50 houses lost to Brahmaputra erosion in 3 days

CHILMARI, KURIGRAM, July 1: At least 50 houses have been swallowed by the Brahmaputra River in the past three days in Chilmari Upazila of Kurigram, leaving dozens of families homeless as riverbank erosion continues unabated.

According to local sources, erosion has been ongoing at several points in Chilmari Union over the past three days. On Monday dawn alone, 25 houses in the Bisharpara Ashrayan area were washed away within just 30 minutes.

The relentless erosion has also devoured hundreds of acres of cropland and six electricity poles, disrupting power supply to around 400 families.

Several key public establishments are now under imminent threat, including Muntala Government Primary School, Dhushmara Government Primary School, Karaibarishal Lower Secondary School, Karaibarishal Bazar, the Chilmari Union Parishad building, the union land office and an under-construction flood shelter.

A visit to the affected areas found severe erosion continuing in Shakhahati, Karaibarishal, Bisharpara and nearby villages, with residents scrambling to dismantle and move their homes before they are claimed by the river.

Many families, including those of Atikur Rahman, Ansar Ali, Abdul Hamid, Bokkor Ali, Lal Mia, Shahin Mia, Phulu Mia and former union member Monsur, have already lost their homesteads and are now living under the open sky.

Residents Shahin Mia, Tofayel Hossain and Mukul Mia of Bisharpara Village said the Brahmaputra had washed away their homes and belongings.

"We have lost everything. Property worth lakhs of taka has disappeared into the river. We are now living in inhuman conditions. We do not want relief; we want a permanent solution to river erosion," they said.

Chilmari Union Parishad Chairman Md Aminul Islam said around 650 families in the union had lost their homesteads to erosion over the past two years.

"If the current rate of erosion continues, a large part of the union, including educational institutions, the flood shelter and Karaibarishal Bazar, will disappear into the river. Hundreds of acres of farmland have already been lost," he said.

Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md Mahmudul Hasan said the administration was treating the situation with utmost importance and had contacted the Water Development Board.

"The scale of the erosion is so extensive that temporary measures alone will not be enough. Government assistance will be provided for the rehabilitation of the affected families," he said.

Rakibul Hasan, Executive Engineer of the Kurigram Water Development Board, said controlling such widespread erosion in the char areas was extremely difficult.

"We have supplied 1,500 geo-bags as an initial measure, but that is far from sufficient. People have been advised to relocate structures that remain at risk," he said.