Kurigram Correspondent:

Projects aimed at reducing disaster risk in Kurigram, funded by the World Food Programme (WFP), are instead drawing allegations of environmental damage and misuse of public funds, as roads are being built with sand illegally dredged from rivers.

In Kurigram Sadar’s Bhogdanga Union, construction of a 2,310-metre rural road, and in Nageshwari’s Kaliganj Union, a 1,150-metre road, has relied on sand extracted from the Dudhkumar River using illegal dredgers, according to local residents and project sources.

Affected locals say the dredging has cut into the riverbed, increasing erosion risks and threatening homes and farmland, despite the projects being billed as disaster risk reduction initiatives.

Project documents show that the Bhogdanga road, stretching from Bottola Bazar WAPDA embankment and Tengarmari border bridge to Bhati Digari Government Primary School, is being implemented at a cost of Tk99,004,171.

The project is funded technically and financially by the World Food Programme, with overall support from the Department of Disaster Management, and is being implemented by the Bhogdanga Union Disaster Management Committee with cooperation from RDRS Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, in Kaliganj Union’s Ward No 5, a 1,150-metre road from Bhobanderkuti Monir Mosque to Shahidul’s house is being built under WFP funding at a cost of Tk80,002,858, with RDRS Bangladesh providing support.

That project falls under the Disaster Risk Reduction–Recovery Action Programme (DRR-RRAP) and is being implemented by the Kaliganj Union Disaster Management Committee.

Residents living along the Dudhkumar River said sand was dredged continuously for around 15 days to supply the road works.

“Local disaster management committee members lifted sand from the river with dredgers,” said one riverbank resident, requesting anonymity. “They take the sand, and when floods come, our land erodes. We get nothing in return.”

Another resident said, “They say the sand is for road construction, but our houses are collapsing because of river erosion.”

Landowners submitted a written complaint to the Nageshwari Upazila Nirbahi Officer on 26 November, alleging illegal sand extraction.

Following the complaint, Assistant Commissioner (Land) Badrulzzaman Rishad visited the site on 2 December and ordered the dredging to stop.

However, locals alleged that two dredgers continued operating freely for several days even after the official intervention.

Bhogdanga Union Disaster Management Committee President and Union Parishad Chairman Saidur Rahman said the project would benefit many people once completed, adding that only about one-third of the work has been done so far.

In response to allegations, he said sand was collected from the middle of the river in a way that would not cause harm.

Kaliganj Union Disaster Management Committee President and Union Parishad Chairman Riazul Haque Prodhan said sand dumping work would continue for a few more days, as the project involved multiple tasks.

He claimed that sand was no longer being collected from the river and was instead sourced from his own land.

RDRS Bangladesh is providing overall cooperation for both projects.

RDRS Kurigram project engineer and upazila manager Arif Zaman said the project was designed to improve river dredging outcomes and that documents allow sand to be collected from nearby rivers.

RDRS Kurigram chief officer Tapan Kumar Saha said the projects are generally implemented by union authorities and that they can provide details on work progress.

Concerns remain among locals that unless strict monitoring and lawful sourcing of materials are ensured, disaster risk reduction projects could worsen environmental risks rather than mitigate them.