Raj Kiron Das, RU :
Violating government rule, a section of dishonest and powerful people have been excavating ponds on cropland by closing water extraction channels across Mohanpur upazila for a long.
The practice is continuing. Local farmers complained regarding this several times to the concerned authorities against the unplanned digging of the ponds but no action was taken by the administration in this connection.
Meanwhile, more than half thousand farmers of Gorangopur village in Ghashigram union under the upazila, who were directly affected due to water-logging, have sent a written complaint to the high officials of district administrations seeking necessary measures to control the unplanned digging of croplands as fish ponds.
They alleged that the influential local people are digging ponds on croplands for a long. For this, housands of bighas of arable lands have been turned into fish ponds of Ghashigram union adding that there are three beels in Shampur, Gorangopur and Vimpara under the Ghashigram union. These beels contains rainwater during the rainy season, and in dry season, farmers can easily use these beels’s water in their croplands. But due to digging of the ponds, the three beels has been closed. As a result, a huge amount of crops have been damaged due to the water-logging. If these unplanned digging of ponds goes on, the croplands would be reduced and acute food shortage would be created in future, also they alleged.
However, they have wanted interference of the concerned authorities to stop the unplanned digging of the ponds immediately.
While asking Rajshahi district administrator SM Abdul Kader, he said The New Nation that legal steps would be taken against the illegal and unplanned digging of croplands as fish ponds as soon as possible.
Violating government rule, a section of dishonest and powerful people have been excavating ponds on cropland by closing water extraction channels across Mohanpur upazila for a long.
The practice is continuing. Local farmers complained regarding this several times to the concerned authorities against the unplanned digging of the ponds but no action was taken by the administration in this connection.
Meanwhile, more than half thousand farmers of Gorangopur village in Ghashigram union under the upazila, who were directly affected due to water-logging, have sent a written complaint to the high officials of district administrations seeking necessary measures to control the unplanned digging of croplands as fish ponds.
They alleged that the influential local people are digging ponds on croplands for a long. For this, housands of bighas of arable lands have been turned into fish ponds of Ghashigram union adding that there are three beels in Shampur, Gorangopur and Vimpara under the Ghashigram union. These beels contains rainwater during the rainy season, and in dry season, farmers can easily use these beels’s water in their croplands. But due to digging of the ponds, the three beels has been closed. As a result, a huge amount of crops have been damaged due to the water-logging. If these unplanned digging of ponds goes on, the croplands would be reduced and acute food shortage would be created in future, also they alleged.
However, they have wanted interference of the concerned authorities to stop the unplanned digging of the ponds immediately.
While asking Rajshahi district administrator SM Abdul Kader, he said The New Nation that legal steps would be taken against the illegal and unplanned digging of croplands as fish ponds as soon as possible.
