Why Rabindra University’s main campus on Chalan Beel?

More than a hundred canals, wetlands, and over fifty rivers including the Baral converge at the edge of the Chalan Beel at Buri Potajia in Shahjadpur upazila of Sirajganj. Combined, the water flow meets the Jamuna River.

The Rabindra University authorities now want to construct a permanent campus here by obstructing this flow of water.

Environmental and water experts warn that if concrete structures are built in the path of such a water flow, it will damage the aquatic ecosystem of Chalan Beel on the one hand, and on the other, blocking such a powerful current will worsen waterlogging and flooding in surrounding areas.

Rabindra University, located in Sirajganj, was established by an act passed in 2016. Classes began in April 2018. A total of 1,200 students currently study in five departments. The university has 34 teachers and 161 officers and staff. For the past seven years, academic and administrative activities have been conducted in eight rented buildings spread across Shahjadpur town.

In response to long-standing demands from students, 100 acres of land at Buri Potajia, about 11 kilometers away from Shahjadpur town, were allocated for the permanent campus. Students have staged multiple road blockades demanding approval of the campus construction project.

A government agency report stated that the proposed site remains submerged under water for four months every year. It would need to be filled up by 9 to 14 meters, requiring 3,661,630 cubic meters of sand. A road and a bridge would also need to be built to access the campus, and embankments erected to protect against water waves. The cost of these works alone is estimated at Tk 4.48 billion.

The report further noted that four acres of land have already been filled, obstructing the flow of the Baral River. If the remaining 96 acres are filled, the water flow of Chalan Beel and the Baral will be severely disrupted during the monsoon.

In the dry season, the area is used as grazing land. Construction will reduce this grazing area and pose a threat to biodiversity, according to the report.
Alternative solutions

The estimated total cost for building the campus at Buripotajia is Tk 9.67 billion—5.19 billion for campus construction and 4.48 billion for land filling, bridge and embankment construction. Some suggest the campus could instead be built in the Sirajganj Economic Zone.

The Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority’s website shows this zone is located just two kilometers southeast of Sirajganj town, with 1,156 acres of land available.

Rabindra University Vice Chancellor Professor SM Hasan Talukder told Prothom Alo that the Rabindra University Act requires the institution to be established at a site associated with Rabindranath Tagore’s memory.

“After proper consideration, this site was proposed for the campus,” he said.

“Concerns have been raised about Chalan Beel’s water flow. But we have proven that Shahjadpur is not one of the nine upazilas within Chalan Beel. The project site is 68 kilometers from the center of Chalan Beel, and the land is not officially classified as wetland. The Department of Environment already approved the site in 2019, on the condition that 33 acres be afforested. Following the Water Development Board’s advice, two lakes and three ponds are included in the project plan,” he added.

However, SM Mizanur Rahman, Member Secretary of the Chalan Beel Protection Movement, said, “We too want a permanent campus. But due to unplanned activities and climate change, Chalan Beel is already facing an existential crisis. If the university is built at Buri Potajia, it will be the final nail in the coffin.”

Chalan Beel spans 1,000 square kilometers across 41 upazilas in six districts. According to historical records, 47 rivers once flowed into the beel, along with over 300 canals. Additionally, 120,000 fishponds have been illegally excavated, further disrupting the natural flow of water. The beel is home to 105 species of native fish, 27 species of mammals, seven species of amphibians, 34 species of birds, and countless aquatic plants.

From Sirajganj’s Baghabari river port on the Dhaka–Pabna highway, a narrow paved road turns left. After about one kilometer of brick-paved road lined with homeless shelters, comes the Lautara sluice gate. From there, it takes another 15 minutes by boat.

In the middle lies an island-like patch of land—Buri Potajia. Sheep, goats, and horses graze here. A signboard for the proposed Rabindra University stands on this spot.

On Friday afternoon, a visit to the site revealed water on all sides, with a signboard in the middle reading: Permanent campus site of Rabindra University Bangladesh. Land area: 100 acres.

The Chalan Beel Protection Committee has submitted a letter to the advisor of the Ministry of Planning and Ministry of Environment requesting relocation of the campus. On Tuesday, the committee also held a press conference at the Chatmohar Press Club in Pabna, voicing objections to the chosen site.

In the letter sent to ministries, Member Secretary SM Mizanur Rahman wrote, “Padma, Atrai, Baral, Nandakuja, and Gumani rivers, along with all canals and wetlands, are sources of water for Chalan Beel. The only outlet for this massive water system into the Jamuna is at Buri Potajia in Shahjadpur. Yet, this is where the proposed site for Rabindra University has been chosen. Filling land with sand has already narrowed the beel’s outlet. If the university is established at the mouth of this vast wetland, it will cause waterlogging and disaster across the thousand-square-kilometer Chalan Beel.”

Boatman Suman Hossain said he heard that soil has already been dumped at the site for the university. “For half the year, the area remains underwater. Students come here by boat to play. In the dry season, they come on foot.”

Nearby Buri Potajia is Lautara Bazar, where a grocer named Mohit Hossain said, “We hear the university will be built inside the beel. But there’s no proper road. The area remains submerged for half the year I don’t  know how it be done.”

Professor Ataur Rahman of the Water Resources Engineering department at Bangladesh Univesrity of Engineering and Technology (BUET) told Prothom Alo, “Our water law clearly states that nothing should be done that obstructs the flow of streams and watercourses. Before taking up any project or construction, feasibility studies and environmental assessments must be carried out. A university will mean transport, housing, and infrastructure. Its environmental impacts—on aquatic life, on the ecosystem—must be properly studied by a competent institution.”