KALADAN NEWS

Date: Wednesday, July 22, 2004

Police Seized 35 Thousand Burmese Made Polythene Bags and Longies at Bus Terminal of Cox’s Bazar

Cox’s Bazar, July 22: On 15^th July 2004, police of detective branch seized 35 thousand of Burmese made polythene bags and 50 longies from Bus-Terminal of Cox’s Bazar, according to our correspondent.

These goods were carried by smugglers from Burma by putting them in plastic drums and its were covered with shrimps to avoid the customs’ arrest. But, the shrimps are allowed to sell in Bangladesh, he further added.

Polythene shopping bags have made comeback at border belt from Burma despite a ban on polythene for over two years, said a trader from Cox’s Bazar.

Police seized the said goods at Bus-Terminal of Cox’s Bazar in a taxi while the smugglers were trying to carry it to Chittagong. But the smugglers managed to escape. However, police were investigating the local people to arrest the smugglers, the trader further added.

The government banned the production, marketing, sale, distribution and use of polythene, polyethylene and polypropylene in Dhaka on January 1 and in the country on March 31, 2002 through a gazette notification.

Defying the ban, unscrupulous manufactures in Bangladesh have continued the production at different clandestine places.

The Directorate of Environment (DoE) official said, “ Public cooperation is needed to make the ban effective. If people do not use polythene bags, it will be automatically eradication from the market.”

According to the law, manufactures may be given a maximumof10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of Taka one million or both and users may befinedTk.500. ##

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