List of river grabbers is being scrutinized: Khalid

State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury today said the list of river grabbers is being scrutinized and the illegally occupied river lands of the country will be rescued soon.

Aiming to maintain the flow of the river as per the instruction of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the list of those who have grabbed the river lands is now being verified. The river will not be in the hands of the occupiers. It will be recovered," he said.

The state minister said this while addressing the opening ceremony of the 100 rivers-outdoor photography-exhibition of News Photographer of Kakali Pradhan at Tolghat under the Rupsa Bridge of the district, a press release said.

Khulna City Corporation (KCC) Mayor Talukdar Abdul Khalek, Chairman of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) Commodore Arif Ahmed Mostafa, News Photographer Kakli Pradhan and Program Coordinator Masum Mahmud also spoke on the occasion, the release added.

The worthy daughter of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman made a pledge that no river will be in hands of occupiers, he said, adding that under her guidance, 10,000 kilometers (Km) of waterway excavation work has been undertaken.

"Already 80 dredgers have been procured to increase the dredging capacity of BIWTA. We are moving forward with the commitment to build a smart Bangladesh by restoring navigability by freeing waterways from encroachment," he said.

Khalid said that the current government stands by those who are working to protect waterways and rivers of the country.