Agriculture, infrastructure sustain massive damage

OUR CORRESPONDENT

CHANDPUR, Sept 07: The recent spell of flood has caused colossal damage to agriculture, fisheries and infrastructure in eight upazilas of Chandpur district.

The extent of damage and loss by the disaster is getting clear after the floodwater has started receding.

A survey found that among all the upazilas Shahrasti, Hajiganj, Kachua, Faridganj and Chandpur Sadar are the worst affected.

The extent of loss by the flood that wreaked havoc on crops, fisheries, roads and dwelling houses will be roughly over Tk 2.0 billion (Tk 200 crore), said official sources.

Poor people are concerned about how to rebuild their damaged houses and manage agricultural inputs including seeds and fertilisers.

The latest flooding was caused by onrush of water from Cumilla, Feni, Luxmipur and other adjoining districts.

The floodwater is now flowing slowly into the Bay of Bengal through the Dakatia, Meghna and Padma rivers flowing beside Chandpur district.

Floodwater inundated roads, marketplaces, houses and vast tracts of agricultural land in Shahrasti , Kachua, Hajiganj, Chandpur, Faridganj, Haimchar and Matlab Uttar upazilas.

Still around 0.15million (1.5 lakh) affected people including children along with their domestic animals are trapped in different shelter centres in the district.

But none has died so far nor has anyone drowned in floodwater in the district.

Standing crops including transplanted Aman, paddy seedbeds, vegetables and fruits, fish resources, numerous important roads and culverts have been extensively damaged in all the eight uazilas of the district.

According to Dr Shafayet Ahamad Siddiqui , deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension, Chandpur, standing crops, seedbeds, vegetables, fruit gardens, betel leaf fields etc. have been damaged by the devastating flood and water-logging causing an estimated loss of Tk870 million (Tk 87 crore).

As a result, as many as 48,000 farmers in the district have been affected seriously.

Farmers like Anwar Hossain of Doikamta village and Dulal Gazi, Shahidullah and Keramatullah of Unkila village in Shahrasti upazila are too much worried as to how to recoup the loss caused by the calamity.

Their domestic animals also have been attacked with different water-borne diseases -like foot and mouth disease.

Their poultry birds are perishing in a large number due to severe fever, and many of them were also washed away.

Huge cultured fishes also escaped from ponds, lakes and farms with the onrush of floodwaters in the upazilas causing colossal loss to fish cultivators.

According to the District Fisheries Office sources, fish of various species, cultivated in around 12,000 water bodies across the district, have escaped with floodwaters in the entire district.

As a result, fish cultivators in 71 unions of eight upazilas of the district have suffered a loss of around Tk 17.9 million (Tk1.79 crore).

District Fishery Officer Farhana Akhter Ruma has confirmed that Faridganj, Hajiganj and Shahrasti upazilas are the worst affected in fish sector by the recent flood and prolonged water-logging.

While visiting many areas in Kachua, Shahrasti and Hajiganj on September 1, it was observed that many tin-roofed and thatched houses of small farmers and poor people have been damaged by floodwaters.

Many dwelling houses have been razed to the ground while many others have tilted. Many school compounds are still under floodwater.

Some flood victims while talking to the FE said they do not have the required amount of money to rebuild the houses right now. They are only struggling to survive at the moment.

While talking to the FE, Local Government Engineering Department's (LGED) Shahrasti Upazila Engineer Parvej Sarwar said as many as 53 roads and 16 culverts have been damaged by the flood.

He added, "Many roads are still under floodwater which is receding very slowly."

He also said an allocation of approximately Tk260 (Tk26 crore) is urgently required to repair these busy and important roads and culverts.

LGED's Kachua Upazila Engineer Md Abdul Alim Lytton told the FE, ''We are still making an assessment of the extent of damage to the roads and culverts. So far 35 roads and a few culverts in the upazila have been damaged by the flood. The amount of loss in terms of money is yet to be assessed."

LGED's Faridganj Upazila Engineer Abrar Ahmed told the FE, "Over 50 km roads in the upazila have been damaged by the flood. Many roads are still under flood water."

Hajiganj LGED Engineer Rizwanur Rahman said a total of 45 roads and 10 culverts have been damaged by the flood in the upazila. Many important roads are still under almost knee-deep floodwater here.

Flood-affected poor people including marginal farmers of Shahrasti, Kachua , Hajiganj and Faridganj upazilas have appealed to the government to grant aids immediately for them so that they can rebuild their damaged houses and also to provide them with free seeds and fertilisers so that they can overcome the post-flooding ordeals and aftermath.

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