Residents rally for removal of WDB’s XEN, SDE

Selim Reza back from Shahzadpur :

Hundreds of people from various river erosion-affected areas in Shahzadpur upazila of Sirajganj district formed a human chain on Saturday, demanding the removal of the Executive Engineer (XEN) of the Water Development Board (WDB) in Sirajganj and its Sub-Divisional Engineer (SDE) due to allegations of corruption, irregularities, and mismanagement in the Riverbank Protection Project, which involves around Tk 647 crore.
The demonstrators also demanded exemplary punishment for the WDB’s Executive Engineer and SDE, following a fair investigation.
The human chain was formed on the erosion-prone bank of the Jamuna River near Panchil village in Shahzadpur upazila at around 11:30 am, with the participation of people from all walks of life, including teachers, students, socio-cultural, and political personalities.
Among others, Rajab Ali, the Convener of the programme, prominent businessman Nuruzzaman, Yasin Sarker, and Hazi Aynal Haque spoke at the event.
The speakers said, “The government, under the supervision of WDB in Sirajganj, has undertaken a riverbank protection project stretching about 6 km and involving around Tk 647 crore. The project started in 2021, but the work has not yet been completed due to extreme negligence by the contractors and WDB officials in Sirajganj. The involved persons have been delaying the project, citing reasons like the coronavirus pandemic, fund crises, and price hikes of construction materials. They have also extended the project deadline year after year. As a result, people in several villages, including Brahmangram, Jalalpur, Arkandi, Monakosa, Panchil, and Hatpanchil, experienced severe erosion by the river Jamuna this year due to strong currents during the rainy season. About 200 homesteads, large acres of cropland, and other establishments have been flooded due to the rising water level in the Jamuna in the last few days. Many more are now under threat of erosion and may be washed away into the riverbed at any time.”
“If the project had been implemented on time, along with proper dredging according to the design, locals would not have faced such erosion at the beginning of the monsoon. Due to the apathy of the contractors and WDB officials, this situation has been created. Consequently, hundreds of people in the area are being displaced, losing their homes and other assets,” they claimed.
The agitating people said, “We want the removal of the corrupt officials, including Md. Mahbubur Rahman, Executive Engineer (XEN) of WDB in Sirajganj, and his subordinate Sub-Divisional Engineer (SDE) Milton Hossain, as they have turned their office into a den of corruption, irregularities, and mismanagement.”
The erosion-affected people who participated in the agitation programme said, “The WDB officials have started placing sand sacks and geotubes along the vulnerable bank of the river. But their efforts are not helping the people as the work is being hampered due to the strong currents of the river. If the initiative had been taken in the dry season to protect the riverbank and embankment, such erosion would not have occurred in the area. In this situation, it is clear that the bulk of the government money being spent in the name of emergency work to prevent erosion by setting up geotubes is just pouring money into the water. Local dwellers are not benefiting from it as the erosion is getting worse day by day.”
The agitating people urged the government to take immediate steps to provide compensation and rehabilitation for the erosion victims. They also sought a permanent solution to prevent such severe erosion by the river Jamuna.