CHATTOGRAM: Environment department has stopped the arbitrary cutting of a scrap vessel in Parky Char area under Anwara upazila.
Officials concerned said the buyer of the ship sought permission to cut it, but the authorities regretted on grounds of environmental pollution.
The scrap cutting will cause environmental hazards to Parky Char area where a tourism project is scheduled for development, they argued.
Sources said Four Star Ship-breaking Yard started cutting the scrap of 'MV Cristal Gold' after procuring it from an auction recently.
The vessel, which was formerly operated by a local business house, ran aground near Parky sea beach after cyclone 'Mora' hit the coast on May 30, 2017.
The beached ship was finally put on auction for sale by the High Court upon completion of a legal process.
The environment officials here said the higher court auctioned the ship but did not order to scrap it without approval from the environment and explosives authorities.
There is a designated area for ship-breaking yards in Sitakunda coast and the yards must follow regulations for beaching and cutting scrap ships in an environmentally safe way, they said.
On information from local sources, senior officials of the local environment office visited the ship and reported potential hazards to the coast.
Chattogram environment department director Moazzem Hossain said, "They wrote to us seeking permission to cut the ship near Parky Char, but it was regretted."
"A project for tourism development at Parky of Anwara is underway at the cost of Tk 620 million," he mentioned.
Four Star Ship-breaking Yard owner Abul Kalam Azad Babul said he bought the ship on auction at Tk 110 million.
The ship was built in Japan in 1985 and also caught by pirates from Somalia in the Indian Ocean.
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