Environmental activists staged a symbolic protest by floating paper boats in polluted canal water, demanding an end to the encroachment and pollution of water bodies in Gazipur’s Sreepur Upazila.
The demonstration was held on Saturday at Patharpara area in the Labanadah canal under Sreepur, organized under the banners of the Bangladesh River Travellers Association (Sreepur branch), River and Nature Foundation, and Sachetan Nagorik Society.
Human Chain Before Protest
Earlier in the day, activists formed a human chain holding banners, calling attention to the deteriorating condition of the canal. After the human chain, a short rally was held where speakers described the alarming environmental degradation of the water body.
‘Once Rich in Biodiversity, Now Dead Water’
Speakers said the Labanadah canal once supported abundant native fish species. However, they alleged that industrial waste discharge has turned the canal into a toxic water body, where even insects and frogs have disappeared.
They added that fish stocks had already been wiped out long ago due to continuous pollution.
Symbolic Protest with Paper Boats
After the rally, environmental activists floated paper boats in the polluted water as a symbolic gesture.
They stated that the act was not merely symbolic but a collective call to restore the canal’s lost ecological vitality.
“Rivers, canals, and wetlands must survive for nature to survive. And if nature survives, humanity survives.”
— Speakers at the event
Call for Immediate Action
The organizers urged authorities to take immediate steps to stop illegal encroachment and industrial pollution, emphasizing that protecting rivers and canals is essential for environmental balance and human survival.
