400 Sitakunda families marooned in water as canal filled by three cos

To go to school in the morning, Sajia Parveen has to wear old clothes and carry the school uniform in her bag. 

She wades through the waist-high fetid water at their village, changes the wet dresses at a relative's residence half a kilometre away from her home, puts on the uniform and attends classes. On her way back home, the 14-year-old has to change dresses again.     

Like her, some 2,500 people of 400 families of two Sitakunda villages – Noapara of Kumira union and Hajipara of Banshbaria union – have their own tactics to face the waterlogging for the last three months. 

They said their villages did not go under water ever in the past 40 years. But the recent waterlogging is due to blocking the water runoff from the local hills by three industries.    

An inquiry by Sitakunda Land Office also found the villagers' claim to be true, as the industries – GPH Ispat, Portland International (BD) Limited and KR Flexi Pack Limited – filled a part of a local canal that used to channel out the water into the Bay.

Locals said GPH Ispat in 2018 filled a part of the canal while expanding the factory. The other two companies also filled the canal in the same year. But the companies keep shifting the blame onto others.   

According to Sitakunda Land Office, the three companies have occupied 46.36 Satak (1 Satak = 435.6 Square Feet) of the canal at Mouhajidda mouza adjacent to the Dhaka-Chattogram highway. 

The land office said GPH Ispat, Portland International (BD) and KR Flexi Pack Group occupied 24.64, 10 and 11.72 Satak of land respectively.

The factory of Portland International (BD) Limited is in the north, KR Group in the middle and GPH Ispat is in the south side of the canal.

Locals said the 15 feet wide canal in the Mogpukur area has turned into a four feet drain as Portland International (BD) encroached it. The narrowed channel was filled further by GPH Ispat and KR Group.  

Bilkis Akhtar, a resident of Haji Para village, said, "My elder son has not been able to go to school for the past one month. I always have to be cautious for my younger son, so that he does not drown." 

Waterborne diseases have spread due to the waterlogging.

Nurjahan Akhtar, an elderly of the same village, said, "I have never seen waterlogging here in my entire life. If the problem is not solved, we have to sell the house and move elsewhere."

The villagers said they have complained several times to the local public representatives and the upazila administration, but to no avail.

Mohammad Almas Shimul, additional managing director of GPH Ispat, told The Business Standard, "The villagers next to the factory are our neighbours. They are suffering due to the waterlogging, but we have not created the problem. The canal has been filled by the Portland International. Besides, there was a waterway by the Dhaka-Chattogram highway, which is now closed. The crisis has been created due to these."

"We have discussed with the local public representatives about the crisis and wrote a letter to the upazila administration. We want the problem to be solved," he added.

Hadidur Rahman, deputy director of Portland International, said, "Even though we have filled a part of the canal, we have installed two 60-inch pipes for water movement. But the area on the south of the canal has been filled by other parties."

Sekandar Hossain, CEO of KR Flexi Pack, echoed the same as the deputy director of Portland International. "The water from the north side of the canal is not going to the south as the area has been filled. As a result, the villages have been submerged in water." 

However, he said that his company will accept any decision of the authorities to reduce the suffering of the people.

Ferdous Anwar, deputy director of the Department of Environment, Chattogram district, said, "We have already submitted a report to the higher authorities in this regard. We hope action will be taken soon."

Ashraful Alam, assistant commissioner (land), Sitakunda, said, "We have received complaints from the villagers. I have already visited the area. However, the canal is not only occupied by the three companies, some local people are also involved in it. We have already discussed with both sides, everyone has agreed to solve the problem."