Floods: Modern warning, management stressed

Politicians should consider modern warning and disaster management systems to minimise the damage caused by annual floods and save lives, concluded a symposium at the LGED Bhavan yesterday.

"Peoples' Livelihoods at the Land-Water Interface - Emerging Perspectives on Interactions between People and the Floodplain Environment" was organised by the Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies in conjunction with the University of Leeds and the University of Newcastle.

In his presidential speech at the opening session, Tauhidul Anwar Khan, the director general of the Water Resource Planning Organisation, said fresh water management planners should learn from their past mistakes and consult people living in vulnerable zones.

Khan also emphasised the need for better maintenance of flood protection infrastructure.

A. Z. M. Obaidullah Khan, the centre's chairman, expressed concern at degradation of organic contents in soil due to the applications of chemical fertiliser and pesticides. He stressed the need to protect the rights of farmers and fishermen.

Matthew Chadwick, a University of Leeds' delegate, said the 1998 floods caused extensive crop losses and property damage but also helped increase the soil's fertility.

Experts from home and abroad also discussed livelihood strategies, water resources management, policy frameworks, agricultural production and wetland resource management.