Netrakona Correspondent

Forest guards are in fear for their lives due to threats over allegations of cutting down mountains during the construction of the road from Chaitabari to Kathalbari in the hilly area of Kalmakanda upazila of the district. The Forest Department has filed an allegation of cutting down mountains against the chairman of Lengura Union in Kalmakanda Upazila on the India-Bangladesh border of the district.

However, local hill residents said that the construction of the road has fulfilled a long-standing dream of the border residents. The residents of the Shatadik border had also petitioned the chairman to build this road. In the recent spate of content circulating on social media about the nearly one and a half kilometer road under construction from Chaitanagar to Kathalbari in Lengura Union, Lengura Union Chairman Saidur Rahman Bhuiyan invited media personnel to see the road in person on Tuesday (May 13, 25).

Media workers working in various media outlets in Netrokona district and Kalmakanda upazila were present at the event. During this time, he showed the road to the media personnel present and said that this road has been in operation for fifty to one hundred years. He is building the road for the convenience of tourists as well as for the transportation of local residents. He also said that local residents will benefit from the construction of the road.

Even if the road is built, the Forest Department will be able to fulfill their responsibilities properly. However, recently, there has been a lot of discussion and criticism about the construction of this road on various media, including social media. Some say that building a road in the village inside the India-Bangladesh border will facilitate the transportation of smuggled goods.

Besides, many people say that smugglers are quite active on the India-Bangladesh border. During the rainy season, it has become easier for smugglers to bring in and take out smuggled goods using workers. If the road is constructed, goods can be easily sent directly to various destinations in the country by various vehicles. However, UP Chairman Saidur Rahman Bhuiyan told the media, “If there is smuggling, we will all fight it together.”

It is worth noting that in January 2023, a betel nut worker named Helal was killed in a clash between two groups of smuggling syndicates over betel nut smuggling on this mountainous road, known as a smuggling spot on the India-Bangladesh border. Meanwhile, Akhter Mia, a forest guard working at the local forest department’s bit office, said that the chairman is illegally cutting down mountains to build roads using his power.

“Since we informed the chairman of the forest department, Saidur Rahman Bhuiyan, about this, we have been subjected to various threats, including verbal abuse. I am worried about my life.” Meanwhile, the executive officer of Kalmakanda Upazila told the media that the road has been allocated for construction under the Rural Infrastructure Development Project. The allegations of mountain cutting are being investigated, and construction work on the road has been halted for the time being.