The Port City of Chattogram once again went underwater on Wednesday following overnight torrential rain coupled with a normal tidal surge. The waterlogging created as a result in low-lying areas caused immense sufferings to the city dwellers. Thousands of families living on the ground floors of buildings or in tin-roofed houses had to bail water out of their rooms. Haphazard development activities turned the once-healthy city into an environmental nightmare. The drains get stuck as city corporation staffers don’t clean them regularly. The canals are all filled with domestic and plastic wastes.
To address the situation, the Chattogram Development Authority has been implementing a mega project in the city since 2017. The Tk 1,621 crore project was meant to fix Chittagong’s waterlogging problem. Where is this money going? It is apparent that the sufferings of the residents of the city have not in any way been mitigated. The problem is as bad as ever. It seems that Chattogram, like Dhaka, lacks an integrated plan for development.
It is not enough to earmark large sums of money for projects. The projects need to be implemented properly. Government agencies always seem at odds with each other and they rarely coordinate. Then, of course, there are the problems of corruption, inefficiency, and unnecessary bureaucracy. The Chattogram Development Authority and Chattogram City Corporation have to take responsibility to steer the city clear of such a manmade disaster. Many assurances were given by them over the decades, millions of money were invested but the problems remain as were before.
We have always known the fact that as a tropical country Bangladesh gets a lot of rainfall. Development of cities like Chattogram and Dhaka have to be planned by keeping this in view. There cannot be an excuse to be caught unprepared by heavy downpour year after year.
