Army, Coastguard will be deployed to protect Padma by stopping illegal sand extraction: Adviser Fouzul

The government will deploy the Bangladesh Army and Coastguard members if necessary to protect the Padma River by stopping illegal sand extraction, Road Transport and Bridges Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan said today (11 June).

"The course of the river is changing due to erosion and illegal sand extraction. Illegal dredging causes erosion in the areas around the Padma River. If this cannot be stopped, even building a dam will not solve the problem," he said while visiting the erosion point of an endangered embankment, three kilometres off the Padma Bridge.

"If necessary, the army and the Coast Guard will be deployed to stop illegal sand extraction and prevent river erosion."

He warned that action will also be taken against deputy commissioners of districts if they give permission to operate illegal dredgers that are against the public interest.

Also speaking on the occasion, Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed has announced that sustainable embankments will be built to prevent erosion.

He said, "Initially, sand-filled geobags are being dumped in the erosion-affected areas to prevent erosion. In addition, after a survey by the Water Development Board and the Bridges Division in this regard, sustainable embankments will be quickly constructed in the affected areas according to the results and designs."

According to Shariatpur Water Development Board sources, the embankment of the Padma River was constructed at a cost of Tk110 crore in the fiscal year 2012-13 to protect the construction of the Padma Bridge.

Various infrastructures, including Service Area-2, army base, Padma Bridge South Police Station, have been constructed within 500 meters of the Padma River on the Jajira side of the bridge.

When land was acquired for the construction of all these infrastructures, the erosion of the Padma started in the Naodoba area around 2012. To protect the Padma Bridge project area from river erosion, the Bangladesh Bridge Authority constructed an embankment of the river bank 2 kilometres downstream (eastward) from the bridge. Later, the river control embankment was connected to the embankment.

In November last year, a 100-metre section of the dam collapsed into the river at the Zero Point area of ​​Naodobar. After that, another 100-meter section of the dam in the Majhirghat area has shifted from under it. In addition, erosion has occurred in the river near various parts of the dam.

After a 100-meter section of the dam collapsed into the river in November last year, the Water Development Board and the Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) conducted a survey of the dam. The survey showed that the river was deep near the dam in a 1-kilometre section. There, the soil was moving away from the bottom.

Besides, the river had moved near the dam in the remaining 1-kilometre section, where the soil was also eroding. The Water Development Board later started repairing the collapsed section of the dam. Last May, 33,000 geo bags filled with sand were dumped in a 100-meter section of the Zero Point area.

A new erosion occurred near the site on Saturday. In the morning, a 200-meter section broke and collapsed into the river.