Gorai erosion puts Sheikh Russell Bridge, nearby villages at risk

Nearly one-fourth of a 410-metre-long embankment along the Gorai river, on Haripur union side of Sadar upazila, has collapsed in only four years after construction.

In 2017, Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) spent around Tk 10 crore to build embankments on both sides of the river to protect the Tk 78-crore Sheikh Russell Bridge that was completed earlier that year.

Built to protect the bridge as well as establishments, croplands and dwellings in nearby villages, the affected part of the embankment started to develop cracks in October last year, said locals.

The embankment has continued to collapse into the river since then and till date, the river eroded away more than a hundred houses and around 150 metres of roads, said Shompa Mahmud, chairman of Haripur Union Parishad.

The newly built bridge and a larger area now run the risk of getting washed away by the Gorai river, but the authorities concerned are yet to take steps in this regard, the locals said frustratingly.

Officials at the LGED in Kushtia claimed that soon after the cracks started to develop, they informed the higher authorities of the situation and sought necessary funds for its repair work.

However, the funds were yet to be allocated, they also said.

Afsar Uddin, executive engineer of Bangladesh Water Development Board in Kushtia, said the damage to the embankment could have been prevented if measures were taken swiftly.

MA Hafiz Ovi, a resident of the area and an engineer by profession, said there has to be engineering flaws in the embankment, otherwise it would not have developed cracks within three years of construction.

An LGED official seeking anonymity said a thorough river training work was not done before the dam was constructed.

Contacted, Executive Engineer Jahidur Rahman of LGED in Kushtia said the embankment being eroded by the Gorai river would not affect the bridge.

They wrote to the higher authorities last year for necessary funds for the repair work and they hope that the funds would be allocated soon, he also said.