Save Boral, save Chalanbeel
An appeal with the signature of one lakh people living in Chalanbeel area was submitted to the prime minister through the upazila nirbahi officer of Chatmohar in Pabna yesterday demanding effective steps to save the Boral River for the sake of Chalanbeel.
Boral River Protection Movement submitted the appeal at a programme in Chatmohar upazila parishad auditorium marking International Day of Action for Rivers.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Meanwhile, the Water Development Board (WDB) on Thursday started work for removing a cross dam in the Boral at Dahapara in Nurnagar of Chatmohar upazila to ease flow of the important river passing through Chalanbeel spreading across Rajshahi, Natore, Pabna and Sirajganj districts.
Leading river movement organiser Professor Abdullah Abu Sayeed spoke as the chief guest at yesterday's programme at Chatmohar, presided over by Gour Chandra Sarkar, president of Boral River Protection Movement.
Among others, lawmaker of Natore-4 constituency Abdul Kuddus, secretary of 'Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon' (BAPA) Dr Abdul Matin, Chatmohar municipality mayor Mirza Rezaul Karim Dulal, Faridpur municipality mayor Kamruzzaman Mazed, and secretary of Boral river movement Mizanur Rahman spoke.
The Boral, connecting 30 small rivers in Chalanbeel, serves as a main water provider there but its flow stagnated as four cross dams and three regulators were set up in 1980s in name of fishing projects, speakers said.
They demanded steps to save the Boral for the sake of saving the 30 other rivers as well as Chalanbeel.
The Boral, originated from the Padma at Charghat of Rajshahi and falls into the Jamuna at Baghabari of Sirajganj district.
"Water Development Board has started removing its cross dam in Nurdah point of the river. Three others will be removed by Local Government Engineering Department and Roads and Highways Department," Md Rejaul Karim, executive engineer of WDB, said after start of the work on Thursday.
The cross dams divided the river into stagnant water bodies and continuous encroachment narrowed it to 150 to 200 feet wide from earlier 500 feet.
Since 2008, the people of the Chalanbeel region have continued movement to save the Boral.
They formed a 220-km-long human chain from Charghat to Baghabari on March 14 in 2013.
On November 18 that year, a river task force formed by the government recommended removal of all cross dams in the river to help it regain the former flow.
Finally the work started on Thursday morning, as per the decision of a meeting of the ministries concerned.
If all the dams are removed, the Boral will be navigable again and function as a real connecting river in the vast Chalanbeel region, the WDB engineer said.
"We urge the government to continue the drive to remove all the cross dams and sluice gates from the Boral for ensuring its proper flow," said Md Mizanur Rahman, secretary of Boral River Protection Movement.