The Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has recommended stopping bank financing for illegal brick kilns to curb air pollution and environmental degradation.

The recommendation was made at the first meeting of the committee of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad, held at the Cabinet Room of the Parliament complex on Saturday, with committee chairman and Whip G K Gouse presiding.

The committee decided to send a letter to Bangladesh Bank regarding the recommendation to stop financing illegal brick kilns.

The committee also instructed the Department of Environment to prepare a list of all legal and illegal brick kilns across the country.

It recommended using blocks instead of traditional bricks in government infrastructure projects under construction.

The meeting held a detailed discussion on measures to control environmental pollution and instructed the ministry to exercise caution so that its decisions do not cause environmental damage.

The committee asked the ministry to present detailed information on 101 projects being implemented under the Climate Change Trust at its next meeting.

It also sought information on how funds allocated to the ministry had been spent over the past 16 years.

The committee members called for coordinated efforts to implement the current government’s election manifesto.

The meeting also reviewed in detail the spending plan for the ministry’s budget allocation for the current fiscal year.

The acting secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, additional secretary, senior officials of the Department of Environment and the Forest Department, and relevant senior officials of the Parliament Secretariat attended the meeting.