Staff Reporter :
The overall flood situation in Dinajpur, Gaibandha and Sirajganj districts deteriorated further as major rivers there kept overflowing on Wednesday, leaving five people dead and several lakh people marooned.
Besides, with flood situation deteriorating in the north, the water level in the rivers around the capital has started to increase, though it is still flowing below the danger level, according to our correspondents and agencies.
The water level in Buriganga, Balu, Turag, Sitalakya, Dhalaswari, Kaliganga and in Tongi canal registered a rise, of which Kaliganga recorded a 25-cm rise in last 24 hours, according to the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre or FFWC.
“These rivers are now flowing below the danger level, but if the rising trend continues they will cross the danger limit within 3 to 4 days,” said an FFWC official.
“The river Jamuna is flowing over the danger levels in many points. This will rush to rivers around the capital after flooding the north and central region,” FFWC executive engineer Sazzad Hossain said, adding, “this is the reason the water level in these areas will rise in 3 to 4 days”.
He told journalists that “the Jamuna at Bahadurabad point crossed the danger limit. Those water will come towards the central region increases the risk of flooding.” This is the second spell of flooding this year in which more than 600,000 people in 20 districts in the north of the country are affected. The water from the north would reach the Bay of Bengal through Meghna river, so there is danger of flooding in Dhaka, Munshiganj, Shariatpur, Narayanganj, Narshingdi and adjoining areas.
According to FFWC, the Buriganga in Dhaka registered a rise of 20cm in last 24 hours. Moreover, Balu in Demra point 12cm, Sitalakhya in Narayanganj 11cm, Turag in Mirpur 8cm and the water level in Tongi canal recorded a rise of 5cm during that period. The Kaliganga at Taraghat point rose by 25cm, Dhalesweri at Jagir point 19cm and Rikabi bazar point 6cm, and Bangshi river increased by 8cm in Nayarhat point.
The FFWC official said that the Buriganga was still flowing 138cm below the danger level. All other rivers were still under the danger level, but FFWC said the onrush of water from central region coupled with rains might burst the banks of those rivers.
In Dinajpur, four more people, including two children, lost their lives in Chirirbandar upazila of Dinajpur, raising the death toll from the floods all over the country to 44.
District administration control room relief and rehabilitation officer Mokhlesur Rahman told journalists that Rina Akter, 10, daughter of Iman Ali of Nanderai village, Arafat, 7, son of Aminul Islam of Uttar Para village, Fajir Uddin, 60, son of Shamsher Ali of Usufpur union drowned in floodwaters.
On the other hand, Majeda Begum, 65, wife of late Hafiz Uddin of Amorpur union was killed in wall collapse due to flood. With this, 17 died in Dinajpur while nine in Lalmonirhat, three in Nilphamari, two in Thakurgaon and one each in Netrakona and Sirajganj.
In Gaibandha, nearly two lakh people living in chars (shoals) and river basins in the district have been marooned with deterioration of the ongoing flood situation as water in the Brahmaputra and other rivers marked a further rise in 24 hours ending at 9 on Wednesday morning.
The officials of Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) here said the water level in the Brahmaputra rose by 03-cm during the period and it was flowing 103-cm above its danger level at Fulchharighat point of the district.
The other major rivers the Ghagot and the Karotoa also registered a further rise during the period and were flowing above their respective danger marks.
The Ghagot rose by 01-cm during the period and was flowing 83-cm over its danger mark at New Bridge Road point of the district town and the Karotoa rose by 14 and was flowing 44-cm over its danger mark at Katakhali Bridge point of Gobindaganj.
With the rise of water level in the rivers, the chars and the river basin including the mainland of 38 unions of Sundarganj, Sadar, Fulchhari, Saghata and Gobindaganj upazilas were submerged.
A total of 20,9239 people of 52,776 families of the upazilas have been marooned, said district relief and rehabilitation officer AKM Idris Ali.
As many as 16,708 flood affected people of 4,177 families of the upazilas took shelter at 69 flood shelter centres along with their movable assets, including domestic animals and poultry birds, he also said.
Deputy director of Department of Agriculture Extension AKM Ruhul Amin said the flood has submerged 17,178 hectares of land with standing crops particularly Aman seed bed, T-Aman land, and summer vegetables.
District Education Officer M Aminul Islam Mondal said 167 government primary schools of the upazilas have been closed as the flood water entered the schools. The BWDB is carrying out maintenance work at vulnerable points of river embankments with the help of members of Bangladesh Army.
Deputy Commissioner (DC) Gautam Chandra Pal said 376 tonnes of rice and TK 8.60 were distributed to the flood victims of the upazila so far on an urgent basis.
In Sirajganj, the flood situation in Sirajganj has worsened following a rise in the Jamuna water level on Wednesday morning.
“The Jamuna River was flowing 146 centimetres above the danger level at Sirajganj point at 6:00 am,” said executive engineer of Water Development Board (WDB) in Sirajganj Syed Hasan Imam.
Fresh areas were inundated as water level of the Jamuna River had risen by 19 centimetres in the last 24 hours, he added.
Low-lying areas of Sadar, Kajipur, Belkuchi, Chouhali and Shahjadpur upazilas remained submerged by Jamuna water since Tuesday.
In Rangpur, the flood situation marked improvement at most places and deterioration at some areas during the past 24 hours on Wednesday in ten northern districts on the Brahmaputra basin.
Officials in the Water Development Board (WDB) said water level of the major rivers marked both rise and fall and the situation might start improving further during the next 48 hours as the pressure of onrushing water from the upstream reduced during the period.
Water levels of the Brahmaputra marked fall by 11cm at Noonkhawa and 8cm at Chilmari and rise by 3cm at Fulchhari, Dharla marked fall by 20cm at Kurigram while Teesta remained steady at Dalia points during the period.
Besides, water levels of the Punorvoba marked fall by 23cm at Dinajpur while Ich-Jamuna rise by 12cm at Phulbari points during the period.
Meanwhile, water levels of the Jamuna marked rise by 1cm at Bahadurabad, 9cm at Sariakandi 16cm at Kazipur and 20cm at Sirajganj while Jamuneswari marked rise by 3cm at Badarganj and Kartoa by 8cm at Chalk Rahimpur during the period.
The Jamuneswari was flowing 142cm above DM at Badarganj, Dharla 96cm above DM at Kurigram and Ghaghot 83cm above DM at Gaibandha points.
The Brahmaputra was flowing above DM by 3cm at Noonkhawa, 79cm at Chilmari and 103cm at Fulchhari points.
The Jamuna was flowing above DM by 134cm at Bahadurabad, 126cm at Sariakandi, 151cm at Kazipur and 148cm at Sirajganj points.
The Punorvoba was flowing below its DM by 35cm at Dinajpur while Kartoa was flowing above the DM by 25cm at Chak Rahimpur in Gaibandha and Ich-Jamuna by 7cm above DM at Phulbari points.
“The Teesta was flowing 45cm below DM at Dalia point in Nilphamari at 12 this noon improving the flood situation in the area,” said Executive Engineer of Dalia Division of WDB Mostafizur Rahman.
Officials in the district administrations said the displaced people started returning homes since Monday last following recession of floodwater from inundated areas of Rangpur, Panchagarh, Thakurgaon, Lalmonirhat and Nilphamari districts.
District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer (DRRO) of Dinajpur Mokhlesur Rahman said 54,950 displaced people have taken shelters at 384 flood shelters in the district.
“We have been continuing distribution of 485 tonnes rice and Taka 16 lakh among flood-hit people in the district,” Rahman added.
Kurigram DRRO Enamul Haque said the district administration allocated 851 tonnes rice and Taka 21 lakh till today for distribution among flood-hit people of all nine upazilas in the district.
Gaibandha DRRO Idris Ali said distribution of 576 tonnes rice and Taka 12.60 lakh allocated by the district administration was progressing in flood- hit areas of the district.
Talking to journalists, Divisional Commissioner Kazi Hasan Ahmed said the flood situation started improving at most areas and deteriorated in few other areas during the past 24 hours in Rangpur division.
“We have taken adequate steps for reaching relief goods and cash to the flood-hit people in the affected areas,” Hasan added.
Meanwhile, more army personnel have been deployed in flood-affected areas as situation has deteriorated in northern parts of the country due to heavy rainfall and fresh onrush of water from the upstream.
A platoon of soldiers was sent to Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari and Panchagarh districts with essential life- saving equipment, said a press release of Inter-Services Public Relations today.
Earlier, army personnel were deployed in Dinajpur, Gaibandha, Rangpur and Syedpur to help flood-affected people of those areas, added the release.
The army officials have joined hands with local administration to tackle the flood.
