The High Court wants information on areas in Dhaka that are being supplied with contaminated and unsafe water by Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA).
The bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice MD Khairul Alam gave the order on Wednesday (May 8) after hearing a write.
It asked petitioner Advocate Tanvir Ahmed to come up with the information by Monday (May 13).
Earlier in the day, WASA submitted a report to the court in line with a previous order.
In the report, WASA said it has formed a four-member committee, comprising experts from the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Dhaka University (DU), and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B), to examine the quality of the water supplied by it.
WASA said it will get water samples examined by DU, Buet and ICDDR,B laboratories as soon as necessary funds were available from the government.
It also said it will take at least four months to get the water tested at the three labs.
Advocate Tanvir said the High Court will pass a further order on the issue next Monday.
Tanvir said that the High Court bench ordered Dhaka WASA to test the quality of water. But it will take time as Dhaka city has two city corporations and Narayanganj is divided into 11 zones that fall under the purview of DWASA.
“The court ordered me to submit a report with a list of areas where contaminated and unsafe water is being supplied by [Dhaka] WASA as shown in media reports and others sources,” Tanvir said.
The High Court, on Nov 7 last year, formed a five-member committee to examine the quality of water supplied by Dhaka WASA.
The court also issued a ruling asking the relevant government authorities to explain why their failure and inaction to supply safe water should not be declared illegal.
The High Court bench delivered the rulings following a writ petition filed on Oct 14, 2018, based on a report published in a daily newspaper.