Fear has gripped the residents of Betagi municipality of Barguna, as the main town protection embankment is under erosion threat due to the alleged negligence of the authorities concerned. The road constructed on the town protection embankment on the west side of the Launch Ghat has developed big cracks at several places, causing concern over the safety of the adjacent areas. It has left thousands of traders and residents living in fear, especially amid the threat of Cyclone Mocha over the Bay. The Indian Meteorological Department has recently issued a warning about the possible formation of a cyclonic storm called ‘Mocha’ in the southeast Bay of Bengal, which has caused uncertainty about the longevity of the protection dam. Also Read: Many embankments turn vulnerable in Khulna’s Koyra; Fear grips residents Local said the slow progress of the erosion control project has aggravated the situation. Previously, erosion by the Bishkhali river destroyed launch ghats, port, small factories, jute shops, houses, businesses, and public and private institutions, paddy fields, mosques, and madrashas. And now, the dam, upazila parishad complex, passenger camp at launch ghat, hundred years old traditional Kali temple, mosques, and the rest of the municipality are in danger. In 2017, a project was approved to protect the municipality and then secretary to the local government division Abdul Malek laid the foundation stone of the project.  The project was halted and the foundation stone is the only visible work of the project. Also Read: Cyclone Sitrang: Flood protection embankment is at risk in Bagerhat Last year, the Executive Committee of the National Ecomic Council (ECNEC) approved a project worth TK 404 crore to protect the municipality and other important areas from the erosion by the Bishkhali river. But Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) has not yet started the project work. The delay in the project has caused anger and frustration among the local residents. The tender process for the protection project is ongoing, according to the WDB Barguna office. Also Read: Khulna: Embankment collapses again Abdur Rob, a labourer who lives on the banks of the river, expressed his fear for the upcoming monsoon season, saying “I don't know what the future holds for us. The way Bishkhali is eroding right now, I can’t imagine what will happen after the monsoon and cyclone ‘Mocha’”.  Md. Sohail Howladar, the owner of Jhalkathi Engineering Workshop, said that erosion has been increasing in the area adjacent to his shop for the past few months, with the crack in the paved road dangerously close to his establishment. He said that it is only a matter of time before his shop disappears into the river. Abdul Halim, owner of a sawmill in Kath Bazar, expressed his frustration at the lack of progress by authorities, saying that “Locals have to travel through many alternative routes. I have been hearing for a long time the work will start. But I don't see any progress.” Betagi Municipality Mayor ABM Golam Kabir said, “The Betagi protection dam project was halted but I hope it will start soon.” WDB’s Barguna district’s executive engineer Md. Rakib said he has inspected the condition of the dam. “The matter has been brought to the attention of higher authorities. Necessary measures will be taken for immediate repair of the dam, and the re-tendering process will be initiated soon,” he said.

Local authorities in Bagerhat district on Monday (October 24, 2022) said that vulnerable people would be evacuated to cyclone shelters to save lives as cyclone Sitrang was approaching towards Bangladeshi coast with a forecast to hit the country by early Tuesday (October 25, 2022). The government has kept a total of 344 cyclone shelters ready in nine upazilas of the coastal district, which can accommodate around two lakh people along with their cattle. Mohammad Azizur Rahman, Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Bagerhat, said that they were working to ensure that the impact of the cyclone could have minimum damage. Read: Cyclone Sitrang: Everything you need to know “We’ve taken allout preparations to face Sitrang by keeping dry food, medical teams and rescue teams ready,” he said. In the district’s Sharonkhola, Mongla, Rampal and Morelganj upazilas, the local administration has been asking people to go to the nearest cyclone shelters through loudspeakers. Heavy rains have been reported in the district. Read Cyclone Sitrang: Flood protection embankment is at risk in Bagerhat Mongla Meteorological Department has recorded 29mm rain from 6:00am to 9:00am on Monday morning. Rising water has started to inundate the low-lying areas, while high tide was impacting the Sundarbans. The Mongla Seaport is also bearing the brunt. All kinds of loading and unloading of goods at the port have been suspended, while vessels have been asked to stay close to the shore. A 30km-long embankment that protects Bagerhat from high tide is currently at risk too. Read Inland water transport suspended as Cyclone ‘Sitrang’ approaches According to Bagerhat Water Development Board (WDB), at least 100km of areas could go under water if Sitrang damages the embankment. “The wind is blowing at a speed of 62kph within 54km of the cyclone centre, which has the possibility of reaching 88kph. We’ve asked the Mongla Port authorities to hoist cautionary signal no 7,” said Amaresh Chandra Dhali, Officer (acting) of Mongla Met Office. Read Sitrang: Loading, unloading suspended at Chattogram Port; Alert-3 issued

Hundreds of trees of an afforestation project in Shibsha char are in Paikgachha upazila have been dying due to stagnant rainwater caused by the construction of a town protection embankment in an unplanned way three months ago. On April 23, 2022, MP of Khulna-6 constituency Aktaruzzaman Babu inaugurated the embankment which was built to prevent saltwater from entering the low-lying areas of Shibsa under Paikgachha upazila of the district. Within just three months, the embankment has become ineffective, causing water to stagnate inside the dam, and killing trees of the area. As a result, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) of Paikgachha has ordered the local municipality to remove the dam within a week. Paikgachha municipality, which stands beside the Shibsa river, was established in 1997. No dam was built in the area in the last 25 years except the one built in April. During full moon and new moon, water from the river used to swell and enter the locality, inundating households, shops and roads. Besides, a 20-kilometre area stretching from Khulna Sadar to the Hariya river was being filled up for the last several years by encroachers. To stop this practice, the upazila administration launched an afforestation campaign through which trees were planted on these occupied lands. While the campaign was successful in preventing land filling by local influential people, it also increased the natural beauty of the area. Read:Sundarban tigers: Inbreeding leads to generation of weak, diseased cubs Although water from the Shibsa river can’t enter the dam area, rain water has inundated the entire place, and stagnant water has caused the death of valuable trees planted during the afforestation campaign . Premananda Ray, a forest official from Paikgachha upazila, said that the upazila administration has planted trees that are usually found in the Sunderbans in the embankment area. “The lives of these trees are dependent on high tide and low tide. If river water can’t enter the embankment, these trees will die due to waterlogging. Already many trees have started dying. This is why the local authorities should remove the dam immediately,” said Premananda. Mostofa Kamal Jahangir, President of Paikgachha Upazila Citizens’ Committee, said that the trees would’ve lived if the dam was built alongside the locality instead of in the middle of the river. Prasanta Kumar Mondal, president of Paikgachha Upazila Citizens’ Right Implementation Committee, said that building the dam was an effort to grab the river. “Due to the dam, the Shibsa river is losing its depth. Besides, the river is also shrinking, causing its water to overflow and inundate the municipality area. The relevant stakeholders must take prompt steps to change the scenario,” Prasanta said. Anwar Iqbal Montu, Chairman of Paikgachha upazila, denied his involvement in building the dam in the middle of the river. Paikgachha Upazila Nirbahi Officer Mamataj Begum said that dams can’t be built grabbing rivers. “Dams have to be built alongside the town where people live. Dams have to be built in a way so that they don’t harm the rivers and trees,” said Mamataj. The UNO reaffirmed the fact that she has given the municipality a timeframe of seven days to remove the dam, saying that otherwise the upazila administration will remove it through conducting mobile court activities.

An embankment built to prevent erosion by the Kopotakkho river in Charmukha area under Khulna’s Koyra upazila has been ruined due to increased water pressure. The embankment started to break on Sunday noon. The locals are fearing that vast areas will be inundated due to high tide if the embankment isn’t repaired in due time. According to Osman Gani, a member of the local ward, a road on one side of the Charmukha canal went into the riverbed around 4:00am. “The road was in a precarious condition for a long time. Many other roads and houses have started to go extinct due to increased flow of the Kopotakkho river. We’re trying to repair the dam on our own initiative. Large parts of the area will be inundated if we can’t repair the dam within the next one to two hours,” Osman said. Read: Onrush of upstream water threatens Chandpur town protection embankment

The Chandpur town protection embankment has become vulnerable due to onrush of water from upstream. Some vulnerable spots in the embankment have already been spotted by Water Development Board (WDB) officials. They are dumping cement blocks and sand-filled geo bags to prevent the cracks in the embankment. The vulnerable spots in the embankment are- Puranbazar and Notunbazar points, Tilabari in Jamuna Road (cracks developed twice within just two or three months), Pilot House, Dolmandir area, Harishava, Ronagoyal, South Sriramdi and adjacent areas. Read: Modern launch terminal to be constructed in Chandpur Executive Engineer of WDB Chandpur office Rifat Jamil told UNB that he visited the Dolmandir spot. “A total of 13,000 geo bags and 10,000 cement blocks have been dumped in a five-kilometer area. Another 13,000 geo bags and 13,000 cement blocks have been kept available beside the embankment to use during any emergency,” said the official.    “Chandpur district town is situated on the confluence of three rivers- the Meghna, the Padma and the Dakatiya. As a result, the town always remains under threat of river erosion during monsoon,” he said.

Water started overflowing Chhayar Haor in Shalla upazila of Sunamganj district as an embankment collapsed early Sunday, making it more difficult for farmers in Haor areas to harvest paddy. Local people blamed negligence on the part of the authorities concerned of local Water Development Board for the collapse of the levee. According to the local office of Department of Agriculture Extension, this year, 4,637 hectares of land in Chhayar Haor was brought under boro cultivation and already 95% paddy of the haor area have been harvested. Also read: Sunamganj farmers fear crops loss as floodwater enters haors But the local farmers claimed that they failed to harvest 15% crops of the haor. Takbir Hossain, a farmer of Sultanpur village in the upazila, said that he failed to harvest 30% crops of his land due to lack of paddy workers. Shalla Upazila Nirbahi Officer, Abu Taleb, said a portion of Chhayar Haor dam collapsed early hours of Sunday during nor’wester, flooding many areas. However, the main closure of the embankment remained unhurt. Also read: 41% paddy harvested in haor region until April 20: Ministry Sunamganj haor region was hit by the first phase of flash floods due to onrush of hill water and upstream water running down hills following torrential rain in Meghalaya and Cherrapunji of India recently. A vast tract of boro cropland was inundated, forcing farmers to harvest their crops early to minimise losses.

Residents of Ruiarbil village in Satkhira's Ashashuni upazila are living in fear of flooding as a large portion of the embankment along the Kopotakkho river has developed a crack. Not only Ruiarbil, local people say that as many 19 nearby villages in the upazila could be inundated during this monsoon if the Water Development Board does not take steps to protect the embankment from erosion at the earliest. Read: Flash floods in Boro-producing areas bodes ill for days ahead Masum Billah, a resident of Ruiarbil, said they spotted the crack in the 200-feet area of the embankment under Pratapnagar union four days back. "Already Kopotakkho has gobbled up half of the embankment." On Tuesday, Yanur Rahman, upazila nirbahi officer, visited the affected areas, including Ruairbil, Kurikahania, Subhadrakati, Chakla and Madarbaria villages of the upazila and heard people's grievances. "Proper steps will be taken soon," he told the villagers. Meanwhile, riverbank erosion has taken a serious turn in Sreepur and Kurikahania villages under Pratapnagar union and Kheyaghat in the Madarbaria area. Read: Fish trader found dead in Barishal hotel Nearly 30,000 people of Pratapnagar union living in the riverine areas of the two villages have been spending sleepless nights. Their fears are tangible, with monsoon rains barely a couple of months away. The embankments along Kopotakkho and Kholpetua rivers were damaged during the cyclonic storms, Amphan and Yaas, which hit the coastal areas of Bangladesh in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

Residents of  Charbhadrason upazila in Faridpur are living in fear of flooding as a large portion of an embankment along the Padma River in Haziganj Bazar has developed cracks. Locals say vast tracts of land in the upazila could be inundated during the monsoon if immediate steps are not taken to protect the embankment from erosion. Read:Over 50 Kurigram riverine villages inundated They claim their repeated pleas to the authorities concerned for the restoration of the embankment along the Padma have so far fallen on deaf ears. The three-kilometre-long embankment was constructed along the Padma in MPdangi, Charhaziganj Bazar and Charhossainpur areas in 2019-20 financial year. Three private firms were roped in to construct the embankment at a cost of Tk 144 crore. Read:Riverbank erosion leaves Gashial residents on the edge

A group of civil society organisations (CSOs) and MPs from coastal areas on Saturday urged the government to allocate at least Tk 150 billion for coastal protection, particularly for climate-resilient embankment construction. Speaking at a virtual seminar, they said the government can make the allocation from the revenue in the national budget for the fiscal year 2021-22. Read: Priotise embankment for protection of coastal population The environmental experts suggested the government develop an embankment maintenance strategy and ensure effective involvement of local government in the process. The seminar was jointly organized by the COAST foundation, Center for Sustainable Rural Livelihood (CSRL), Center for Participatory Research & Development (CPRD), and Coastal Livelihood and Environmental Action Network (CLEAN). Saber Hossain Chowdhury, MP, the Chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Ministry of Forest, Environment and Climate Change, attended the programme as the chief guest while Aminul Hoque of COAST presented the keynote paper. Narayon Chandra Chanda, MP from Khulna-5, Mushtaque Ahmed Robi, MP from Satkhira-2, Nurunnabi Chowdhury, MP from Bhola-3, Nahim Razzaq, MP from Shariatpur-3, Asheq Ullah Rafiq, MP from Cox's Bazar-2, Shameem Haider Patwary, MP from Gaibandha-1, Zafar Alam, MP from Cox's Bazar-1, Dr Ainun Nishat, Professor Emeritus BRAC University, Md Shamsuddoha of CPRD and Hasan Mehedi of CLEAN also spoke at the programme. In his keynote presentation, Aminul Hoque said cyclone and monsoon floods are damaging the livelihoods and structures in coastal areas every year, causing immense sufferings to people living there. “But the government has ignored the sufferings of people by placing a traditional budget for embankment construction which is not appropriate to address the issues,” he said. Aminul said the government will have to allocate at least Tk150 billion every year as the minimum requirement for embankment construction. “Local government authorities have to be given the mandate with an adequate budget for embankment maintenance.” Saber Hossain Chowdhury said a national risk assessment is needed to support the government in allocating appropriate resources. He demanded a roadmap on this issue along with preparing an embankment policy. Dr Ainun Nishat said political biases should be minimised when it comes to prioritisation and budget allocation for the protection of the coastal embankments and preparing an appropriate embankment planning. “The projects under the “Delta Plan” have been taken without considering local knowledge,” he observed. Asheq Ullah Rafiq said it is necessary to give a district-wise allocation for the embankment construction and protection. Nahim Razzaq said a comprehensive water management system and planning is essential to reduce the effect of coastal disasters. “This is only possible by ensuring inter-ministerial coordination. We can form a “Caucus” with coastal MPs to strengthen the advocacy on this issue.”

The tragedy of cyclones and consequent floods and embankment damage is an annual saga in Bangladesh. This year was no exception.