Dhaka Wasa demolishes illegal portions of structures to free Kalyanpur Kha Khal in the city yesterday from encroachers. Photo: STAR

Dhaka Wasa knocked down illegal portions of more than 20 structures, including four six-story buildings, to free Kalyanpur Kha Khal (canal) of encroachment at the city's Mirpur yesterday.
Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authorities (Wasa) launched the two-day drive at Baten Nagar in Mirpur Mazar (shrine) Road aiming at recovering a two-kilometre stretch of the canal from illegal occupancy.
The buildings have been built encroaching at least 10 feet on the canal, said Wasa Executive Engineer Ruhul Amin.
Rest of the structures built occupying the canal was makeshift and boundary walls.
The canal has been occupied with around 50 illegal structures, said Kazi Wasi Uddin, executive magistrate of Wasa, who led the eviction team to maintain law and order with riot police.
He said the team dismantled those columns of the concrete buildings that were made into the canal. It will force the building owners to pull down the illegal portions on their own, he added.
Protesting the drive, the affected people said the field-level officials and local political thugs once encouraged them to encroach on the canal.
Wasa removed the illegal structures along one kilometre of the canal yesterday and would remove the rest today.
The canal stretches from the Mazar to Kalyanpur Main Khal.
Wasa employed an excavator and around 60 day labourers to carry out the drive.