Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Advisor to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the Ministry of Water Resources, has called for effective measures to ensure cleanliness at Kuakata and Cox’s Bazar during the upcoming tourist season. She directed the Department of Environment to engage local volunteers for daily waste collection in November and December and emphasized the need for installing an adequate number of dustbins.
The advisor made these remarks while presiding over a meeting on budget implementation held at the Department of Environment in Agargaon, Dhaka, on Saturday.
She stressed the importance of early preparation to maintain hygiene in tourist areas and underscored the need to raise awareness among tourists to act responsibly towards the environment.
She also instructed officials to intensify the ongoing anti-polythene drives and urged for broader public awareness campaigns in this regard.
Highlighting the importance of wildlife conservation, Rizwana Hasan directed the Forest Department to ensure that elephant corridors remain unobstructed. She recommended planting trees disliked by elephants in nearby villages and trees favored by elephants along their corridors and in forested areas.
The meeting was attended by Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Dr. Farhina Ahmed, Additional Secretary Khairul Hasan, Additional Secretary Dr. Fahmida Khanom, Chairman of Bangladesh Forest Industries Development Corporation Md. Nasir Uddin, Director General of the Department of Environment Dr. Md. Kamruzzaman NDC, Director of the Forest Research Institute and Joint Secretary AKM Shawkat Alam Majumder, and Chief Conservator of Forests Md. Amir Hossain Chowdhury, among other senior officials.
At the end of the meeting, the Advisor called on all stakeholders to work together to protect the environment and biodiversity through timely and well-planned budget implementation.