The flood situation has now shifted to northern Bangladesh after recent flooding in Chittagong. This shift comes as India opened all gates of the Gajoldoba barrage, causing the waters of the region’s rivers to significantly swell.
Several areas on the bank of Teesta River in Gaibandha and Kurigram have been inundated by floods triggered by water from the upstream and heavy rains. As a result, hundreds of families have become marooned in these two districts.
Around 30 metres of the flood control spur dam in the Teesta River at Burirhat in Rajarhat upazila of Kurigram have been washed away.
The Teesta was flowing 30cm above its danger level at Kawniya rail bridge point Sunday morning.
Sardar Uday Raihan, executive engineer of the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre of the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB), said that heavy rainfall in West Bengal’s Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, and Sikkim regions has led to the surge in water levels.
However, he said, information about the opening and closing of the Gajoldoba barrage’s gates is not consistently communicated by India, making it challenging for Bangladesh to predict water level changes.
“Water levels of the Teesta may fall to improve the flood situation in low-lying areas of Lalmonirhat and Rangpur districts while Jamuna may flow close to its respective danger marks at several points in the next 24 hours,” the bulletin added.
In Nilphamari, at least 50 houses built under the Ashrayan Project of the government in Dimla area have gone underwater. As a result, the affected families are spending days amid great suffering. Local people said they have nowhere to go as the lone school building in the area is also underwater.
In Gaibandha, a number of houses in the low-lying areas have been inundated. Some families are also in fear of losing their homes due to river erosion.
In Kurigram, 50 houses went into the gorge of the river and 500 houses were inundated by floodwater in Bidyanondo and Ghorialdanga unions of Rajarhat upazila.
Many roads went under flood water that snapped road communication in the two unions, said members of the two union parishads.
Two government primary schools and a kitchen market in Bidyanondo union are on the brink of river erosion.
The FFWC said water levels of Jamuna River are rising and may flow close to their respective danger level at Fulchhari, Bahadurabad and Sariakandi points in the next 24 hours, the bulletin continued.
Levels of water of the Brahmaputra are rising and may flow well below the danger level at Noonkhawa, Hatia, and Chilmari points during the next 24 hours as the rate of onrushing water from upstream lessened during the last 24 hours.
