Indian aggression over water, govt's 'knee-jerk' foreign policy destroying livelihoods

Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim (Pir Saheb Charmonai) amir of Islami Andolon Bangladesh on Saturday alleged that the knee-jerk foreign policy of the government as well as India's aggressive water diplomacy have been destroying livelihoods in Bangladesh, reports UNB.
"Bangladesh is a riverine country. Most of the country's economy depends on rivers. But the wrong policies of the government, the aggression of India's water policy and the knee-jerk foreign policy of the government are destroying the livelihoods of this country by sometimes making it a desert and sometimes by flooding it," he said.
There used to be 24,000 kilometres of waterways in Bangladesh. It is now down to 4,000 kilometres. After the country's independence, 158 rivers have dried up due to negligence, he added.
Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim was addressing a massive mass procession at the North gate of the National Mosque Baitul Mukarram on Saturday afternoon.
In his speech, the Charmonai Pir also said with concern that, "India has blocked the major water flows of the country, including the 54 joint rivers of India, with the help of Farakka, Gajaldoba, etc. They are destroying the food security of the country by blocking water at the required moment and destroying crops by releasing water during monsoons, killing people."
It is to be noted that from the national rally held in the capital on April 1, the Amir of the Islami Andolon Bangladesh presented a three-month programme and 15-point demand against these state crises.
Pir Saheb Charmonai lamented that our governments could not prevent India's unfair withdrawal of water and the construction of dams through joint negotiations or international negotiations. Year after year, India has been continuously destroying the livelihoods of millions of people by carrying out water aggression.
The governments have not been able to find any kind of solution due to its knee-jerk foreign policy, he said.
Indian water aggression has now become a matter of survival and death of the People of the country. This failure of governments can no longer be accepted, he added.