Halda River. File Photo: BSS
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Halda River. File Photo: BSS
To protect broodfish in the Halda River, the natural fish breeding ground in Chattogram, drones will now be used for surveillance.
The Department of Fisheries has deployed 12 teams equipped with four drones to monitor the river and prevent pollution and all types of illegal activities.
Farida Akhtar, advisor to the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, officially launched the drone monitoring initiative today (1 July) in the Mobarak Khil area of the Halda River by flying a drone.
Muhammad Alamgir Hossain, senior fisheries officer of Rauzan upazila, told reporters that the four drones have been provided by the Department of Fisheries to monitor the Halda River and the confluence of the Karnaphuli.
“Twelve teams from the department will use these drones for surveillance, which is expected to help eliminate all illegal activities on the river. Each drone has been purchased through contractors at a cost of Tk7 lakh,” he added.
Earlier in the morning, Advisor Farida released fish fry in the Gahira area of the river. She later observed a 20-kilometre stretch of the Halda River by speedboat. At 2pm, she participated in a stakeholder meeting at Mobarak Khil, discussing the river’s natural environment, pollution, egg collection, and fishermen’s challenges.
Addressing river pollution, Farida said, “Those who pollute the river are actually abusing it. I wouldn’t call this pollution — it is abuse. We must identify them as abusers. Only then can we effectively stop the pollution.”
The meeting, organised by the Department of Fisheries under the Halda River Development and Management Project, was chaired by Chattogram Divisional Commissioner Mohammad Zia Uddin. Among the speakers were former secretary Abdul Karim, Director General of the Department of Fisheries Abdur Rouf, Superintendent of River Police AFM Nizam Uddin, Halda Project Director Mizanur Rahman, Chittagong University professor and Halda researcher Manzurul Kibria, Department of Fisheries Director Anwar Hossain, and Halda Protection Committee General Secretary Muhammad Ali.