Our correspondent :
Sand is being illegally extracted and smuggled with dredger machines from various places in almost all the sand mahals of Padua Tewarikhil, Putibila, Gaursthan, Faranga, Pantrisha, Adhunagar and Chunati areas in Lohagara upazila of Chattogram throughout the year.
Besides, public extortion is going on in the name of the royal of Balumhal on the road. The extortionists collected Tk. 2,500 from big sand trucks, Tk. 400-1,500 from small and medium and other vehicles in the name of the royalty.
Locals said that an organized group was involved in the incident under the umbrella of the government party. The concerned authorities are in a silent role with this.
However, the children, patients and common people of the area could not sleep due to the loud noise of the dredger machine. Although it was stopped for some time due to the intervention of the administration, sand mining started again.
It can be seen that bridges, culverts, canals, people’s houses, mosques, temples and educational institutions are being demolished due to the oppression of sand traders. Agricultural land is disappearing. Sand traders are extracting sand from all the canals of the upazila including Dolu, Tankabati, Sorai, Thamathamia, Jamchhari, Sukhchhari and Shark. Five to six kilometers around the canal are being turned into desert due to dredging of sand under the layer. Due to water crisis, paddy cultivation is not going on in the lands of Khalpar. It is as if the roads are crumbling due to reckless sand extraction. Meanwhile, due to sand extraction from the base of the Dolubridge built on the Lohagara-Lama road in the Chunti Amcharhat area, the soil under the middle pillar of the bridge has shifted and 30 feet of 30 feet piling has become visible.
Illegal sand miners are not going to be stopped even though mobile courts have conducted raids in Gaursthan, Pantrisha, Sorai, Hasnavita, Paharchanda, Charamba, Adhunagar and Amirabad Union of Puttibila Union of the upazila at different times.
Locals said Putibila Bazaar, Mosque and Dulu Bridge are under threat due to unplanned sand extraction; It can disappear into the canal at any time.
