A mobile court in Dhunat upazila of Bogura has fined a trader Tk 70,000 for cutting the topsoil from cropland. The drive took place recently at Panchthupi in Chowkibari union.
Sources involved in the drive said Masud Parvez of Belkuchi village had been secretly cutting soil from a plot of farmland in Panchthupi and selling it elsewhere, claiming he had permission to dig a pond. Acting on a tip-off, assistant commissioner (land) and executive magistrate Mir Al Monsur Shoaib raided the site with police help and seized the digging equipment.
The court ordered three months' simple imprisonment if the fine went unpaid; the trader paid it in full, in cash, on the spot. He also signed an undertaking never again to cut soil from farmland.
Magistrate Mir Al Monsur Shoaib told reporters such drives to protect farmland will continue.
However influential dishonest traders may be, he said, strict legal action will be taken against soil cutting to protect the country's food security and environment. The report is by Dinajpur TV's national desk.
Photo: Newaj150 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Dinajpur TV
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