Bagerhat Correspondent :
Removal work of illegal cross dams from 32 main feeder canals and more than 50 branch canals of Mongla-Ghashiakhali international water channel was suspended for want of funds.
Local influential people have been cultivating shrimps in all these feeder canals for the last two decades after constructing innumerable cross dams on them illegally.
The locals and the river experts opined that if the silted sands and mud are not removed from the feeder canals , the flow of the water in the main channel will not be sufficient and as a result, the channel will again gradually lose its navigability
Upazila land officer of Mongla and Rampal said , in the month of December , 2014 as many as 33 main feeder canals and 303 branch feeder canals of Mongla-Ghashiakhali channel were identified.
Those canals almost died due to creating obstructions to the navigability of the feeder canals and grabbing them illegally by the shrimp cultivators for the cultivation of shrimps in them. Rampal Upazila administration prepared a list of 1,018 illegal cross dams constructed over 246 feeder canals in Rapal Upazila while Mongla Upzila administration prepared a list of 252 illegal cross dams over 72 feeder canals in the Upazila. Mongla Upazila administration removed sands and mud partially form 18 feeder canals and removed 167 illegal cross dams and Rampal Upazila administration removed sands and mud partially from 13 feeder canals and removed 158 illegal cross dams from them in Rampal Upazila during the period from December, 2014 to June, 2015. After that the works for removing sands from the feeder canals and illegal cross dams constructed on the rest main feeder and branch canals of the channel were suspended for want of allocation of funds. Due to the direction of the premier on August 5 list of the main feeder canals were revised and 72 main feeder canals were identified by the Bagerhat district administration in Rampal and Mongla upazilas and the removing works of the illegal cross dams constructed on them started for the second time.
But for want of allocation of funds, the work of removing sands from the bottom of those canals and illegal cross dams constructed over them was also suspended.
Didar A Alam, Assistant Engineer (Dredging ) , BIWTA told the newsmen, if all the cross dams on feeder canals and sands silted on their bottoms are removed immediately the flow of water will be increased in the main channel and consequently, its navigability will continue for long. He added, some 75 lakh cubic meters of sands have so far been removed.
A BIWTA officer engaged in the dredging works who is unwilling to mention his name told, a good number of people are still cultivating shrimps on the char lands of channel illegally after occupying them. As a result, it is very difficult on the part of the concerned persons to dump the dredged out sands and mud. Moreover, the local UP Chairman is opposing to dump the dredged out sands on the char lands of channel at Charakhali and Seetargahat area as there are still remaining the illegal shrimp farms. As a result, the dredging work is being hampered.
Md. Jahagir Alam, DC, Bagerhat disclosed to the newsmen, we did not get allocation of funds for removing the illegal cross dams constructed over the feeder canals and sands from their bottoms. So far we removed the cross dams and sands from the feeder canals in limited way with the fund of TR programme allotted by the Ministry of Disaster Management .
Md. Abdus Samad, Divisional Commissioner , Khulna told the newsmen, we requested the Govt. to allocate funds in order to remove the cross dams and silted sands from 82 identified feeder canals in order to make Mongla-Ghashiakahi main channel. He added, we urged the Govt. to hand over the dredging programme of the feeder canals to BIWTA and Water Development Board as they will be able to dig the feeder canals as per the design of the plan.
Removal work of illegal cross dams from 32 main feeder canals and more than 50 branch canals of Mongla-Ghashiakhali international water channel was suspended for want of funds.
Local influential people have been cultivating shrimps in all these feeder canals for the last two decades after constructing innumerable cross dams on them illegally.
The locals and the river experts opined that if the silted sands and mud are not removed from the feeder canals , the flow of the water in the main channel will not be sufficient and as a result, the channel will again gradually lose its navigability
Upazila land officer of Mongla and Rampal said , in the month of December , 2014 as many as 33 main feeder canals and 303 branch feeder canals of Mongla-Ghashiakhali channel were identified.
Those canals almost died due to creating obstructions to the navigability of the feeder canals and grabbing them illegally by the shrimp cultivators for the cultivation of shrimps in them. Rampal Upazila administration prepared a list of 1,018 illegal cross dams constructed over 246 feeder canals in Rapal Upazila while Mongla Upzila administration prepared a list of 252 illegal cross dams over 72 feeder canals in the Upazila. Mongla Upazila administration removed sands and mud partially form 18 feeder canals and removed 167 illegal cross dams and Rampal Upazila administration removed sands and mud partially from 13 feeder canals and removed 158 illegal cross dams from them in Rampal Upazila during the period from December, 2014 to June, 2015. After that the works for removing sands from the feeder canals and illegal cross dams constructed on the rest main feeder and branch canals of the channel were suspended for want of allocation of funds. Due to the direction of the premier on August 5 list of the main feeder canals were revised and 72 main feeder canals were identified by the Bagerhat district administration in Rampal and Mongla upazilas and the removing works of the illegal cross dams constructed on them started for the second time.
But for want of allocation of funds, the work of removing sands from the bottom of those canals and illegal cross dams constructed over them was also suspended.
Didar A Alam, Assistant Engineer (Dredging ) , BIWTA told the newsmen, if all the cross dams on feeder canals and sands silted on their bottoms are removed immediately the flow of water will be increased in the main channel and consequently, its navigability will continue for long. He added, some 75 lakh cubic meters of sands have so far been removed.
A BIWTA officer engaged in the dredging works who is unwilling to mention his name told, a good number of people are still cultivating shrimps on the char lands of channel illegally after occupying them. As a result, it is very difficult on the part of the concerned persons to dump the dredged out sands and mud. Moreover, the local UP Chairman is opposing to dump the dredged out sands on the char lands of channel at Charakhali and Seetargahat area as there are still remaining the illegal shrimp farms. As a result, the dredging work is being hampered.
Md. Jahagir Alam, DC, Bagerhat disclosed to the newsmen, we did not get allocation of funds for removing the illegal cross dams constructed over the feeder canals and sands from their bottoms. So far we removed the cross dams and sands from the feeder canals in limited way with the fund of TR programme allotted by the Ministry of Disaster Management .
Md. Abdus Samad, Divisional Commissioner , Khulna told the newsmen, we requested the Govt. to allocate funds in order to remove the cross dams and silted sands from 82 identified feeder canals in order to make Mongla-Ghashiakahi main channel. He added, we urged the Govt. to hand over the dredging programme of the feeder canals to BIWTA and Water Development Board as they will be able to dig the feeder canals as per the design of the plan.
