Villagers join hands to remove silt from Kabodak

Villagers joined hands to remove silt from the bed of the Kabodak as repeated appeals by people in the area went unheeded several times in Sarulia union (UP) in Tala upazila.
The river is the lone outlet for draining out rain and floodwaters from the unions situated in and around the Kabodak basin.
Massive silt deposited on the riverbed as the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) authorities did not pay heed to several appeals made by the Union Parishad (UP) leaders and local people for re-excavating the river.
People remained marooned for the last five months since onset of the monsoon as floodwaters could not pass through the river as it has been clogged due to silt. The river also lost its capacity to hold adequate water causing heavy flooding in the area. This results in water logging in the villages on both banks of the river. The situation prevailed since mid-80s.
As people's repeated appeals failed, Sarulia UP chairman Matiar Rahman took an initiative and organized a meeting with local people on December 20 at his office.
The meeting decided to remove silt from the river voluntarily, the UP chairman said.
The meeting divided all the villagers into several groups, he said. The groups started work on December 27. Since then the work is going on in full swing.
Over 5000 villagers are expected to take part in the work, the chairman said. The work is expected to be completed by January 7, he said.