New Delhi. Nineteen eminent citizens of Bangladesh on Saturday urged the Bangladesh prime ministers Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to scrap the Rampal coal-fired power plant project (Rampal project) because of its adverse impact on the world’s largest mangrove forest, the Sunderbans. They made the demand in a joint statement when the Indian PM Narendra Modi was in the city Dhaka for his 36-hour maiden visit to Bangladesh.
Acording to the reports published in the Bangladesh media, The statement, sent to press by the National Committee to Protect the Sunderbans member secretary Abdul Matin, also urged the two PMs to take programmes to protect and grow the Sunderbans. They said that the two countries share the world heritage, the Sunderbans, and recently a decision has been taken to construct a power plant under a joint initiative of India and Bangladesh at Rampal, within 14 kilometers of the forest, ignoring public opinion and rules and regulations. Preparatory work of constructing the power plant is in progress, they said.
The experts at home and abroad have already said that when this plant begins power generation, it will emit several thousand tonnes of harmful gas, ashes and coal-washed water, which would endanger the Sunderbans, they said.
Referring to experts who said the capsize of an oil tanker in December 2014 and a fertilizer-laden ship in May in Sundaerban’s rivers had caused long term damage to the Sunderbans, they said the probable risks of accident as coal laden ships travel round the year for the power project could easily be assumed. The Indian company, National Thermal Power Corporation, would not be able to implement any such project in India as the Indian Environmental Impact Assessment Guideline 2010 did not allow any power plant within 25 kilometers of any forest. ‘NTPC, as per Indian environment law, had to scrap many such projects, but the same rule is not applicable to the same company in Bangladesh,’ the statement said. They said any such so-called development project, destroying natural resources, would not bring benefits to the people, rather it would create a long term crisis instead of playing a role in the development of relations between the two friendly countries.
The signatories to the statement include Sultana Kamal, Abdullah Abu Sayeed, Khushi Kabir, Rasheda K Chowdhury, Mujahidul Islam Selim, Anu Muhammad, Badiul Alam Majumder, Enamul Huq, Shamsul Huda, Syeda Rizwana Hassan, Ruhin Hossain Prince, Saiful Huq, Md Shahjahan, AN Rasheda, BD Rahmatullah, Quamrul Islam Chowdhury, Farida Akhter, Sheikh Faridul Islam and Md Abdul.

प्रोफेसर शमसुल इस्लाम

प्रोफेसर शमसुल इस्लाम के बारे में जानकारी प्रोफेसर शमसुल इस्लाम (Shamsul Islam) एक प्रतिष्ठित भारतीय शिक्षाविद्, लेखक और सामाजिक विचारक हैं, जिन्होंने दिल्ली विश्वविद्यालय में राजनीति विज्ञान विषय में 1973 से 2013 तक अध्यापन कर तथा समकालीन भारतीय राजनीतियों पर अपनी आलोचनात्मक दृष्टि प्रस्तुत की। वह हस्तक्षेप के सम्मानित स्तंभकार हैं। शिक्षक से आलोचक तक: 1973 से 2013 तक उन्होंने दिल्ली विश्वविद्यालय में राजनीति विज्ञान की शिक्षण सेवा निभाई, और देश में हिंदुत्ववाद, इतिहास के पुनर्लेखन, धार्मिक असहिष्णुता, दलितों तथा अल्पसंख्यकों के उत्पीड़न पर बेबाक आलोचना की। शमसुल इस्लाम केवल शैक्षणिक नहीं थे, बल्कि सक्रिय नुक्कड़ नाटककार भी रहे। उन्होंने ‘निशांत’ नामक सबसे पुराने स्ट्रीट थियेटर समूह की स्थापना की और कई देशों में जाति, लिंग, धार्मिक असहिष्णुता जैसे विषयों पर केंद्रित सामाजिक मुद्दों पर 6,000 से अधिक मंचीय प्रस्तुतियाँ दीं। उल्लेखनीय: हिंदुत्व, धार्मिक कट्टरता और महिलाओं, दलितों एवं अल्पसंख्यकों के उत्पीड़न के विरुद्ध मुखर रुख। इन विषयों पर उन्होंने कई पुस्तकें और लेख लिखे हैं। आप संदर्भित दस्तावेज़ों में उनकी उल्लेखनीय साहित्यिक कृतियों की सूची पा सकते हैं। उन्होंने कई पुस्तकें और लेख लिखें, जिनमें मुख्य शीर्षक इस प्रकार हैं: Religious Dimensions of Indian Nationalism: A Study of RSS. Savarkar Myths and Facts. Know the RSS, Cultural Nationalism, Hindutva and Fascism. Indian Freedom Movement and RSS, Democracy versus Communalism एवं RSS and Modi: An Untold Story आदि।