Sand syndicates tighten grip on Bangladesh's northern region

Indiscriminate dredging to extract sand from rivers is leading to bank erotion in manuy areas. UNB

Rezaul Karim Manik. Rangpur, Nov 6 - Once vibrant lifelines for northern Bangladesh, the Teesta, Dharla and Jamuneswari rivers are now being ruthlessly stripped of sand by illegal dredging syndicates operating under the shadow of political protection and administrative inaction.

Despite a standing government ban on sand extraction from these ecologically sensitive rivers, dredgers continue to roar day and night, turning riverbeds into pits as deep as 60 to 70 feet in some areas and transforming others into barren, desert-like highlands.

Locals allege that the trade in stolen sand thrives not just because of political shelter, but also due to police complicity and the negligence of local administrations.

“Police and administration officials take commissions at night. Everyone gets their share,” said one sand lifter in Badarganj upazila, requesting anonymity.

During a recent visit to the Rajarampur Kashiganj area in Rangpur’s Badarganj upazila, dredgers were seen extracting sand openly from the Jamuneswari River.

Local residents claimed the operation has continued for nearly six years — first under the influence of local Awami League leaders and now reportedly under a local BNP leader’s patronage, after ‘managing’ the police.

“Even when the UNO raids in the morning, dredgers return by afternoon with police help,” said a villager.

Local administration officials, however, insist that they are actively working to stop illegal dredging.

“Sand extraction is completely prohibited. Mobile courts are being conducted wherever we receive reports,” said Rangpur Divisional Commissioner Shahid Islam.

Gongachara Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mahmudul Hasan Mridha said several dredgers were recently seized and destroyed during operations in the Teesta.

Badarganj UNO Md Mizanur Rahman added that in the past six weeks, the administration had conducted drives at “15–20 illegal sand points.”

“But by the time we reach, the offenders manage to flee. Locals remain silent — we only find dredger machines,” he said.

Turning down the bribery allegations, Badarganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) AKM Atiqur Rahman asserted, “I haven’t taken a single taka — not even a cup of tea — over sand matters.”

While officials deny wrongdoing, the consequences are starkly visible across the region.

Continuous dredging has pushed Kashiganj village, nearby croplands and even the Madhupur Union Parishad office to the brink of erosion.

Roads are damaged daily as overloaded trolleys transport sand to construction sites.

“The riverbank is disappearing before our eyes. We’ve lost farmland and fear losing our homes next," said a villager.

Illegal sand lifting isn’t confined to one location. Similar operations continue unabated across Lohani Para’s Dakshin and Uttar Madhai Khamar, Sahebganj, Telipara, Kutubpur’s Nagerhat, Arunnesa Ghat, Dalalpara, Kalupur’s Chandamari Ghat and Damodarpur’s Kalirghat, Shekherhat and Mostafapur Mondolpara areas — all along the Chikli and Jamuneswari rivers, according to locals. - UNB