Sheikh Hasina has said the government will formulate a policy for the hazardous ship-breaking industry “immediately”.The prime minister’s statement, at the national convention of the Institute of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) in Chittagong,

comes in the wake of deaths of four workers in an explosion at a
ship-breaking yard last month and continued environmental concerns
regarding the industry.

“We (the government) are not against the ship breaking industries, but that should not be at the cost of environment.”

“Stern actions will be taken against those who are involved in tree felling in the coastal areas,” Hasina warned.

She urged all the people of the country to be conscious of the changing
environment as Bangladesh is the most affected by climate change.

Criticising the previous interim government for high inflation, Hasina
said, “We have brought down the price of rice and fertiliser.”

She also blamed the previous tenure of BNP government for “pushing the country to 20 years back in their seven years of rule”.

IEB central secretary, engineer SM Nazrul Islam, presided over the
inauguration of the convention, organised at the IEB’s Chittagong
headquarters.

Industry minister Dilip Barua, employment minister Khandaker Mosharraf
Hossain, state minister for environment and forest Hassan Mahmud, state
minister for public works and housing Abdul Mannan Khan were also
present at the convention.

Hassan Mahmud, following the fatal accident last month, had said the
government would set up a specific zone for ship-breaking yards at
Sitakunda in Chittagong and introduce regulations for better
environmental and safety standards.

He also said the government was framing a policy in coordination with
labour, industries, environment and shipping ministries keeping in view
the hazards of ship-breaking, worker safety and the interest of yard
owners.

Ship breaking in Bangladesh is tagged as hazardous on account of poor
worker safety and threat to coastal environment including illegal
logging to make way for the breaking yards as well as pollution from
toxic wastes on scrap ships.

Source: bdnews24

Search to find what you want

• Bangladesh: Creating government, ship-breaking zone

    The government will set up a specific zone for ship-breaking yards at Sitakunda in Chittagong and introduce greater regulation for better environmental and safety standards, Hassan Mahmud, state minister for environment, said. He said a meeting between officials of the environment and forest, industries and shipping ministries will be held

• Bangladesh expected to ship to break rules

    The government has tasked a technical committee to start work on establishing an official ship-breaking zone along Bangladesh’s coast, following the prime minister’s recent call for long overdue regulation of the hazardous industry.

• India: Ship breaking sector is brought under the Act: 1000-bed hospital in Ctg port planned

    A 1000-bed hospital will be built at Chittagong seaport under Bangladesh-India joint venture for providing modern healthcare facilities to all sections of people, including port and shipping personnel. Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan yesterday disclosed the plan as part of comprehensive measures for the shipping sector, including legal cover for the

• Report on scrap ships within 3 weeks

    The High Court yesterday directed the government to submit a report within three weeks on the number of ships imported for scrapping after the HC delivered a verdict in this regard on March 17 last year.

• Gujarat Govt bans asbestos ship aground

    Union environment minister Jairam Ramesh on Monday advised the Gujarat government and other agencies not to allow the beaching and dismantling of the controversial Platinum II ship at Alang. 

 An office memorandum sent from the Union ministry states, “…in keeping with the `Precautionary Principle’, the ministry is of the

• Moving develop at Alang on PPP model to begin

    Gandhinagar In its bid to boost the ship-breaking industry in Gujarat, the state government has initiated a concerted move to develop, maintain and operate the Alang Ship Breaking Yard near Bhavnagar on a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.

• Bangladeshi ship breakers protest new standards

    Bangladesh’s ship breaking yards ground to a halt Monday as some 30,000 workers protested a government decree aimed at improving environmental standards in the industry, police said. Under a government order issued in late January said, ships heading for breaking yards must now be certified as toxic chemical-free before they

• Ship destined for illegal break in India, a new career

    A gas tanker that was detained under suspicion it would be dismantled illegally has today (Thursday 29 October) been released by the UK Environment Agency. The Margaret Hill, a 50,700 tonne liquid natural gas tanker, was stopped from leaving Southampton… Read at Ship destined for illegal breaking in India found a

• Shipping minutes to have a say in new port policy

    Sticking to its decision of coming out with a new policy on port development along India’s fragile coastline, the environment ministry has sought to assuage shipping minister GK Vasan’s concerns related to its impact on planned expansion of port capacity. “We have been advised by the environment ministry that all

• Six charred to death of workers in Alang

     Six labourers died when a huge fire engulfed a ship being broken at the Alang Ship Breaking Yard in Bhavnagar on Tuesday. While a forensic science laboratory team has begun investigation to find the cause of fire, the local police have also initiated an inquiry into the matter and registered

• China offers to develop the port of Chittagong

    China will offer its support to Bangladesh to develop its strategically-significant deep-sea port in Chittagong when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrives here on Wednesday on a five-day visit.

• Bangladesh, China persuaded to use Chittagong port

    Bangladesh will persuade China to use Chittagong port as a commercial outlet for its southern Yunnan province, Foreign Minister Dipu Moni said on Sunday. The Bangladesh stance was announced nearly three months after Bangladesh had agreed to allow India, Nepal and Bhutan to use its two sea ports mainly Chittagong

• Newest Navy supply ship to the starting line in San Diego

     (latimes)  With the traditional breaking of a champagne bottle over the bow, the Navy’s newest cargo/ammunition ship will be christened and launched this afternoon at the General Dynamics/NASSCO shipyard in San Diego.  Source

• Alang scrap boom in the steel industry

    In 2009, Indian steel industry witnessed a flood of trucks from Alang, the small town in India’s Gujarat state which has the word’s biggest ship breaking yard, pumping in thousands of tonnes of scrap? metal into the market. In fact, 2009 was a boom year for the ship breaking industry

• Schiffsfriedhof mourns the economy

    With the Centre refusing the controversial ship Platinum II permission to berth in Gujarat for dismantling, the ship-breaking industry at Alang in Bhavnagar district may lose business to the tune of around Rs 40 crore, apart from the Government losing Rs 4 crore in Customs duty and Rs 1 crore