold the textile mills to one certain Deel Hue - a national of Mauritius. This correspondent could not reach Deel.
There was also a factory of Perfetti Van Melle - an Italian chocolate venture in Bangladesh - releasing industrial effluents into the lowland.
None of the chocolate factory staff wanted to talk. Sreepur Municipality Mayor Anisur Rahman too remained unresponsive to this correspondent's phone calls and text message.
It was evident that the municipal authorities in Gazipur - the district where the country's most industries are concentrated - are failing at managing industrial and municipal waste. The poor state of Baigartek Beel, covering more than 1.5km2 marshland in Tongi area, is yet another example.
The beel is crisscrossed by tributaries of the Tongi canal that was once considered the prime water source for irrigation around the area. Unauthorised drainage of industrial effluents and unplanned sewerage systems have polluted the beel water. Similar to Labandaha, this beel has now become a landfill.
Neighbouring Ershad Nagar resident Rehana Begum said as a child, she used to catch fish and bathe in the beel when it became submerged during monsoon.
"This water has now become poisonous; it itches," the middle-aged housewife said.
An open stream of pitch-black water coming from Gazipura Banshpatti and a long-stretch of box culvert carrying sewage from Ershad Nagar were found connected to the Baigartek pool, where the municipal waste collectors too dump their daily collection.
Hundreds of people, especially the students of Hazi Almas Ali High School, their parents and workers of neighbouring industries use the small bridge everyday. The stink from the wetland is unbearable.
It was a weekday when we saw school friends Sadia, Jannat, Safi, Arafat, Sohan, Nayem, Omar and Faiza returning home at noon. They said they have to tightly cover their noses with handkerchiefs to avoid the smell.
Amir Hossain, father of a student, said the polluted air is responsible for children's breathing problems.
"There is no one to listen to our problems and the pollution continues unabated," he said.
A small Garo community in Kewachala in Sreepur also shared similar frustrations. For years, around a hundred Garo families - mostly agriculture-based - have been living in the area. However, industrial pollution has pushed them towards extinction.
People, including Bangalee settlers and tenants living in the area, have to bear a constant, monotonous and deafening noise generated from the adjacent apparel factory of Denimach.
The hot, toxic fumes coming from the factory's low chimneys make the air unbreathable. Residents of Kewachala are the ultimate sufferers.
Centenarian Kuki Sangma used to lead a peaceful agrarian life at the semi-green locality until the factory commenced its operation a couple of years ago. Now the widow in fragile health only prays for a peaceful death to escape from the pollution.
"Please, stop this intolerable noise. I cannot sleep. No one can sleep," Kuki said. Many of her relatives have already shifted to another place since industrial units started to mushroom in the area.
Her granddaughter Jhuma Sangma complained children cannot concentrate on their studies, neither can they take rest. During load shedding, the noise becomes louder as the factory starts its power generators.
"Everyone here is suffering from deafness, anxiety and poor health. The polluters are influential so we remain silent," Jhuma said.
Emdadul Haque, associate professor at Mawna-based Muktijoddha Degree College, however, is a one-man army protesting against industrial pollution in his locality for years.
At Kewa Purba Khanda village, some Chinese entrepreneurs have been operating a lead factory illegally for the last seven years. The factory not only pollutes the air but also contaminates the soil with effluents.
Within a few years of its operation, the hazardous factory named Geli Industries began to cause acute air pollution and over-toxicity of nearby croplands. The college teacher Emdad motivated local people and often organised human chains.
Pupils at the Kewa Purba Khanda Primary School, located a few yards north of the factory, were the first victims. They often fell sick. In 2018, the school teachers wrote to Gazipur Deputy Commissioner, demanding closure of the factory.
Responding to the civic demand, the regulatory body - Department of Environment (DoE) - canceled the factory's clearance and cut its power supply lines. Even then the Chinese entrepreneurs, backed by some local powerful people, are operating the factory and now the pollution has increased as the factory generators are coal-powered.
During a brief conversation with this correspondent, the 'so-called' boss of the factory, Phu, said he is a 'friend' of Bangladesh, making lead batteries cheaper for electric three-wheelers.
On 15 November, DoE officials raided the factory for the second time. They fined Phu and others Tk2 lakh and left.
"Again the factory was spared strict action, even though it lacks environmental clearance. This type of relaxed action will certainly encourage other polluters," said Emdadul.
During the raid, the DoE officials did not allow the TBS team to enter into the Geli premises. While leaving the spot, DoE deputy director Noyon Miah said he was not authorised to seal off that particular factory.
As the regulatory body, the DoE should have done something. But Noyon, like his other colleagues, gave the same excuse, "my office is understaffed."
Gazipur, considered a highland, attracted aggressive industrialisation soon after the devastating 1988 floods when emerging industrialists found this place suitable for durable factories.
Within two decades, more than 2,000 red-and-orange category industrial units have been established in the district, leaving it vulnerable to environmental degradation. Gazipur is now overpopulated with around two million workers from across the country living there.
To accommodate industrialisation, Gazipur - once rich in forest resources - has sacrificed more than 52,000-acres of forestland. Most of the wetlands have disappeared.
Mohammad Anwar Sadat Sarker, president of the Gazipur Chamber of Commerce and Industries, said blanket closure of the polluting industries will have a negative impact on the national economy.
He said the Prime Minister's instruction to set new industry only at the designated economic zones will help protect Gazipur from being totally destroyed.
"Several attempts to bring hazardous industries under the central ETP (Effluent Treatment Plant) ended up being futile as industrialisation in Gazipur happened in an unplanned way," he said.
"Now, the Gazipur Development Authority (GDA) has been authorised to make a master plan. When the master plan comes into effect, haphazard industrialisation will be checked," said Anwar, who is also a governing body member of GDA.
GDA high officials have recently proposed an organogram of 1,300 people to make the regulatory body functional. GDA chairman Motaher Hossain said his office needs adequate manpower for drafting and implementing any master plan.
