Dhamai River Excavation: Road blocked for over a year

About four thousand people -- inhabitants of Patna and Bagerkona villages in Moulvibazar's Barlekha upazila -- have been cut off from the closest market and upazila headquarters for the past 18 months, as their lone road lies unusable following excavation of the Dhamai river.

Shahid Brothers, a contractor firm, based in Motijheel of Dhaka, excavated six kilometres of the river under a Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) project titled 'small river, canal and water reservoir project (phase-1)', according to BWDB data.

Beginning in April 2019 and completing in May 2020, the project cost BWDB Tk 3,23,99,792.

The contractor firm pocketed the entire money, but it carelessly left heaps of excavated earth on nearly one kilometre stretch of the dirt road that runs along the northern bank of the Dhamai river, alleged the villagers and local public representatives.

As a result, people in the two villages, especially schoolgoing children and the elderly, are suffering immensely, they also said.

Sujanagar Union Parishad (UP) Chairman Nasib Ali filed a written complaint in this regard with the upazila nirbahi officer (UNO) of Barlekha in October this year.

Rather than fortifying the river's banks with the excavated earth, the contractor firm caused obstruction in people's movement by dumping the earth haphazardly on their road and front yards along the northern bank of the river.

There have been many instances when the firm sold the earth illegally, the complainant said, adding that both banks of the river are showing signs of erosion already.

Finding no other solution in one and a half years' time, many of the villagers -- whose houses are left inaccessible with piles of earth -- are now removing the earth at their own expense, Nasib Ali told this correspondent.

Sadek Mia, a resident of Patna village, said the road is now unfit for all sorts of vehicles, even for rickshaws and autorickshaws.

The excavation of the Dhamai river is causing sufferings only; no benefit, lamented Babul Mia, another resident of the same village. 

Rebutting all allegations, Shahid Brothers' Director Abdus Shahid said upon completion last year, the BWDB acknowledged their work without raising any objection.

The work on the Dhamai river was done by different contractor firms and a particular contractor should not be made liable for errors made by others, he also claimed. 

Confirming that the local UP chairman has lodged a complaint against the quality of the work, Khorshed Alam, deputy assistant engineer of BWDB in Barlekha, said villagers are not supposed to spend their own money to solve a problem that is caused by any of their contractors.

According to the contract, the contractors have to level the river banks or the road along the river with excavated earth. Otherwise, they would be made liable of breaching the contract, he added.  

Barlekha UNO Khandaker Mudassir bin Ali said after receiving the complaint, he visited the site and found some anomalies.

He also said that he already sent his report to the higher authorities and was awaiting directives in this regard.