River erosion victims
Shafiq Islam / driknews
As the monsoon sets in, the problem of river erosion takes a turn for the worse. The mighty rivers-- the Padma, the Jamuna and the Meghna --devour huge chunks of land as they meander through the alluvial plain. On an average, every year 2400 km of riverbanks experience major erosion. Needless to say, millions of people of are affected by erosion. Many people lose their homesteads, farmland and other valuable property because of erosion. Again, the victims of erosion, having lost their homes, flock to the city- slums. Upon their arrival in the cities they take hazardous jobs like pulling rickshaws, working as day-labourers and so on. The sad part of the story is that they are metamorphosed into un-accommodated beings within a very short span of time. Although many rivers are in death throes, the menace of erosion still poses a danger to a huge number of people. Some towns--for example, Chandpur and Sirajganj-- are still vulnerable to river erosion .The situation calls for urgent action on the part of the government.
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