Poisoning of Uttara Lake a devilish propensity

Matters like food security, wildlife preservation and conservation, marine conservation, etc., fall low on our priority list. Recent news published by a leading national daily on November 12, 2017, reported numerous dead fish floating on the lake on the southern side of the connecting bridge of Uttara 3 and 5. While if the above-mentioned incident was a result of water pollution, it would still have been deplorable, what makes the news shocking is that it seems to be a calculated act.

Apparently, the incident occurred due to the lessee's rejection of a proposal from the local ruling party leader to engage in a joint farming project with his friends. The lessee claimed that the estimated value of the fish was about Tk 12 lakh. Dhaka is an urban jungle with little wildlife. For some time now, aquatic life in the Uttara Lake, one of the few large water bodies in the city, has been threatened. Reports of encroachment, population boom and water stress have been surfacing over the last few years.

While some of this disregard of the environment can be due to urbanisation, corruption and uneven power dynamics have been to blame for much. This deranged politics, that destroys livelihoods, is unacceptable. Stronger legislative measures to protect urban fish farmers and marine life must be ensured. We strongly condemn this action and hope the authorities will take appropriate action against the perpetrators.