Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA) was caught in an unauthorised road excavation adjacent to Dhaka's Lalbagh Shaheed Abdul Alim playground in Ward 26, forging the signature of a Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) official on Monday.

Upon receiving reports of unauthorised digging, DSCC officials inspected the site and demanded to see the permission documents from the workers. The workers presented a document purportedly signed by DSCC Zone-3's regional executive engineer, Mithun Chandra Shil. However, upon closer examination, it was found that the signature was forged and the date was altered.

By the time the fraud was discovered, WASA workers and supervisors had fled the scene. Later, DSCC seized the equipment used in the excavation, including generators, a drill machine, aluminium bowls, crowbars, a shovel, LED lights, and helmets.

According to sources, Dhaka WASA had initially sought permission from DSCC's One Stop Cell to dig the road for installing an Electronic Pressure Reducing Valve (E-PRV) in the main water line under the Sayedabad Water Treatment Plant. Permission was granted for excavation between April 24 and April 30, which was later extended until May 23 due to operational reasons.

Despite verbal advisories from DSCC officials against digging during Eid-ul-Azha due to potential public inconvenience, Dhaka WASA attempted unauthorised excavation twice. The latest incident involved digging an area larger than permitted, further exacerbating the issue.

Mithun Chandra Shil, Zone-3's regional executive engineer, commented, "The signature on the excavation permission document presented by WASA was forged, and the date was altered. Legal action, including potential lawsuits, will be pursued against those responsible."