Poor navigability in the Kumar river. The photo was taken on Monday. — FE Photo MAGURA, Feb 26: Once the Kumar river had provided irrigation water to 450 hectares of land. It played a vital role in agri and fisheries sectors in the district. Now the situation has changed. The river has lost navigability and turned into a sandy land.
The Water development Board (WDB), Magura, sources said the Kumar flows through Sreepur upazila. Char has emerged across 13 km of the river.
In 2014, a proposal of Tk 500 million for dredging the river was submitted to concerned ministry for approval. The project is yet to be approved, the sources added.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) sources said a good number of farmers had depended on the river for irrigation. Now char has emerged in the river. Farmers now depend on underground water for irrigation.
Biren Mistri of Kazori village said a good number of fishermen depended on the river. Now it is hard to find fishes in the river. Many fishermen in the upazila have already left their ancestral profession.
Kabir Hossein, assistant professor of Sreepur Degree College said the river needs dredging immediately. Siltation in the river is also threatening the bio-diversity of the region.
WDB, Magura, executive engineer Abdul Latif admitted the Kumar has lost navigability. A proposal had submitted to the authority concerned, but the proposal is yet to approve.
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