National Desk :
Untimely river erosion, far in advance of the monsoon season, has increased the suffering of local residents in the south bank of the Jamuna river, in Enayetpur upazila of Sirajganj.
Many houses in the area have been washed away by the river. The victims of this demolition are now living a dreadful life. River erosion is a common scenario of this area.
Around 20,000 houses have been washed away by the river so far, leaving many families stranded.
Local representatives including MPs and ministers, have visited the site at least five times in the last four years to see the plight. Every time, they have given various promises to the affected people which includes building a permanent protection dam.
A project worth Tk 600 crore for building a dam which stretches across 6.5 km was submitted to the relevant ministry almost 4 years ago. But no updates on the project have been received ever since.
State Minister for Water Resources Ministry Zahid Faruk has visited the site recently and promised to approve the project as soon as possible.
However, the recent river erosion, so advanced of the monsoon season, instilled a sense of fear among the local residents. They have set up bamboo fences to prevent erosion on their own initiative.
The erosion stretched from Brahman village to Hat Pachil area of the upazila.
Nasir Uddin, sub-divisional engineer of the local water development board, said a letter has been sent to the higher authorities to take necessary steps in preventing untimely erosion.
Besides, the project for construction of a permanent dam has not been approved yet, he added.
