Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) has organised a seminar on ‘Rohingya Influx in Bangladesh: Impact on Water and Environment’ on its campus in Bashundhara area of Dhaka city.
Farah Kabir, Country Director of ActionAid, was the keynote speaker of the seminar arranged by the School of Environmental Science and Management of the IUB on Tuesday, says a statement.
Dr. Md. Abdul Khaleque, Dean, School of Environmental Science and Management of the IUB, started the programme with a brief introduction.
Farah Kabir gave a presentation at the seminar. She focused on major facts that influenced environmental imbalance in Cox’s Bazar.
She said that whole forest area in the district is cleaned out and including Asian elephants, other animals are becoming critically vulnerable due to the Rohingya crisis.
Alongside, most of the tube wells in refugee camps are dysfunctional as the underground water level has been depleted. For this, the quality of drinking water is one of the major concerns, she stated.
Subsequently, the ActionAid Country Director urged upon collective efforts to handle the devastating situation.
Following the presentation, floor was open for question-answer session where both students and faculties participated enthusiastically.
The programme ended with vote of thanks given by Prof. Dr. K Ayaz Rabbani, Head of Department of Environmental Science.
Senior members of the faculty and administration and a large number of students attended the seminar.