The government has decided to use blocks instead of burnt bricks by 2025. A target has also been set for the percentage of blocks to be used from November 2019 till 2025.
All government offices have been given letters from the ministry of environment to include the matter in their upcoming tenders.
The rules on the usage of high tech brick kilns have been relaxed while the Department of Environment (DoE) is carrying out drives against kilns that have flouted environmental rules.
The bill to encourage usage of blocks instead of burnt bricks was raised in the Parliament.
Minister for environment, forest and climate change, Shahab Uddin raised the brickkiln establishment and control bill 2013 at the parliament and after it passed further amendments were carried out.
The bill set out 2025 as the year by which brunt bricks need to be replaced by blocks. The amended law also relaxed rules for brick kilns. A notice issued on Jan 6 said kilns should be at least 400 metres away from rail lines, education institutes, hospitals, agricultural land etc.
To ensure this, the officials of the ministry of environment, forest and climate change have started to inspect the kilns.
Additional secretary of the ministry of environment, forest and climate change, Alamgir Monsur ul Alam, said: “For the time being, only government offices have been asked to use blocks instead of burnt bricks and soon we will issue such an instruction to the private sector.”
He also clarified that the current drive is not to force kilns to adopt block technology but to ensure the brick-making factories comply with the existing laws.