Bangladesh has identified 21,988 illegal river encroachers nationwide and plans tougher laws, river courts and phased evictions while continuing dredging to improve navigability across the country’s waterways.
Bangladesh has identified 21,988 illegal river encroachers across the country while maintaining an official list of 1,415 rivers, Shipping Minister Sheikh Rabiul Alam told parliament on Thursday.
Responding to a question from Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Kamrul Hasan, who represents Mymensingh-6, the minister presented the information during the question-and-answer session of parliament. The sitting was chaired by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed.
Sheikh Rabiul Alam said the list of 1,415 rivers was prepared jointly by the Ministry of Shipping, the Ministry of Water Resources, the National River Conservation Commission, the Bangladesh Water Development Board, divisional commissioners, district administrations and river activists.
He said the official river list was published on April 14, 2025 on the websites of the Ministry of Water Resources, the Bangladesh Water Development Board and the National River Conservation Commission.
The minister said the government is working to amend the National River Conservation Commission Act, 2013 to strengthen the commission’s authority.
Under the proposed amendments, river encroachment and pollution would be treated as criminal offences. The amendments also include provisions for establishing separate river courts, investigating complaints related to river encroachment, assessing and recovering compensation for pollution and overseeing related legal proceedings.
In response to a question from BNP lawmaker Md Abdullah, who represents Munshiganj-1, Sheikh Rabiul Alam said the updated list of the National River Conservation Commission showed that 21,988 illegal river encroachers had been identified nationwide as of December 23, 2025.
He said district commissioners had been instructed to verify the lists and submit eviction plans. Eviction drives will be carried out in phases after the plans are received.
Replying to a question from BNP lawmaker Mostafizur Rahman Babul of Jamalpur-3, the minister said regular dredging operations are being conducted on important waterways to address navigability problems.
He said the country’s navigable waterways currently extend about 6,200 kilometres during the dry season and increase to around 8,000 kilometres during the monsoon season.
