Chattogram sinks despite spending nearly Tk 100b in 8 yrs

Despite expenditures of nearly Tk 100 billion in several development projects over the past eight years, Chattogram city continues to go under water. Yesterday, Monday, just 102 millimeters of rain flooded various parts of the city, plunging residents once again into the same old misery. In contrast, during 194 millimeters of rain on 30 May this year, such waterlogging did not occur.

Experts say that despite the drains and canals being clogged they were not properly cleaned for waterlogging. They also point to flaws in the project implementations. Earlier in the monsoon season, because the city’s canals and drains had been cleaned, there was no waterlogging.

Officials from Chattogram City Corporation and the Chattogram Development Authority (CDA) blamed nature for the situation. They claimed the drains and canals are clean, but the more intense rainfall this time caused the waterlogging. They have announced plans to hold another meeting to determine the next course of action.

However, meetings to resolve waterlogging in Chattogram are nothing new. Over the past eight years, at least 34 such meetings have been held involving ministries and service agencies. During this time, Tk 98.52 billion has been spent across four major projects. Still, city residents remain plagued by waterlogging. In the last three years alone, Chattogram has flooded 30 times — six times in 2024, 14 times in 2023, and 10 times in 2022.

Meteorologist Mahmudul Alam from Patenga Weather Office told Prothom Alo that a depression that developed over the Bay of Bengal crossed the coast on Saturday, but its effects are still being felt.

Additionally, active monsoon conditions have brought moderate to heavy rainfall in Chattogram. From 12:00 pm Sunday to 12:00 pm Monday, the city received 102 millimetres of rain. More heavy rain is expected today, Tuesday.

Four projects are currently being implemented to resolve Chattogram’s waterlogging — two by CDA, one by the City Corporation, and one by the Water Development Board — with a total allocation of Tk 143.89 billion. Of this, Tk 98.52 billion has already been spent over the last eight years.

Despite years of work, many critical components remain incomplete: excavation of new canals, construction of at least 14 sluice gates, renovation and widening of 10 canals, installation of silt traps within canals, and construction of drains.

Of the four projects, the largest — Canal Re-excavation, Expansion, Renovation and Development for Addressing Waterlogging in Chattogram City — has cost Tk 50.57 billion.

Another CDA project along the Karnaphuli River for road and sluice gate construction has cost Tk 23.28 billion. The City Corporation has spent Tk 12.70 billion on a new canal excavation from Baripara in Bahaddarhat to Bolirhat. The Water Development Board’s expenditure stands at Tk 11.95 billion.

Over 34 meetings in the last eight years, nearly 200 decisions were made — most of them are similar in type. Very few have been fully implemented. The current interim government also gave special emphasis to resolving waterlogging in Chattogram. Ten meetings were held under its tenure, with several attended by one or more government advisers. Project areas were inspected and various instructions issued.

Instructions from these meetings included clearing all drains and canals. Of 39 sluice gates, it was decided that at least 27 would be made operational by May. So far, 25 have been completed. A deadline was set to finish excavation of Baripara canal by December; work is still ongoing. Pump houses were supposed to be operational in waterlogging hotspots — but that has not happened.

There have also been repeated decisions to halt hill-cutting, since sand and soil from such activities clog canals and drains. Yet, hill-cutting continues unabated.

Waterlogging began around 9:30 am yesterday due to heavy rain. In various areas, water remained for one to four hours. The water started receding around 1:30 pm. Waterlogging was seen in many neighbourhoods: Probortok intersection, Shulokobohor in Muradpur, Chawkbazar’s kitchen market, Kapasgola, Katalganj, GEC intersection, Jhautola Railway Line, Agrabad commercial area, MM Ali Road, Halishahar, Mohora, Reazuddin Bazar, Panchlaish residential area, and Rangipara in Agrabad. In some places, water reached knee height, in others waist height. Roads, shops, houses, and educational institutions were submerged. According to city officials, at least 15 per cent of the city was waterlogged.

At 11:30 am, at Reazuddin Bazar — one of the city’s largest wholesale markets — vendors and workers were seen clearing water from inside their shops. At least 100 shops were inundated.

At 10:30 am in Probortok intersection, knee-deep water had accumulated on the main road. People were moving in rickshaws, while other vehicles were stuck. A similar scene was visible in Shulkobohor. Around noon in Katalganj, waist-deep water submerged the lower floors of several buildings.

Since morning, city dwellers had to navigate the streets amidst severe difficulty. The number of vehicles on the road decreased due to heavy rainfall and waterlogging. Drivers of the few available vehicles charged extra fares. Passengers, left with little choice, had to pay inflated rates to reach their destinations. Schoolchildren and their guardians suffered the most.

Omar Faruk, a resident of Kazir Dewri, said his child attends school in Panchlaish. Normally, he hires a rickshaw for Tk 60. Due to the rain, no rickshaw was available. A CNG auto-rickshaw charged Tk 160 — whereas the regular fare is Tk 100. After dropping off the child, he also had to pay an extra Tk 30 for a rickshaw to reach his office.

Shahad Islam, a resident of North Kattali, said he was stuck in three waterlogged areas while heading to work. Eventually, he had to take a detour of 7–8 kilometres, arriving at the office an hour late.

CDA’s chief engineer Kazi Hasan Bin Shams told Prothom Alo that the canals under CDA’s jurisdiction have been cleaned. However, many drains remain clogged, preventing rainwater from reaching the canals, leading to waterlogging.

Additionally, because work on several sluice gates is still incomplete, water cannot drain out efficiently. He added that the widening of the Hizra canal, halted due to financial complications, will begin in the next dry season — after which, better results can be expected.

However, Pranab Kumar Sharma, Deputy Chief Sanitation Officer of the City Corporation, claimed that although the drains have been cleaned, the intensity of the rainfall prevented water from draining quickly, resulting in waterlogging. He also blamed the CDA’s failure to complete work on the Hizra canal, which he said contributed to flooding in surrounding areas.

Engineer Delwar Mazumdar, former chairman of the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) Chattogram chapter, told Prothom Alo that the waterlogging projects suffer from design flaws. Though provisions were made for water reservoirs, they were later removed. Moreover, completed works lack adequate maintenance planning. Even if the canals and drains are cleaned, they quickly become clogged again due to indiscriminate dumping of waste. That’s why there was no waterlogging during the first bout of rainfall, but there is now — and there’s a risk of more to come.