More than 50 briek kilns on cropland in Ishwardi

Ishwardi (Pabna) Correspondent :
Some 52 illegal brick kilns have been re-opened in Lakshikunda union of Ishwardi in defiance of the law.
By deforestation of agricultural land, burning of wood in kilns, violation of norms and environmental imbalance brick burning have started in this season. These kilns are running without permission from the Department of Environment, license to burn bricks, fire service certificate and even VAT-income tax payment documents. By showing power they continue to burn bricks for 24 hours.
In the meantime, fines have been collected from several brick kilns in mobile court operations for operating brick kilns illegally and polluting the environment. Sometimes administrative action is limited to fines. No action has been taken by the administration and environment department to evict illegal brick kilns. Eminent people have expressed their surprise as to how these illegal brick kilns, built by destroying agricultural land, have been operating for a long time. Roads in that union and neighboring Sahapur Union are in poor condition due to the transport of bricks by brick kilns. Residents have complained that they are facing extreme hardship due to the collapse of the road.
These brick kilns are built in Lakshikunda on the bank of Padma river, which is about 12 km away from the city. Three villages of Lakshikunda, Kamalpur, Dadapur and Bilkedar, were visited on Sunday to see that wood is being burnt instead of coal in these brick kilns on agricultural land in defiance of the government ban. Most of the kiln owners do not follow the chimney height and related guidelines for kiln construction. There are 50 autofis and 2 zigzag (air) kilns. Bricks are fired with wood in Autofis kilns. The black smoke emitted by the tide keeps the environment of the area always polluted. Plants are being killed freely. Vata owners collect soil from padma grazing land by illegal means. These brick kilns are running for free.
A public representative on condition of anonymity said what to do in writing. Illegal brick kilns have been going on for years by managing everyone. Collecting fines by conducting raids is nothing but eyewash. Illegal kilns will not be closed unless they are demolished.
District Agriculture Officer Abdul Latif said that the amount of agricultural land in Lakshikunda has decreased due to the construction of a large number of brick kilns. Black smoke and ash emitted by brick kilns are affecting mango-lychee-jackfruit orchards and cropland. Normal public life will be increasingly threatened by the effects of pollution.