Gorai devours vast arable land in Rajbari

With the receding water level in the Gorai river, erosion has taken a serious turn at five villages under Jangal union in Rajbari's Baliakandi upazila, devouring fresh areas including vast arable land in the last couple of days.

The fresh erosion is also threatening a portion of a flood protection embankment close to the affected villages.

Affected villagers said erosion by the Gorai river has continued devouring vast fresh areas at Potora, Olankarpur, Sonakador, Baorda and Somadhinagar villages under the union, stretching about two and half kilometres area.

Nearly 50 bighas of arable land with standing crops on it have already been washed away by the river in the last one week, locals said, adding that a flood protection embankment nearby the villages is also facing treat of being devoured due to the erosion.

Farmer Mokarram Hossain, 60, of Olankarpur village said, "I have cultivated onion, vegetable and onion seedbed on my two bighas of land, spending Tk 46,000 this year. But the untimely erosion has devoured everything I had."

Murad Hossain Mollah, 33, another farmer from the village, said "I have cultivated onion on 50 decimals of land spending Tk 40,000, but my entire land went into the riverbed in the last couple of days."

Zahidur Rahim, 53, of Potora village, said less than a week time all their land went to the river womb and they had nothing to do.

Grower Motiar Rahman, 35, of the village said, "Our area is famous for onion cultivation and after losing our onion fields we are in huge trouble now.

Kollol Kumar Basu, newly elected chairman of Jungle Union Parishad, said he already visited the erosion-hit areas and informed the matter to the upazila nirbahi officer (UNO) and Baliakandi upazila parishad chairman to take step to check the erosion.

Sub Divisional Engineer of Rajbari Water Development Board (WDB) MA Shamim said he has already informed his higher authority of the matter and hope they would take step in this regard soon.