Houses have been continuously being destroyed by the erosion of the Kushiyara River in Balaganj Upazila of Sylhet for several years. The latest incident was on Wednesday when a new bridge collapsed and a road collapsed. Eight to ten more homes are under threat due to river erosion. Villagers fear that if urgent measures are not taken to prevent river erosion, the entire village, including the entire village, will be damaged.
Locals said that for a decade, extensive river erosion has occurred in an area of about one kilometer near Fazilpur village on the banks of the Kushiara River in Purba Pailonpur Union of the upazila. In the past 3 to 4 years, at least 20 houses in Pailonpur and Fazilpur villages have been submerged in the river due to river erosion. The section between Pailonpur and Fazilpur villages was hit by river erosion from 9 am to 2 pm on Wednesday. As a result, at least 300 meters of the road in that section has collapsed and a bridge there has completely collapsed. Due to the intensity of the erosion, the section of the collapsed road has become 5 to 8 feet deep.
On Saturday afternoon, it was seen on the ground that the Sherpur-Balaganj road is located right next to the Kushiyara River. The road has been eroded by river erosion near Fazilpur village. The bridge on that part of the road that was affected by the erosion has leaned towards the river. The huge hole in the road has cut off direct road communication between Sherpur and Balaganj.
Nurul Amin (35), a resident of Fazilpur village, is a CNG-powered auto-rickshaw driver by profession. He said that passengers are suffering due to the disruption of road communication. Due to this, passengers have to change vehicles twice. Due to this, the suffering of those who are transporting goods has increased. In addition, due to the high intensity of river erosion, local people are afraid that various structures including houses, croplands and others will be submerged in the river.
Sunny Mia (17), a teenager from Fazilpur village, drives a CNG-powered auto-rickshaw to transport passengers on the Sherpur-Balaganj road. He said that more than 50 residents of nearby villages use the road every day. Apart from this, an average of several hundred vehicles transport passengers on this road. The movement of vehicles has decreased due to the collapse of the road.
Locals said that vehicles coming from Sherpur are stopping near Fazilpur village due to the road communication being cut off due to river erosion. There, passengers get off the vehicles and walk a little further through the farmland to Pailonpur village. Later, they board other vehicles used for passenger transport and go to Balaganj Upazila Sadar and surrounding villages. Due to the road communication being cut off due to erosion, passengers have to change vehicles twice. This has increased the suffering.
Ibrahim Mia (29) of Fazilpur village said that the area affected by river erosion is about 11 kilometers away from Fazilpur to Balaganj Upazila. Apart from this, the distance from Sherpur to Fazilpur is also about 11 kilometers. During the Awami League government that fell in a mass uprising, an influential group extracted sand from the river, so the Fazilpur area has been hit by severe erosion. However, no permanent measures are being taken to prevent erosion. Along with houses, trees have also been destroyed by river erosion. Many families have lost everything.
At least 20 houses in Pailanpur and Fazilpur villages have been submerged in the river due to river erosion in the past 3 to 4 years.Photo: Prothom Alo
In the Pailanpur area, where river erosion has started, the house of workshop employee Kamrul Islam (27) is right next to it. He said that there are three houses in the 8th century part of his house. They are also now at risk of erosion. A year ago, his aunt Ayesha Khatun’s house was submerged in the river, so he built a house in its place. Now they are at risk of erosion again. Whenever the house collapses, he stays awake at night in fear.
The house of Maldivian Md. Babul Mia (28) is right on the banks of the Kushiyara River. He said that out of the 45 percent of their house, 15 percent is now eroding. The river has been continuously eroding for 3 to 4 years. During this time, they have had to build new houses three times due to erosion. They are at risk of erosion again. Now if their house collapses, they will be completely homeless. Therefore, he has requested the concerned to take measures to prevent erosion by laying blocks.
When contacted, Deepak Ranjan Das, Executive Engineer of Sylhet Water Development Board (PAUBO), said that although attempts were made three times to appoint a contractor for urgent repair work by placing geo bags to prevent river erosion, they ultimately failed. This was because the contractor failed due to insufficient sand in preparing the geo bags. Now, initiatives have been taken to appoint a contractor to take urgent measures to prevent erosion again.
In this regard, LGED Executive Engineer KM Faruk Hossain in Sylhet told Prothom Alo that he had visited the eroded road on Thursday. Paubo will take measures to prevent river erosion. On the other hand, LGED will quickly inform the higher authorities in writing, seeking allocation for urgent road repairs.
Meanwhile, District BNP President Abdul Qayyum Chowdhury visited the erosion-affected areas on Saturday afternoon. During this time, he urged the district administration to take immediate action to relocate the houses of the affected people living in the erosion-prone areas. He also demanded the construction of roads and permanent steps to prevent river erosion.
Source: Prothom Alo
