Shipping Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam on Thursday said Bangladesh has a total of 1,415 rivers according to a list prepared jointly by the Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Water Resources, National River Conservation Commission, Bangladesh Water Development Board, divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners and river activists.

The minister disclosed the information while replying to a question from Jamaat-e-Islami MP Md Kamrul Hasan in Parliament. The question-answer session was tabled with Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed in the chair.

He said the updated list of rivers 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 also informed the House that the process of amending the National River Conservation Commission Act, 2013 is underway to strengthen river protection and enhance the commission’s capacity.

Under the proposed amendments, river encroachment and pollution will be treated as criminal offences. The law is also expected to provide for the establishment of separate river courts, investigation of complaints related to river grabbing, assessment and recovery of compensation for pollution, as well as the filing and monitoring of cases.

Replying to a question from MP Md Abdullah of Munshiganj-1, the minister said the National River Conservation Commission has updated the list of illegal encroachers on the country’s rivers.

As of December 23, 2025, there were 21,988 illegal river encroachers across Bangladesh, he said.

He added that all deputy commissioners have been requested to submit action plans for eviction after verification of the list so that it can be published on the commission’s website. Eviction drives will begin once the final list is completed.

Responding to a question from MP Mostafizur Rahman Babul of Jamalpur-3, the minister said important waterways are dredged regularly every year to address navigability problems.

At present, the country has 6,200 kilometres of navigable waterways during the dry season, which increases to 8,000 kilometres during the monsoon season, he said.

In reply to a question from reserved-seat MP Nilufar Chowdhury Moni, the minister said private entrepreneurs have added larger passenger launches equipped with modern facilities to the fleet, improving safety standards.

He said the government is discouraging the operation of single-engine launches, a move expected to further reduce accidents on inland waterways.