The Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association on Sunday issued a legal notice to the divisional forest officer of Cox鈥檚 Bazar Southern Forest Division, seeking removal of illegal structures and encroachers from the reserved forests in Dakkhin Mithachhari mouza and Shilkhali range in Teknaf.
In the notice, BELA highlighted that 200 encroachers had illegally occupied 352.46 acres of reserved forest in Mithachhari mouza, while 287 illegal occupants had taken over 290.40 acres in the Shilkhali range.
These encroachments, involving the construction of structures such as houses and shops, have severely damaged the forests, endangering the environment and biodiversity, which BELA noted constitutes a punishable offense under the Environmental Conservation Act.
BELA demanded an immediate halt to all anti-environment activities and called for legal action against those responsible for the environmental damage.
The notice also urged an investigation into the allegations that certain forest officers were involved in the encroachment and called for accountability and justice.
