In Ulipur of Kurigram district, illegal sale of sand and soil from river bank is increasing at a rapid rate. After selling the sand in the char, extracting soil, sand from flood control dam has started. However, the Water Development Board does not know anything about the road being cut for a long time. As a result, in the monsoon season, the flood control dam road worth crores of Tk will be breached and the water will easily enter the locality and cause indescribable suffering to thousands of people, the locals said.
According to a source in the Water Development Board, in the financial year 2019-20, at a cost of Taka 4 crore 92 lakh, the flood control dam road was repaired of 6 km from Putimari in Chilmari Upazila adjacent to Bagua Anantapur High School in Hatia Union of Ulipur Upazila.
On the spot, behind the Bagua Anantapur High School in Hatia Union, a land grabbing organization called ‘Swapnasindri Balu’ has been cutting the soil of the dam road for several days. The name of the Hatia Union branch of the National Workers League has been used as a token to cut the soil. In the token, a person named Farooq Hossain was seen using the signature and date as the member secretary.
Locals allege that a man named Farooq Hossain, carrying the identity of the leader of the Jatiya Sramik League, is hauling sand freely in 5 to 6 tractors every day. They also said that even though the people of the Water Development Board came and saw it, the cutting of the dam was not being stopped due to invisible reasons.
However, Nazrul Islam, deputy assistant engineer in charge of WDB, denied the allegations and said that work was being done to cut the soil and build the dam. However, the dam road is not being cut.
Acknowledging the cutting of the dam road in this regard, Farooq Hossain, member secretary of the Hatia Union branch of the National Workers League, said that the dam road is being repaired by cutting the soil there.
Hasan Ali, president of the Upazila Jatiya Sramik League, said, "I don't know anything about this." However, it is not right to cut the soil of the dam road. Development Board sub-divisional engineer Rafiqul Islam declined to comment. However, he said people were being sent to the spot. In this regard, Abdullah Al Mamun, Executive Engineer, Kurigram Water Development Board, said that he did not have that information till now and legal actions will be taken after receiving complaints.
