Editorial
Navigability in the Jamuna
Efficient river training and dredging called for
The report that 30 cargo vessels have been stranded over a week at the Shibalay point in Manikganj in the river Jamuna is a cause for concern. Unless dredging, which is now under way at the river point in question, is done speedily and effectively, the delay in the supply of the goods that those vessels are carrying will contribute to raising their carrying cost as well as leave its knock-on effect on their price and the overall productive activities in the districts they are bound for. The Shibchar point is one of the 12 vulnerable points in the Jamuna, where the rate of siltation is very high in the lean seasons of the year so much so that a shoal may spring up in a matter of hours. Whereas this is a veritable obstacle to early prognostication of the spots needing immediate dredging, as pointed out by Chief Engineer of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), that should also provide a more compelling reason why there should be constant survey of the intensity of siltation and levels of water at the vulnerable points in place and more dredgers ready for action as and when it is required. But the way the dredged up mud is being reportedly allowed to pile up near the navigation point being cleared of the silt, it is again clogging the river lane in question. As it appears, the problem lies in homing in on the appropriate spot for the dredging where there is also suitable place for dumping the mud. The dredging authority, BIWTA, needs to take these points into due consideration to facilitate their dredging operation. The cargo vessel operators, too, have to remain alert to the declining navigability of the river route under scrutiny so that the weight of their goods-laden vessels itself may not become a barrier to their passage through the shallow waters of the siltation-prone sections of the river. Since the major river routes for transporting vital cargoes to the northern districts are fast choking up with silts and shoals, it calls for emergency action including regional cooperation to address it.
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