Staff Reporter:
Land Minister Narayan Chandra Chanda said his ministry is working in line with the government’s envi-ronment and climate policy. These include the Land Zoning Project and the Bangladesh Digital Survey Program. These initiatives will reduce environmental damage in the country by encouraging and enforc-ing sustainable land use practices, he said.
The minister said this while inaugurating the two-day 2nd International Conference on Environment at Journalist Liaquat Ali Auditorium of Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Academic Building of Khulna University (KU) on Saturday. The theme of the summit is ‘Time for Nature and Natural Resource Man-agement’.
Khulna University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Mahmood Hossain presided over the inaugural func-tion while Professor Emeritus of BRAC University and climate change expert Prof. Dr. Ainun Nishat, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Khulna University Prof. Dr. Mosummath Hosna Ara and Dean of the Life Sci-ence School Prof. Dr. Abul Kalam Azad were also present.
The Land Minister said that under the land zoning project, they will prepare a digital map and land use plan based on Mouza and Plot division. This includes categorizing land into specific uses such as agricul-tural, residential, commercial, tourism, and industrial development based on the quality assessment of the land.
The minister said that by using land zoning project data and maps, unplanned urbanization, housing, house construction, development activities, and industrial road construction will be prevented. Environ-mental protection and production of food crops will be continued by maintaining the class or nature of the land, he added.
The land minister also said through this, planned and optimum use of land including protection of agri-cultural land, forests, hills, rivers, canals, and water bodies will be ensured.
He said the land zoning project will prove to be invaluable to ‘Nature and Natural Resource Manage-ment’.
Thanking the Land Minister and other guests, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Dr. Mahmud Hossain said that di-verse natural resources are essential for sustainable ecosystems, which can contribute to health, liveli-hood, and shelter. He stressed the need for research on nature and natural resource management for food security and poverty alleviation.
It is noteworthy that 245 local and foreign experts and scientists from Bangladesh, India, Bhutan, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, Poland, Italy, and Germany are expected to participate physically and virtual-ly in this conference. A total of 183 research articles, comprising 128 oral presentations, 48 poster presentations, and 6 keynote papers, are scheduled to be presented during the conference. At the conclu-sion of the conference, it is anticipated that a set of recommendations will be prepared.
