Kuhelia river turns into a narrow stream, thanks to earth-filling by RHD
The Roads and Highways Department has earth-filled about 26 acres of the Kuhelia river in Cox's Bazar to build a two-lane road.
The massive encroachment has turned the once-vibrant river in Moheshkhali's Matarbari union into a narrow stream.
The department is going ahead with the construction despite the land ministry's objection.
In its Environmental Impact Assessment, the RHD even concealed the fact that the construction work would require earth filling to make way for the road along the ecologically sensitive river, said Nazmul Huda, deputy director of Department of Environment, Cox's Bazar.
Because of the river's natural value, the land ministry had turned down the RHD's proposal to build the road, according to Prime Minister's Office documents seen by The Daily Star.
Besides, a proposal, sent by the Cox's Bazar district administration to the ministry, on acquiring the river land mentioned the river area as ponds and ditches, the documents show.
Construction of the 7.35km road from Rajghata area of Kuhelia to Muhuriaghona of Dolghat began in October 2018 and is expected to complete in June 2023.
The 13km stretch of the river, which used to facilitate maritime trade and ensure livelihoods for many, now flows like a canal due to heavy earth-filling.
The grim picture came up in an investigation by the DoE, which found the RHD earth-filled 25.68 acres of the river as of January 2021. Latest data are not available, but sources say more river area has been encroached upon by now.
Mujibur Rahman Howlader, former chairman of the National River Conservation Committee, who visited the river in April 2021, recently told this newspaper that the way the RHD filled up the river was a criminal offence.
"They sandwiched the river by reducing its breadth and depth…. They can in no way stymie the current of a river. They can't fill up the flood plains of any river either," he said, referring to river protection laws and Supreme Court orders.
During a recent visit, this correspondent saw dozens of workers levelling the road with a roller machine near Rajghata bridge.
One worker said they were instructed to accelerate the construction work. "That's why we're working round the clock," he said.
Talking to this correspondent, in late October, Fazle Rabbi, an additional chief engineer at RHD and the then project director, said they took measures to mitigate the environmental impact.
He did not give a direct response as to why they concealed information in the EIA.
"The earth would be removed after the project's completion. You have to break something to make something," said Fazle.
He claimed the construction work did not stymie the river current as the road is being constructed on flood plains, which he said is a common practice to control floods.
Earlier in August 2017, the Cox's Bazar district administration, on behalf of the RHD, had sent a letter to the land ministry, seeking to lease 62 acres of land for the road construction.
As many as 54 acres of the area are river land, according to the minutes of a September 9, 2021 meeting of a committee formed by the PMO.
The ministry had rejected the proposal.
In late October last year, Amin Al Parvej, additional deputy commissioner (revenue) of Cox's Bazar, said they sent the proposal to the land ministry considering the national importance of the project.
"The ministry asked us to send another proposal changing the status of the river," he said.
Contacted on Thursday, he said they were yet to send the proposal. "The matter is now sub judice as a writ petition was filed in this regard," he said, claiming that the RHD realigned the road to avoid taking river land.
Talking to The Daily Star in late October, Md Saleh Uddin, additional secretary of the land ministry (land acquisition), said, "They [Cox's Bazar district administration] sent us a proposal to acquire the shoal of the Kuhelia river, which was identified as a river in land documents. The project director knows very well as to why we rejected the proposal. So does the deputy commissioner of Cox's Bazar."
About the land ministry's objection, Fazle Rabbi said it was a case of one government entity building a road on another government entity's land.
The government even allocated Tk 24 crore for land acquisition, he said, trying to justify their action.
Shafikul Islam, former assistant engineer of SMEC Bangladesh, the consultancy firm, claimed the road was being built on khas land.
The RHD had to acquire just three acres of private land at Rajghata Bridge area to begin the work, he said.
"The area was perhaps a river once. Tidal water still inundates the construction site. But when there is no tide, the flow is poor," he said.
Land records from Matarbari Mouja show the Kuhelia is categorised as a river in CS (Cadastral Survey, 1880), RS (Revisional Survey, 1938), and BS (Bangladesh Survey, 1980).
Asked what happened to the Tk 24 crore allocated for land acquisition given they had to acquire only three acres of land, Cox's Bazar Additional Commissioner Amin Al Parvej in late October had said he could not remember. He said the information was in the files.
Syeda Rizwana Hasan, chief executive of Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA), last month, said the PMO recommended building the road away from the river.
"Then how could the consulting firm flout the PMO order and fill up the river?" she asked.
Mir Nasir Hossen, managing director of the construction firm Mir Akhter Hossain Limited, said they were working as per the plan provided by the government.
"We didn't fix any alignment by ourselves," he said.
On September 9 last year, the PMO formed a committee to restore the river current.
The committee found proof that the river was "partially" filled up and that the road "advanced towards the river slightly".
According to the meeting minutes, the committee recommended taking necessary steps.
Three days after the meeting, the High Court ordered the authorities to stop the construction work for three months, responding to a petition filed by BELA earlier. On September 28, the chamber judge stayed the HC order and asked the authorities to file a leave to appeal petition.
A court order on the government appeal is pending.
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