Our Correspondent
SYLHET, July 06: The ambitious project for early flood control and irrigation in six low-lying districts, known as haor region, has ended with a progress rate of about 80 per cent, official sources said.
However, the project components had to be revised twice with one time extension.
Launched in 2011-2012 with a target to saving crops of about 289,000 hectares of land at about 52 haors in the districts it ended in 2018-2019 fiscal year.
The final expenditure stood at Tk 4.696 billion against the targeted Tk 5.8729 billion.
The ECNEC meeting on April 12, 2011 approved the project- 'Pre-monsoon Flood Protection and Drainage Improvement in Haor Areas'.
As the term ended in June 2015, it was extended. Again it was extended in 2017 for two years, but the total project cost was reduced with some minor changes twice.
Although it was Tk 6849 million initially, the project cost was raised to Tk 7040.7 million. Again it was reduced to Tk 5872.9 million in the second revision on October 29, 2017.
Md Nizamul Haque Bhuiyan, chief engineer of Water Development Board (WDB), North-East Region, also project director told this correspondent the project was aimed at raising agricultural production capacity through various initiatives on six haors in Sylhet, 36 in Sunamganj, five in Netrakona, two in Moulvibazar, one in Habiganj and two in Kishoreganj district.
On implementation, the project would save huge croplands, that go inundated during monsoon almost every year, he added.
The prime objective is to ensure protection of Boro crops against pre-monsoon flash floods as well as for increasing navigability of the main rivers in the region, the official said, adding, it would also improve capacity of the internal drainage canals.
The major components include, construction of regulators, compartmental dyke, cross dam, construction of drainage outlets, irrigation structures, internal canal re-excavation and Surma-Boulai river system dredging.
But, for reasons, like fund shortage and staff shortage, longer duration of monsoon, and short duration of time for field works etc, the project's progress stood at about 80 per cent.
The farmers however, are benefited well with the works done already, the official noted.
Almost every year, natural calamities like early and flash floods, rolling down of water from the Indian hilly region, incessant rains etc cause damage to Boro crops in vast areas in the said districts.
The low-lying region, known as haor zone of the country is the major Boro producing area. Every year, Boro paddy is cultivated on about 700,000 hectares in the said districts.
Due to absence of the appropriate and sustainable efforts to save the lone crop of the region, the poor and marginal farmers suffer extremely almost every year mainly due to seasonal flooding and others.
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