A nearly two-decade-old garbage dump in Kishoreganj has been covered with sand ahead of Prime Minister Tareque Rahman’s visit to the district. The upper layer of the long-standing waste pile beside the Kishoreganj-Bhairab regional highway in the Khilpara area has been removed and covered with sand. The municipal authorities have also stepped up efforts to clear garbage accumulated along various roads in the district town.

Prime Minister Tareque Rahman is scheduled to visit Kishoreganj on Sunday. During the visit, he will release fish fry in Pakundia as part of National Fisheries Week. He will then inspect the Carp Hatchery Complex in Katiadi and inaugurate development works at the historic Sholakia Eidgah ground. Later in the afternoon, he is scheduled to inaugurate the distribution of Family Cards at the old stadium ground in the district town.

According to local sources, garbage has been dumped for nearly 20 years along about one kilometre of the Kishoreganj-Bhairab regional highway in Khilpara of Sadar upazila. Waste from markets and households in Kishoreganj town, as well as waste from hospitals and clinics, has reportedly been dumped there. Garbage from parts of Katiadi, Pakundia and Hossainpur upazilas has also allegedly been brought to the site.

The prolonged dumping of waste in the open has caused severe foul odours in the area. Thousands of vehicles and pedestrians travel along the road every day to and from Dhaka, Mymensingh, Sylhet and Bhairab. During the rainy season, decomposing waste is washed onto the road, worsening the public suffering.

Locals said a waste management project costing around Tk 100 crore was undertaken three to four years ago, but it has yet to become operational due to a shortage of manpower. Residents have long demanded that the garbage dump be removed from beside the highway and have staged human chains, submitted petitions and held various protest programmes. The issue has also been reported by several media outlets, but no effective action had been taken until now.

Ahead of the Prime Minister’s visit, parts of the dump have been cleared and covered with sand for about a week. A garbage pile near the Katiadi bus stand along the same road is also being covered with sand. Local residents claim the temporary measure has been taken hurriedly to keep the dump out of the Prime Minister’s view. They fear the areas will return to their previous condition once the visit is over.

A visit to Khilpara on Thursday afternoon found that the large garbage pile was no longer as visible as before. Some of the upper layer of waste had been removed and the remaining pile was covered with sand, making the roadside area appear relatively clean. Previously, pedestrians and other road users had to cover their noses because of the foul smell, but the situation appeared more tolerable after the temporary covering.

However, the entire dump has not been removed. Only part of the upper layer has been cleared, while waste underneath remains covered with sand. Garbage can still be seen farther away from the road.

Local resident Mahmudul Hasan said the stench from the garbage makes it extremely difficult to pass through the area, while the situation becomes even worse during the rainy season. He said residents had repeatedly submitted written and verbal complaints to the municipal authorities but no effective steps had been taken to remove the waste. Now, he said, the garbage is being quickly covered with sand ahead of the Prime Minister’s visit. He called for the dump to be permanently removed rather than temporarily concealed.

Kishoreganj Municipality Administrator and Deputy Director of the Local Government Division in Kishoreganj Jebun Nahar Shammi told Prothom Alo that authorities were prioritising cleanliness in the town and surrounding areas ahead of the Prime Minister’s visit. Public awareness campaigns are being conducted through loudspeakers, urging people not to dump waste on roads or in open spaces over the coming days.

She said the garbage dumping site beside the Kishoreganj-Bhairab regional highway is being temporarily covered with sand as part of the effort. A permanent waste management project has already been undertaken for the site, and it may become operational within a few days.