People say 'no' to dam building

A portion of the 300-feet cross dam (left) being built by WAPDA on Sider Dhon canal in Char Jahiruddin in Bhola and local people raise fists in protest (right). The photos were taken on Wednesday. PHOTO: STAR

On Tuesday, the local people staged a demonstration in the area against construction of the dam claiming that it would stop the natural flow of the canal and affect farming on about 2400 acres of land.

But the WDB continued its work.

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The demonstrators claimed that the cross dam, being constructed at its confluence with the Meghna, will made the three-kilometre canal dead. This will linger floods and create water logging in the wet season and affect irrigation during the dry season, they told this correspondent during a visit.

The Sider Dhon canal is the only waterway running through Char Jahiruddin.

The WDB is constructing the 300 feet dam at a cost of Tk 75 lakh. Some sources in the WDB said the dam is being built to bring 30 acres of land under cultivation.

The local people also claimed that the canal will be silted gradually if the dam is built, which will affect the ecology.

Char Jahiruddin is surrounded by the Meghna on all sides. In the rainy season, vast areas of the island go under water due to absence of protection dam. The flood water recedes through the Sider Dhon. Moreover, it provides river traffic facility to about 24,000 islanders.

Talking to this correspondent Union Parishad member Habibul Haque said, instead of constructing the cross dam on the canal, a dam could be constructed around the island with the money to protect it from floods and natural calamities.

WDB contractor Golam Mostofa, when contacted said the cross dam is being constructed as per a government plan.

WDB officials in Bhola said they informed higher authority about people's demonstrations against construction of the cross dam.