Canal land grabbing brings tragic consequences

A market fire in Bhola district headquarters gutted fifty shops last Saturday. First detected at 1:00am, it took fire fighters four hours to douse the blaze. For shopkeepers, residents and fire fighters alike, the disaster is all the more frustrating since it occurred just fifteen feet from the Bhola canal, which could've been a convenient water source for both fire fighters and the dozens of locals who arrived with buckets to help extinguish the blaze. But due to uncontrolled land grabbing, the canal is all but dry.

“If the canal had enough water, we could've rapidly brought the situation under control,” says Md Mizanur Rahman, the local station master of Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence. “Most of the shops could've been saved. As we had to collect water from further away it took longer and the property damage was much more severe. Canals and other water bodies in urban areas are essential for disaster management. I have already written to the deputy commissioner's office to take action to restore this canal.”

“The canal lost its water flow due to continuous encroachment and a lack of maintenance,” explains one resident, Hasibur Rahman. “On both sides of the canal many structures protrude onto canal land which, along with the excess of garbage in the canal, obstructs water flow.”

It's not the first time the issue of the canal's health has been raised. In 2015 the Bangladesh Environment Lawyers Association filed a writ with the High Court to save the canal, says the association's Barisal division coordinator, Linkon. “The court passed a judgement in 2017 asking local authorities to save the canal, to remove all illegal structures and restore the canal according to survey records,” he says. “The district administration and municipality did implement a joint initiative following the judgement, but it fell short of reviving the canal.”

“With this disaster we see the dire consequences of canal land being grabbed,” observes an associate professor at the disaster management department of Barisal University, Md Hafiz Ashraful Haque. “It's a common scenario in cities and towns across Barisal. Similar fires are at risk of occurring in many locations. These urban canals should be saved as soon as possible in order to protect lives and property.”

Bhola's deputy commissioner, Masud Alom Siddik, says that alongside the Superintendent of Police he witnessed the fire and saw first-hand the anguish of shopkeepers exacerbated by the lack of water in the canal. “The Bhola canal is the soul of Bhola city,” says the deputy commissioner, who recently joined the post. “We will recover this canal and ensure a natural water flow within six months, to save the city.”