Civic group leaders on Wednesday demanded immediate completion of crop protection dams in haor areas of north-eastern part of the country to save crops from early flash flood in the zone.
The last date for construction of the temporary protection dams expired on February 29 but only twenty to fifty per cent of the construction works had so far been completed, they alleged, blaming the Water Development Board local official’s corruption for the delay.
They urged the government to ensure WDB’s transparency and accountability and involvement of the local community in construction of the dams.
They made the demands at a press conference organised by Nagarik Sanghati at the National Press Club in the city.
The haors are located in Netrokona, Kishoreganj, Sylhet, Maulovibazar, Brahmanbaria, Habiganj and Sunamganj, mostly inhabited by farmers, and the area remain submerged for around six months a year due to flash flood.
The flash flood normally begins in second week of April while the farmers’ crop generally ripe but if it comes a bit early, with the protection dams incomplete, the farmers will lose all their crops, they said.
Addressing the press conference, Khaliajuri Upazila Parishad chairman Kibria Jabbar in Netrokona alleged that the WDB officials could not make proper estimate of expenditure and so the farmers had to lose their crops frequently.
Dhakastha Kishoreganj Samity general secretary Ershad Uddin Mallick proposed to construct ‘submerged dams’ to solve the problem of constructing temporary crop protection dams every year.
‘In the past 10 years till 2010, farmer could harvest their crops only five times for early flash flood,’ Sharifuzzaman Sharif, Nagarik Sanghati general secretary said while reading out his written speech.