The monsoon season in the country is going on in full swing and we are witnessing rain across the country almost every day. As a result, flood situation is deteriorating across the low-lying areas mostly in the northern regions of the country.
Flood situation in Gaibandha, Kurigram and Jamalpur districts has deteriorated further with the rise of water level in the Brahmaputra, Jamuna and other 16 rivers in the countries northern districts due to rain and onrush of hilly waters from the upstream.
Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) officials said water level of the Brahmaputra River rose by 7 cm and water was flowing 26 cm above the danger level at Fulchharighat point at 9 am Saturday.
The government needs to
devise necessary measures
to make embankments and
dykes sustainable
Floods in northern region of the country is not something new. This region is susceptible to flooding just about every year. However, due to the construction of flood control dams in several areas, floods are no longer as severe as before.
Government should now take lesson from the previous anguish and implement proactive measures to reduce common people’s suffering in flood-hit areas. To stop the rivers from overflowing the government normally work on building sustainable dykes and embankments in many places. However, they are not good enough as they fail to sustain. Therefore, the government needs to devise necessary measures to make embankments and dykes sustainable. The embankments need to be strengthened by widening and heightening them.
As a nation we are developing everyday economically. However, in doing so we should not forget to improve the lives of marginal people who live in these flood-struck areas. The government must put more focus on them so that their lives and livelihoods do not get negatively affected year after year due to flood. Government can also provide micro-credit facility and insurance to help helpless people become more robust to repeated floods.
