PM orders survey on grabbed railway land:Daily Sun

 Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday directed the railways ministry to conduct a survey to measure the railway land lying illegally occupied in different parts of the country. The directive was given during a regular weekly cabinet meeting at Bangladesh Secretariat with the premier in the chair, said a senior minister said. “The premier has directed the railway ministry to conduct a survey to m
easure how much railway land has been grabbed,” he quoted the premier as saying. The minister said that the premier also asked the railways and land ministries to form a committee to monitor the drive to recover the railway land from illegal occupation. The meeting also approved the draft of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Bangladesh and India on bilateral cooperation in prevention of human trafficking. The MoU on bilateral cooperation in checking human trafficking, specially trafficking in women and children, rescue, repatriation of the victims is expected to be signed during a home secretary-level meeting in Dhaka today. Briefing reporters after the meeting, cabinet secretary Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said the cabinet approved the draft of the MoU. “The MoU will play an important role in checking women and children trafficking,” he said, adding that people under 18 will be considered as children. Stern action will be taken against the human traffickers as per the law of respective countries, he added. The cabinet secretary also said that both the countries are currently working on the issue under a standard operation procedure. The meeting also nodded final approval of the draft of ‘Railway Security Force Act 2014’ subject to vetting of the law ministry, he mentioned. The new law will replace the Railways Security Force Ordinance 1976, which became defunct with the annulment of the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution in 2010, The meeting also approved in principle the draft of the “Railway Properties (unlawful possession) Act, 2014 with some observations. Ministers and state ministers and secretaries concerned attended the meeting.