The Poribesh Bachao Andolon (POBA) made six recommendations to protect Dhaka's remaining lakes, including handing over lake management to city corporations and recovering illegally grabbed land. The lakes still surviving in Dhaka are Gulshan-Baridhara, Gulsahn-Banani, Dhanmondi, Ramna, Cresent, Hatirjheel and Uttara. POBA also recommended stopping the dumping of household and medical waste in lakes and better treatment of bio-waste. They warned that if preservation laws are not properly enforced, Dhaka's lakes will be illegally grabbed and polluted and lost by 2030.

1. Tuesday, April 12, 2016
FE Report
Poribesh Bachao Andolon (POBA) on Tuesday made a six-point recommendations including
handing over the lake to the city corporations and checking illegal land grabbing along with
recovering the grabbed ones to help protect the lakes of the megacity by its authority.
The lakes of Dhaka which still survived are Gulshan-Baridhara, Gulsahn-Banani, Dhanmondi,
Ramna, Cresent, Hatirjheel and Uttara, according to the POBA.
Its other recommendations include taking necessary steps to stop dumping house hold wastes and
hospital wastes, bio-wastes in to the lakes. Efficient treatment of bio-waste required by the
Dhaka-Wasa authority, effective measures adaptation by the department of environment to
restrict dumping of industrial wastes into the lakes and the authorities have to prevent illegal
grabbing and pollution of such marine resources as those are grabbed by creating nurseries,
slams and filled with old building scrapes continuously over the decades.
POBA made those recommendations from a press conference held at its city office on preserving
the water bodies specifically lakes which are the security line for saving the city from floods,
draughts as well those serve the underground water reserves of the city and accommodate the
natural marine bio-diversity. Lakes are attraction of tourism to the city dwellers as they lack open
natural spaces and water bodies essential for healthy living.
Though there are existing law of preserving environment 1995 and natural water-body
preservation law 2000 but there is negative enforcement of such laws by the authorities to protect
those natural marine public assets. If not preserved, the lakes of Dhaka city will be grabbed and
polluted illegally and will be lost ultimately by the year 2030.
POBA suggested maintaining the water quality of the city lakes with adequate mixed oxygen
level of 5 mg per liter for sake of balanced ecology and marine life surveillance. The
responsibility of preservation not only remains to the citizens but government authorities like
Rajuk, City corporations, Dhaka WASA and PWD should act in eco-friendly manner for keeping
the marine environment of the city safe, healthy and grab free.

2. Abu Naser Khan, chairman of POBA, Dr. Lenin Chowdhury, joint general secretary of POBA,
Rajia Samad, president of Sommilito Samajik Andolon, Engr. Tofayel Ahmed, ex. executive
engineer of BIWTA, Engr. Md. Abdus Sobhan, general secretary of POBA were present, among
others, in the programme.
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Ends/Sanwar Hossain