River Excavation: Irrigation pumps instead of dredger pose threat

The contractor concerned has placed engine-driven irrigation pumps for excavation of the Ghaghot river instead of using dredger, posing erosion threat to the nearby bridge, road and homesteads in Sundarganj upazila of the district.

Rangpur Water Development Board (WDB) undertook plans to excavate Ghaghot for keeping navigability of the river between the boundary line of Rangpur’s Mithapukur and Gaibandha’s Sundarganj round the year.

The plans include 2,000 cubic metre excavation using dredger, construction of 15-metre wide bank and 30-metre height slop.

The authority has allocated a fund of Tk 2.17 crore for implementation of the plans. A Chattogram based construction firm named M/s Yunus and Brothers got the work order. According to the condition of contract, the contractor must have to use dredger for excavation of the riverbed.

But the contractor has placed six engine-driven irrigation pumps instead of using dredger in the river, which is lifting sand from underground level.

Due to continuous underground sand lifting, a big hole is being created there, which will divert the river water in the rainy season, posing erosion threat, said activists of voluntary organisation “Nodi Bachao Desh Bachao”, adding that but if the dredger is used for the river excavation, it does not happen.

Sadequl Islam Dulal, convener of the organisation, said the river should be excavated as per direction of competent authority, otherwise the riverbed will be badly affected.

Rangpur WDB Sub-divisional Engineer Tabibur Rahman said the main object of the work is to excavate the riverbed using dredger but there is not enough space to place the dredger.