Dead rivers: The cost of Bangladesh's garment-driven economic boom

Industrial effluents enter the Buriganga River as boatmen wait for passengers in Karanigonj, on the outskirts of Dhaka. Photos: AFP

Bangladeshi ferryman Kalu Molla began working on the Buriganga river before the patchwork of slums on its banks gave way to garment factories – and before its waters turned pitch black.

The 52-year-old has a constant cough, allergies and skin rashes, and doctors have told him the vile-smelling sludge that has also wiped out marine life in one of Dhaka's main waterways is to blame.