Jamuna’s erosion takes serious turn in Shahzadpur

Ainul Haque, 70, a retired primary school teacher in Sayedpur village under Shahzadpur upazila of Sirajganj, lost his house to Jamuna river's erosion five times in last 30 years.

On last Wednesday, the river devoured his house yet again, for the sixth time.

"I had to relocate time and again after losing my house to the river's womb so many times. At this age, I can no longer bear such pain of losing everything to the river. Yet, the river took away everything again," he lamented.

"A crack appeared in the riverbank near the house all of a sudden on Wednesday noon, and by the evening, everything was gone. My family members and I only managed to save our lives, nothing else," Ainul added.

Visiting the area in Jalalpur union of the upazila on Thursday, this correspondent found that erosion continues even as river protection work is undergoing along a vast stretch of the riverbank.

"At least five houses were devoured by Jamuna while some 10-15 houses were relocated from riverbank, including mine, in last couple of weeks," said Md Niam Uddin Bepari, a resident of the village.

"When I built my house four years ago, the river was at least 500 metres away. Now it has moved close to my doorstep," he added.

Not only Sayedpur village, but also at least 5-6 spots in neighbouring Koijuri Bazar, Haatpachil, Dhitpur and Kurshi villages in the upazila have become vulnerable to river erosion.

Sonatoni union in the upazila has been the worst affected in the recent spell of Jamuna's erosion.

Md Kamruzzaman, Shahzadpur upazila nirbahi officer, said they are monitoring the situation and would begin relief work if necessary.

At least 170 hectares of cropland in Shahzadpur upazila have been devoured by Jamuna in last five years, while 145 hectares of new shoal lands have emerged during this time, said Suvojit Roy, additional agriculture officer in the upazila.

Md Najmul Hossain, sub-divisional engineer of Bangladesh Water Development Board in Sirajganj, said a Tk 651 crore project to develop 8-km flood protection embankment and 6.5-km riverbank protection is undergoing from Enayetpur to Haatpachil area of Shahzadpur upazila to mitigate river erosion.

"Upon completion of the project, likely by 2026, entire Shahzadpur upazila will be protected from Jamuna's erosion," he added.

Contacted, Md Mokhlesur Rahman, executive engineer of BWDB in Sirajganj, said most of the erosion hit areas of Sonatoni union are remote shoal lands that are located beyond the riverbank protection work.

"As the river is swelling up, riverbank areas along the shoals have been eroding, which is natural. However, there is no damage in the protected areas along the riverbank," he added.