Anisur Rahman Khan :
Some rouged people in association with land sharks and local influential groups, in cahoots with corrupt officials have grabbed over 5,128 acres of land belonging to the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) across the country.
It has been also alleged that some BWDB employees are enjoying such lands in the name of other people, even collected monthly payment from different business establishments that installed in BWDB lands or embankments.
According to sources in the water resources ministry, the BWDB acquired around over 216,853 acres of land across the country for various purposes, including construction of embankments.
High officials of the Water Resources Ministry told The New Nation that they will soon launch eviction programme against encroachment and stern action will be taken if found any officials involved malpractices in this regard.
Even the Prime Minister’s directive, the High Court’s order, and several campaigns launched by environmentalist groups and the media to prevent fresh encroachment appear to have had no impact on the current situation. However, the water resources ministry recently has sent letters to WDB executive engineers in 64 districts to prepare a list of the people who are directly involved in grabbing the lands.
Ministry sources say over 315 acres of land belonging to the BWDB have been grabbed by influential people in the central region of Dhaka, 3,077 acres in Cumilla zone, 490 acres in Rajshahi zone, 180 acres in Chattogram region, 386 acres in Khulna zone, 471 acres in Rangpur zone, 127 acres in Barishal zone, 67 acres in Faridpur, and 13 acres in Sylhet zone, as of November 2020.
Sources, however, said that they are updating the data soon.
It is also alleged that around 300 acres of land belonging to the BWDB embankment, next to the Turag river, estimated to be worth some Tk. 10,000 crore, have been grabbed by land sharks and local influential groups.
The BWDB had acquired around 1,200 acres of land to construct a 30-km-long flood protection embankment alongside the Turag river in 1988-89. Around 100-150 feet of land in the direction of the river and 50-100 feet of land in other places of the embankment belong to the BWDB. But most of the areas have already been grabbed. Sources say over 200 acres of BWDB land next to the embankment have been occupied. There are over 1,000 illegal structures beside the embankment. A recent visit to areas near Birulia Bridge on the Turag revealed that the illegal encroachments are going on in full swing.
The banks of the river, including BWDB lands stretching from Mirpur’s Diabari via Dhour Bridge to Ashulia, Tongi, and Kamarpara bridge, are being gobbled up by real estate developers and sand traders in broad daylight on a daily basis under the very nose of BWDB officials, sources said.
“It is true that some BWDB lands are encroached across the country due to lack of monitoring. Besides, there is a shortage of manpower in the board. We have already submitted a preliminary report to the ministry regarding the occupied lands,” an official of BWDB on condition of anonymity, told The New Nation.
He said they have to acquire lands considering the size of projects. “We construct flood protection embankments and irrigation canals across the country. For these large projects, we construct structures, including construction yards. So, the board needs to acquire land in this regard,” he explained.
Once there were 24,000 people in the BWDB. But the total manpower now amounts to 7,000-8,000 people.
“We are now preparing a list of BWDB lands. Besides, the board has stopped giving lease of our lands as per the ministry order. The final report regarding the encroached land is under process,” he added.
He, however, said that they have strengthened their monitoring system so that none can grab the BWDB’s land afresh.
The ministry will conduct eviction drives to free the BWDB’s lands from encroachment, Zaheed Farooque, State Minister for the water resources ministry, told this correspondent.
“Coronavirus pandemic has slowed down our ongoing eviction drives. Though the pandemic situation is under control, but the holy month of Ramadan will begin from April. We hope, our full swing eviction drives will continue to reclaim grabbed lands after Ramadan,” the state minister said.
Farooque further said, the ministry, aided by local administrations and law enforcement agencies, will conduct drives to remove all the structures from BWDB lands across the country at any cost.
