Tired of waiting for fund, villagers go for self-help

Three-km embankment built in 48 hours

29 August 2009, 17:00 PM

S Dilip Roy, Lalmonirhat

A large number of villagers render voluntary service to construct a three-kilometre embankment on the Teesta River to save their houses and croplands from erosion in Votmari union under Kaliganj upazila of Lalmonirhat district yesterday. Photo: STAR

A three-kilometre protection embankment along the Teesta River has been constructed in two days as people from six villages in Votmari union under Kaliganj upazila of Lalmonirhat rendered voluntary service for the task to save their life and property from river erosion. About six thousand people, both male and female, joined the work at dawn on Friday and the work was completed yesterday noon. Earlier, they collected several thousand sandbags and bamboo poles from the local rich men and donors. Several thousand houses, many fruit gardens, about two thousand acres of cultivable lands, two primary schools, a madrasa, six mosques, four temples and food godowns in Alu Tari, Naker Kathi tari, Dalal tari, South Votmari, Patni Para and Majhee Tari villages under Votmari union had become vulnerable to erosion by Teesta river. Tired of waiting for government fund to construct a protection embankment, the villagers decided to build it through voluntary work to protect their life and property, locals said. On several occasions, Lalmonirhat Deputy Commissioner Md Alauddin Fakir suggested the villagers to construct the embankment through voluntary work, said Saleh Miah, Jahir Islam, Harun Shaikh, Mian Sarker, and a few other locals. However, the three-kilometre embankment is a temporary measure and the villagers need a permanent protection embankment to save their life and property. “We have constructed the three-kilometre embankment through voluntary service but it may be washed away if hit by strong current of the Teesa River. We need a permanent embankment for which government support is required,” said Abed Hossain, 52, of Alurtari village. “The erosion hit people in different areas of Lalmonirhat have responded positively to our call and offered voluntary service to build embankments to save their life and property from river erosion,” said DC Alauddin Fakir. “I have already sent a demand note to the ministry concerned for building a permanent embankment in Votmari area to check erosion by Teesta River,” he added.