Dhaka, Oct 14 (UNB) – The Cabinet on Monday endorsed the Radioactive Waste and Used Nuclear Energy Management National Policy with a provision that polluters will have to bear the costs for disposing of radioactive wastes.
The approval came at the Cabinet meeting held with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair at her office.
Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam briefed reporters at the Secretariat after the meeting.
“The policy has been prepared to dispose of all the radioactive wastes to be released from atomic energy materials in different sectors across the country,” he said adding atomic energy is also used in ultrasonography test of the medical sector.
“There’ll be a company named RWMC (Radioactive Waste Management Company) to dispose of radioactive wastes. But the polluters will have to pay for it,” said Shafiul Alam.
About Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, he said Russia will take away the wastes of the plant and dispose of that in their country as per the agreement.
The Cabinet Secretary said the policy has been framed as per the guidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as there is no scope to go beyond the IAEA guidelines.
The policy was formulated aiming to prevent harms and any untoward incident to be caused by such radioactive wastes and nuclear energy, he said.
The Cabinet also gave the final approval to the draft of the Bangladesh Engineering Research Council Bill 2019 to promote engineering research and ensure the standard of technology for their pragmatic uses in the country.
“It’s a new law and new concept as well. We don’t have any institution for engineering research like that for agriculture and other sectors,” said the Cabinet Secretary.
A 10-member governing body headed by a chairman will run the council. The chairman will also be the Chief Executive Officer of the council, he said.
There will also be an advisory body headed by the Science and Technology Minister for the research council, he added.
Besides, the Cabinet gave approval to the draft of the Bangladesh Lighthouse Bill, 2019 making the existing the Lighthouse Act, 1927 as a time-befitting one, said Shafiul Alam.
As per the bill, there will be a port lighthouse authority to supervise and run the country’s port lighthouses, he said.
The levy (charge) collection process of lighthouses has been made easier in the bill.
