Every year in the haor areas of north-eastern Bangladesh, boro rice on hundreds of hectares goes under water as early floods break embankments. Farmers lose their crops and suffer financially almost as a matter of routine. In this situation, the government is taking up a project to dredge 13 rivers in the haor region to protect farmers' rice from early floods.

The proposed project is estimated to cost Tk 1,429 crore, with about Tk 193 set aside for each cubic metre of earth removed. It will dredge 13 rivers, re-excavate canals and improve drainage, which will make it possible to protect 165,230 hectares of farmland from early floods.

The Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) says three river systems will be dredged on a priority basis in the current phase: the Surma-Baulai-Upper Meghna river system, the Old Surma river system and the Abua-Patnai-Kaunai river system. Through them, the target is to protect 165,230 hectares of farmland by dredging 13 rivers, re-excavating canals and improving drainage.

The rivers will be dredged under the project titled "Early Flood and Integrated Water Resources Management Development in the Haor Region (Phase 1)". Decisions on the dredging will be taken after visiting the proposed project area, gathering public opinion and with the aim of properly draining the haor region. The project will dredge the Surma, Baulai, Dhanu, Ghorautra, Upper Meghna, Old Surma, Darain, Chamti, Someshwari, Kaunai, Baulai-Patnai, Gang and Abua rivers. Eight of these are in Sunamganj and five in Kishoreganj.

Md Imdadul Haque, executive engineer of the BWDB (Sunamganj O&M Division-2), told Jagonews that dredging the 13 haor rivers will allow farmers' rice to be saved from early floods. Sunamganj district in the north-eastern haor region is called the granary of Bangladesh, and the area's economy depends mainly on rice and fish production, he said.

He said the Indian states of Meghalaya and Assam lie to the north of Sunamganj district. Heavy rain falls in the hills of this region, and the water enters Sunamganj through various rivers from India, then flows through the Surma and Kushiyara into the Meghna. Because the beds of the Surma, Kushiyara and other rivers have filled with silt and sand, their drainage capacity has fallen, so flash-flood water takes extra time to drain away.

"Because of the delay in draining flash-flood water, there is a risk that the submersible embankments built by the Bangladesh Water Development Board to protect the boro crop will break and the haor crops will be flooded. The delay in draining the haor every year also shortens the time for preparing boro seedbeds and transplanting seedlings. In this situation, the rivers in the haor region need dredging to increase drainage capacity, and the intermediate canals need to be dug," Md Imdadul Haque said.

The Project Evaluation Committee (PEC) recently met at the Planning Commission. The meeting, chaired by Md Mahmudul Hossain Khan, member (secretary) of the commission's Agriculture, Water Resources and Rural Institutions Division, reviewed the project. It will be implemented by the BWDB from January 2026 to June 2029. Fully funded by the government, the project will work in 16 upazilas of Sunamganj, Kishoreganj and Netrokona districts. Several items were questioned at the PEC meeting, and the BWDB explained the reasons for the spending on the spot.

According to the Planning Commission, dredging 303.58 km of river is estimated to cost Tk 1,246.70 crore. At the PEC meeting, the rationale for Tk 16.80 lakh for 12 motorcycles was questioned. The BWDB representative said the 12 motorcycles were needed to run the project's work across three districts, and everyone at the meeting agreed.

The proposed project includes Tk 2 crore for one non-residential building (an inspection bungalow) and Tk 80 lakh for repairing five non-residential buildings. Asked about the need, the BWDB representative said the provision for repairing the five buildings should be dropped and the provision for building one inspection bungalow kept. Everyone agreed. The project also sets aside Tk 25 crore as compensation for crops on 1,000 hectares of land.

A senior Planning Commission official, who asked not to be named, told Jagonews that a committee formed earlier to bring the cost down to a reasonable level had visited the Sunamganj haor area. The chainage and outlet locations needed to relieve waterlogging in the haor, and the canals needed for drainage, were then identified. "We all agreed to include the construction of drainage outlets and the re-excavation of canals in the project's DPP," he said.

"We have held meetings on all aspects of the project. In light of everyone's decisions, reasonable costs have been set for each item," he added.

Cherrapunji in India's Meghalaya state receives the highest rainfall in the world. The huge volume of rain from the hills rushes very quickly into the haor areas of Sunamganj, Netrokona and Kishoreganj, so every year there is a risk that boro rice in Sunamganj's haors will be flooded and destroyed by early floods. The haor rivers have silted up and lost drainage capacity, so early floodwater takes a long time to drain downstream. The proposed project will ensure the normal flow of the haor rivers. If it is implemented, about 15 lakh tonnes of boro rice will be protected from early flood damage, an important contribution to the country's food security.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.