Madhumati turns furious, devours schools, mosques

Various establishments of three unions in Alfadanga upazila of Faridpur district have been devoured by the Madhumati river in the last two weeks.

The establishments include school, madrasa, mosque, eidgah, carpeted road, graveyard, homestead and cluster village.

In the last 15 days, more than 300 families of the area have shifted to safer ground. Besides, over 50 other establishments stand threatened due to the erosion of the river.

“Riverbank erosion has affected an area of around two kilometres and five villages of the union,” said Enam Hasan Shipon, chairman of Togorbond union in Alfadanga upazila.

He said Shikhapur Government Primary School, Darus Salam Dakhil Madrasa, a mosque and a large graveyard have been devoured by the river. Besides, a cluster village and 65 houses of ‘Ashrayan Project’ were swallowed by the river while Shikarpur road and the Chordanga-Chorazampur roads eroded partially.

Enam Hasan further said 118 families have been shifted to other places within a week.

Enamul Hasan, chairman of Gopalpur union of the upazila, said the Madhumati is gorging large parts of the village Bajra. “The river has already devoured Bajra Government Primary School and a mosque. Fifty homesteads of the area are being shifted to safer ground.”

“We’ve informed the upazila administration about the loss and holding of classes under the open sky,” Enamul said.

Mizanur Rahman Sarder, chairman of Panchuria union, said parts of the south Panchuria have crumbled into the river which is now only 20 yards away from the primary school building of Paschim Char Narandia village. The school may collapse anytime, he added.

Several hundred homesteads, croplands, and three-kilometre stretch of pucca road from Banstola bazar to Boalmari upazila have been gobbled up by the river.

Jainab Khatun, headmistress of Paschim Char Narandia Primary School, said the school was facing a serious threat. “The school building is now only 20 yards away from the river. The guardians are not sending their children to school fearing it might collapse at any moment,” she said.

Meanwhile, many people of the erosion-affected areas complained that Niloy Traders, the enlisted contractor of Water Development Board (WDB), is not using geobags properly.

Asaduzzaman, assistant commissioner (land) of Alfadanga Upazila, said initially geobags were used and 226 affected families received assistance from the government. More people are being enlisted for assistance.

Referring to helplessness of the people of the affected villages, Alfadanga upazila chairman AKM Zahid Hasan said erosion has hit three unions with the rise of Madhumati water.

The affected people are shifting their homesteads, he said, requesting the authorities concerned to take necessary steps to address the issue of river erosion.

Most of the Banstola road of Panchuria union and two pucca roads of Togorbond were partially affected by erosion, he added.

Sultan Mahmud, executive engineer of WDB Faridpur, said strong current made it tough to carry out any emergency work to stop the river erosion.

“About Tk. 3 billion will be needed for constructing a permanent embankment to check the river erosion. But we’re not getting fund as per our requirement,” he added.

Contacted, Atul Sarker, deputy commissioner of Faridpur, said erosion is affecting the banks of Padma, Madhumati and Arial Khan rivers in the district.

“Work is on to stop the erosion. We’re trying our best so that work to check erosion can be done permanently during the next dry season,” he said.