BRAHMANBARIA. Aug 7: A total of 8.53,700 people of the district have been affected directly by flood In all the seven thanas including Brahman-baria Pourasava.
According to Agricultural Extension Department. Brah-manbarla district office sources various crops including seedbeds and vegetables worth Taka 54,35.04.000 have been damaged totally by flood waters.
Amon paddy on 20,979 hectares of land worth Tk 37,76,00.000 have been damaged. Aus paddy on 2352 hectares worth about Tk 5.64.48.000. vegetables worth about Taka 8.15.00.000 on 815 hectares of land. Jute worth about Taka 80.00.000 on 811 hectares and Transplanted Aman paddy worth about Taka 1.09.00.00.00 on 664 hectares of lands have been damaged.
Besides, 25000 trees including plants have been damaged.
Meanwhile, big trees being unearther by the turbunent waves and current of flood waters have fallen down while small plants and saplings have been Inundated and damaged.
Due to onrush of hilly water from across the border devastating floods hit the district almost every year.
This year people of 98 unions of the district are experiencing flood. Most areas of the district are under two to three feet deep water. The river Titas has started receding following cessation of rains.
According to District Relief and Rehebilitation office sources, flood situaiton has improved in the upper part of the Titas basin of the district as water level of the river Titas lias fallen down by 3 cm from 1 12 cm above the danger level, but from Nablnagor to Bancharampur and the downstream of the river Titas and the Meghna basin flood situation remains unchanged.
According to reports, at least 45,185 thatched and kutcha houses of all 98 unions in the district and 4.500 houses of Brahmanbaria pourasava have been damaged totally or partially . while 377 cattles and 1263 poultry birds have been affected.
Duc to flood all the link roads from rural areas to the thana headquarters and district town have been totally inundated and damged.At many points ofBranmanbaria-Comilla highway flood water has been flowing through the highway disrupting road communications. Flood water has been flowing ,at many points, over Brahmanbaria Comllla highway and Brahmanbaria-Sylhet highway Some portion of the highway near Uzanlshar and Chandura and Balshmaur have been damaged very badly.
Besides, the Lalpur road. Chandura -Dhakar road and Akhowra-Dharkhar road have badly damaged by the torrential rain and turbulent waves of water of flood. The road communication between Lalpur. Chandura and Darkhar has been disrupted.
According District Relief and Rehabilitation office
sources. 75 culverts. 2.164 kilometres road and. 277 km embankments of all 78 unions tn the district and also 191 culverts and bridges. 185 kilometre pucca roadand 150 kilometres of kutcha road of Brah-manbaria pourasava have been damaged.
Meanwhile, the maximum areas of Kasba thana in the dis-trict have been inundated. Breaches have been developed at the eight points of Howra embankment while breaches which have developed at Gumull embankment near Saida has deteriorated the flood situation, especially at Kasba thana of the district.
Due to devastating flood at least 9,000 ponds have been overflooded. The banks of many ponds and tanks have been eroded by flood water.
According to district public health engineering office sources, at teast 75 tubwells have gone under flood water while 200 tubewells have been affected and have become contaminated with flood water. In the meantime, people of some areas of Branmanbaria Pourashava and other unions of the district have been attacked by waterborne desease Including diarrhoea.
Hie death toll in the current monsoon flood has shot up to 28. Most deaths have been caused by drowning, snakebite, house collapse and diarrhoea.
According to the civil surgeon office sources a total of 175 medical teams including 25 teams of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) have been working in the flood affected aras.Compaigns are being conducted to make the people aware of basic healthcare methods to check spred of diarrhoeal and other waterborne diseases.
Meanwhile, intravenous saline are not available suffi-clantly here as only 2,000 packets of satlne are In the stock of the district civil surgeon office store for all the sev£n thariks 6f ths district. 80,000 packets Aral saline are In the stock, a medical officer of the civil surgen office said.
When contacted Brahman-baria Purasava Chairman Al Mamun Sarker said that 37500 devellers of 12 Moholla of the purasava had been affected and property including 5.000 trees and saplings, 92 religious institutions, 4,500 houses. 185 bridges culverts and 341 km pucca and kutcha roads had been badly damaged. The current flood liad damged the property of the pourasava areas amounting to Taka 8,70.00.00.00 or more.the pourasava chairman said.When this correspondent visited one of the badly flood affected areas-Shahjaaapur union, some of the flood victims informed tliat they did not get any relief materials and their heads of family are mainly day labourers. Due to Inundation they have no job. Now the situaton forces them to suffer from sturvation for some time Some of them have started begging from door to door for food.
While contacted, S K Md Nurul Islam Sarder. an old farmer
of village Shahladapur he said said that if the flood water does not recede fast, a serious crisis will be created in the village.
He informed that all the crops including paddy fields have gone under flood water during the last 25 days. As a result, all the crops and paddy plants have been rotten.
Nlnty-nine percent people of Shahjadapur village are dependent on cultivation. By lossing their crops by flood most peo-Ele of Shajadpur are now Jobss.
The dwellers of low-lying areas of the district have taken shelter in various camps in the schools while the some dow-ellers are living in temporary make- shift houses.Due to inundation of all link roads the rickshow pullers from all parts of the district have come to the district town. Now at least ten thousand excess reckshaws are plying in the district headquar ter creating a serious traffic jam in the main road of the district town.
It is alleged that boat piracy has been increased in the inundated rurals areas. Pirates are raiding here and there every night.
Besides. 3.000 poor families of the pourasava have been facing serious problems due to flood. In the mean time, most of them have taken shelter in the flood camps. While this correspondent visited Muzadded Alfesany Academy where a flood camp has been established. the flood victims said that they did not get any relief They demanded adequate relief materials.
According to the district relief and rehebilitation office sources. 180 metric tons of rice. 30 metric tons of wheat and three lakh taka in cash have been sent to all the flood affected areas of all seven thanas of the district.
The District Agricultural Extension Department office sources said, they have already taktn a plan to prepare seedbeds of transplated Aman seedlings on 166 hectares of high land it. the district.
BSS adds Irom Jagannath-pur in Sunamgani district: Foreign Minister Abdus Samad Azad said that the present government would do whatever necessary to assist the flood affected people through the Implementation of coordinated relief and rehabilitation programmes.
The flood-hit farmers would be supplied with seed and seedlings under farm rehabilitation programme and would be provided assistance for building. houses Azad said here on Tuesday at a meeting to review the flood situation In the district.
The minister also visited different flood affected areas of the district and distributed relief materials among the victims.
The minister announced a cash donation of Taka one lakh from Awarni League s Relief Fund.
The Deputy Commissioner of Sunamgani briefed the minister about the flood situation
and the post-flood rehabilitation programme.
During distribution of relief materials among the victims, the minister enquired about their welfare. The minister was told that the flood situation in Sunamganj was improving although the water level in the Surma was- flowing above the danger level.
UNB reports from Habiganj: Standing crops on about 25.000 hectares of land in seven thanas of the district have been damaged by the onrush of flood walers.
Local Agriculture Extension Department said standing Aus and Aman erbps. vegetables and seed-beds of the vast tract of land in Sadar, Madhabpur. Chunarughat, Nablgani. Lakhai. BjiniHehang art^ AjmlriganJ thhnas were damaged due to heavy downpour and onrush of hilly waters.
Of the total, corps on some 3.821 hectares were damage in Sadar. 6.582 hectares in Madhabpur. 2.433 hectares in Chunarughat. 7.152 hectares in Nabiganj. 1.509 hectares in Lakhai. 3.608 hectares in Banl-achang and 380 hectares in AjmlriganJ.
AED officials said during the curretit season some 65.474 hectares of land have been brought under Aman farming tn the district against the target of 6^.000 licctares.
Besides, standing Aus and Aman crops in all tight thanas of the district have also been affected due to pest attack.
Our Gaibandha Correspondent reports : Flood situation of the district is improving gradually with the recession of water level in three main river basins, but the rate is too slow.
Acute scarcity of pure drinking water is prevailing In the flood affected areas. Besides, crisis of fodder is another problem of peasants as all the
stock piles of fodder In flood fleeted areas have already been damaged due to long standing water- logging. So has become difficult for survival of the cattlehead for want of fodder.
Meanwhile, different political alliances.Non-Governmen-tal Organisations (NGOs) have started relief operations In different affected areas of the district. But relief materials are not adequate.Those who are rendering services in relief activities are BNP central and dis-trlct committees,MP of Gaibandha-5, Bangladesh Chhatra League. Shaghata thana. Gano Unnayan Kendro, Jatiya Mohila Sangstha, district unit of Anjuman-e-Mafldul, Sandhani Donor Club. Rajshahl Medical College Hos-
rials Included rice, flat rice, pulse, biscuit, sari, lungi, life -saving drugs, water purifying tablets and cash taka.
Besides, the government allocated cash and relief materials to flood affected people which is not enough to meet the requirements. Our Kushtia Correspondent says ; Post flood miseries have multiplied the woes of flood victims in six thanas of the district. The district experienced a severe flood due to onrush of hilly water from the upper riparian and incessant raln-for the 1 last- one month.
As waters have started receding from the affected areas the flood victims are now in grip of various problems. The marooned people have been suffering a lot for want of pure drinking water, sufficient foodgrains. fodder for cattles and adequate medicine to combat water- borne diseases. Scarcity of housebuilding materials is very acute in the affected areas. The relief materials have not yet reached the poor affected people and as a result their suf-
ferings have become manifold. Most of the people in the flood hit areas have become Job-less.They need relief materials for their subsistence at the moment. Hundreds of cattlehead have died due to serious scarcity of fooder In the affected areas. Cholera, diarrhoea and dysentery have already broken out In the affected areas where vaccination, innoculation and other medical aids are needed to bring the worsening situation under control.
Prices of rice and other essential commodities have gone high beyond the purchaisng capacity of common people. Post flood rehabilitation measures are imemdiately needed to make the people self-relient and to get rid of miseries they Utt fdeirtg. Meanwhile, almost all the pucca roads from Kuhs-tia including Kushtia-Ishwardi and Kushtia-Meherpur highways have been badly damaged due to heavy and continuous downpur during this season. The roads have developed widespread po holes and have become unworthy for easy plying of all kinds of vehicles.
Transport owners have complained that the authoriteis concerned had been showing indifferent attitude to take steps in this regard. They also urged the government to take immediate j>teps for repairing of the'damaged roads.
Transport owners opined that plying of vehicles in the damaged roads would damge their vehicles and it would increase the risk of accidents. Besides. there are roads from Kushtia to Pragpur ria Bhera-mara and other destinations which are in a very pitiable condition.
Plying of minibuses and buses would be stopped at any moment if these roads are not repaired imemdiately. the transport owners opined.