When one of them drowned, the two others tried to rescue him but met with the same fate, witnesses said
Government has failed to limit oil spill damage to Sundarbans, say experts
The government has failed to take timely steps to contain the Sundarbans oil spill and is now trying to capitalize on the efforts by locals, a group has alleged.
Published : 15 Dec 2014, 05:58 PM
Updated : 15 Dec 2014, 06:15 PM
The National Committee on the Protection of Oil, Gas and Mineral Resources, Power and Ports claims there is a plot to build a commercial area in the world’s largest mangrove forest.
At a press call on Monday, the committee's Member Secretary Anu Mohammad said the government was yet to form an expert panel on the spill.
An oil tanker transporting over 350,000 litres of furnace oil sank in the Shela River on Dec 9 after being hit by another vessel.
Environmentalists fear the oil slick will endanger ecology of the delicate forest.
"No initiative has been taken to remove the oil," Anu Mohammad claimed.
The local administration has been using help of local residents to mop up the oil and the government is buying them back at Tk 30 per litre.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday ordered the reopening the Ghashiakhali Channel, once used as an India-Bangladesh water protocol route and maritime communication route for the country's southern region.
It was closed nearly three years ago after Mongla's Nala River and Rampal's Kumar River filled up.
Since then BIWTA has been using the Shela River inside the Sundarbans as an alternative route.
Member Secretary Anu Muhammad alleged no government assistance had been apparently provided to secure the locals' livelihood.
The committee had sent Dhaka University Associate Prof Tanjim Uddin Khan and engineer Kollol Mostofa to the Sundarbans.
Khan said the oil spill had not only affected the mangrove forest but also the locals.
The committee announced a countrywide agitation for Dec 22 to protest against 'government failure' to tackle the situation and press for its several demands.
Dhaka University's botany department Professor Abul Bashar explained how the spill could affect the Sundarbans.
"The effect on various species of trees and animals will be visible after at least three generations.
"But we can't sit idle now," he said.
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