The Committee to Protect Homestead and Graveyard here on Friday threatened to lay a siege to the Banshkhali upazila administration on Sunday if the government does not cancel the Gandamara coal-fired power plant by 6pm on Saturday.Platform convener Liakat Ali gave the ultimatum from a rally held at Hadirpara Govt Primary School ground in Gandamara union in the afternoon, commemorating the death of four people in police firing.
“We’ll start for the upazila administration wearing shrouds on Sunday morning if there’s no declaration from the government by 6pm on Saturday canceling the power plant project,” he said.
Former Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) mayor and former MP Mahmudul Islam Chowdhury, among others, spoke at the rally.
Meanwhile, a delegation of the National Committee to Protect Oil-Gas, Power-Port and Natural Resources, led by its member secretary Prof Anu Mohammad, visited the police firing spot and the 1,320 MW power plant site on Friday noon.
The leaders also talked to the victims’ family members and Committee to Protect Homestead and Graveyard chief Liakat Ali over the issue.
Talking to reporters, Prof Anu Mohammad said around 10,000 metric tons of coal will be needed every day for the 1320 MW power plant, which will destroy the environment of a 10-15 km area surrounding the project.
He claimed they came to know that the authorities of the power plant did not take any environmental clearance certificate from the government for setting up it.
On April 4, four people, including two brothers, were killed in police firing at Gandamara village in Banshkhali upazila during a demonstration against the construction of the coal-fired power plant there.
Twenty people, including 10 policemen, were also injured as the villagers clashed with the police during the demonstration.
S Alam Group of Industries and a Chinese company are jointly setting up the 1,320 MW power plant.
