Our Correspondent :
It was a long felt demand of the people of Sharankhola, the coastal Upazila of Bagerhat district, for construction of a high raised and durable embankment to the coastal areas in order to save the lives and properties of people from high tide of the sea and tidal surge. In 2016, the construction work of the long desired coastal embankment started in the Upazila at a cost of about Tk.350 crores under Coastal Embankment Implementation Project (CEIP-1). The construction work of the embankment is almost near completion. But it is an irony of fate that this long desired embankment now has turned into a great problem for the people as there are no sufficient number sluice gates. As a result, people of 35 villages of the Upazila were marooned with the week-long incessant and torrential rains started on July 27. Not only that but also the rain water washed away fish of different spices from 1(one) thousand 5 hundred fish farms and ponds and inundated Aman paddy seed beds of 730 hectares of lands.
Under the auspices of Upazila administration with the consultation of the Water Development Board the embankment was cut with the excavator at the point of Kaliar Khal (canal) of the village Rajair under the Upazila after 2 day’s efforts (August 03 and 04) in order to drain out the stagnant rain water from the interior of the embankment. Consequently, the rain water began to recede. The water-marooned people thanked the Upazila administration for this prize worthy job. Earlier at the night of Sunday (August 01) the suffering villagers cut the embankment at Battala point of village West Rajapur.
One Zakir Hossain of village Rajair told we were badly needed a high raised and durable embankment. But for want of sufficient number of sluice gates of the newly constructed embankment water cannot drain out properly and consequently, water-logging is created within the embankment. It may be mentioned here that according the government source, some 9 hundred 8 people of the Upazila were killed when the cyclone Sidr accompanied with high tidal surge swept over the Upazila at the night of September 15 in the year 2007.
But according to an un-official source, about 3 thousand people of the Upazila either were killed or missing at the night. Those who lost their near and dear ones at the night strongly demanded a high raised and durable coastal embankment.
One Mostafa Shaikh who lost five member of his family including father, mother and brothers in the cyclone Sidr told, for want of embankment my relatives met their tragic death. But after the construction of the embankment we are drowning in the rain water within the embankment.
Though the people of the Upazila are very happy over the cutting of the embankment and draining out of the water they strongly demand for the permanent solution of the matter (problem). They added, at least 50 sluice gates should be constructed in the (newly constructed) 62 Kilometer-long embankment. But unfortunately only 31 sluice gates were constructed over 31 canals under the embankment. They strongly demanded for construction of the required number of sluice gates at the different points of the embankment through a planned way.
Khatun-e-Jannat, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO), Sharankhola told, for want of sufficient number of sluice gates in the embankment constructed by the Water Development Board water logging was created. Consequently, people of the Upazila incurred a heavy loss including the damaging of Aman paddy seed-beds. The UNO added, after the consultation of the local people’s representatives and the officials of CEIP-1 it was managed to cut the embankment to drain out the stagnant rain water from the inundated villages.
Asharaful Alam, Executive Engineer of CEIP-1 of Khulna Zone as many as nine (9) points were identified in 4 Unions of Sharankhola Upazila in order to imstall pipes on emergency basis with a view to draining out the water-logging (of the Upazila). Besides this, a 9-men Committee was already formed for the permanent solution of the water logging problem. Steps will be taken after the receiving of the report of the committee.
