Madhumati erosion escalates

Thousands of people living in Kashipur, Makrail, Ramchandrapur, and Naokhola villages along the bank of the Madhumati in Narail's Lohagara upazila are having sleepless nights as the river's erosion has turned severe recently.

Numerous homes, schools, mosques, and cropland have already been devoured by the river, while many more structures and vast stretches of agricultural land are at risk of erosion.

Locals and affected families alleged that indiscriminate sand extraction from the river has compromised the integrity of the riverbank embankments, exacerbating erosion in the area.

Shamsunnahar, 65, a widow living in Kashipur village, said several dredgers have been extracting sand and stockpiling it behind her homestead. "Due to this, water began seeping through and caused the land underneath my homestead to collapse. Eventually, my only shelter went into the river's womb," she said.

Visiting the affected areas recently, this correspondent observed that although the Madhumati has a low water level and gentle current, erosion was visibly active along the riverbank.

Sandbags placed by the Bangladesh Water Development Board in previous years had either sunk or shifted, rendering the embankments ineffective. As a result, fresh erosion has begun in several places, putting numerous structures at risk -- including the Makrail Government Primary School, three other educational institutions, several mosques, and local roads built under the Ashrayan Project.

Locals said while the WDB had somewhat managed to check erosion in past years by reinforcing embankments with sandbags, the extraction of sand by dredgers in both leased and non-leased areas recently led to widespread damage.

"I lost my home twice to Madhumati's erosion earlier, and rebuilt it later, only to find it at risk yet again," said Margina Begum, an elderly resident of Makrail village.

Fazlul Mridha of the same village said the river devoured several acres of his family's land, while his brother had to dismantle his home and relocate after sand extraction from the river caused the nearby embankment to collapse.

Abhijit Kumar Saha, executive engineer of the WDB in Narail, said following complaints from residents, local authorities recently halted sand extraction from unauthorised areas and suspended leases of several sand quarries.

"Measures are underway to repair the damaged embankments," he added.