Roads, schools, colleges, and playgrounds of Bogra City have been submerged in water due to continuous rain. The dirty water of the canal has entered the houses and businesses. The people of the city are suffering from the public transport crisis.
It started raining yesterday Monday morning. Heavy rain in the evening caused waterlogging across the city. Water has accumulated in many areas of the city till Tuesday afternoon.
Bogra Meteorological Department official Rabiul Islam told Prothom Alo that 244 mm of rainfall was recorded from 6 am yesterday to 12 noon today. Out of this, 213 mm of rain has been recorded in 24 hours from 6 am yesterday to 6 am today. It is the maximum rainfall of the season.
At 10 o’clock last night, the roads around Satmata,
The heart of the city was submerged in knee-deep water due to continuous rain. Apart from Satmatha, Kabi Nazrul Islam Road, Sherpur Road, Station Road, Circuit House Road, Park Road, Galaptri Road, Temps Road, Kathaltala Fateh Ali Bazar Road, Nawabbari Road, Chakjadu Cross Lane-Badurtala Road, Baragola, Katnarpara Road were knee-deep.
At 10:30 p.m., the most critical situation was Shaheed Abdul Jabbar Road, Romena Afaz Road, Bir Muktijoddha Rezaul Baki Road, Noor Mosque Road, Municipal Lane, Altafunnecha Playground, Ghorapatri Mor Road in Jaleswaritla, known as the elite areas of the city. There was a strong current of knee-deep water on these flooded roads. Dirty water filled with garbage from drains on both sides of these roads overflowed on the road. The water overflowed the road and entered houses.
Salesmen Salma, Tanisha, and Rakib Hasan stood drenched in the rain for a rickshaw in front of a shopping center on Shaheed Abdul Jabbar Road at Kalibari Mandir intersection in the city at 10:30 pm. They said, ‘I have been waiting for rickshaws for half an hour, no one is willing to go to the Sabujbagh area as the road is flooded.’
Meanwhile, the new building campus of Govt Azizul Haque College is under knee-deep water till noon today due to continuous rain. Delwar Hossain, a student of the College’s Faculty of Commerce, said, “There is knee-deep water on the road after leaving the mess in Jahurulnagar of the city. By treading that water, I somehow reached the college. A college campus is floating in rainwater. Kneeling in the field. I will soak in rain water everywhere inside and outside.’
Meanwhile, since this morning due to continuous rain
The city streets, markets, and shops – there was little movement of people everywhere. However, when the rain subsides in the afternoon, public life becomes somewhat normal.
The city has been waterlogged for two decades
The picture of suffering due to the accumulation of rainwater in Bogra city has been going on for a long time. Talking to at least 10 people in the city, it is known that the drainage channel on both sides of the main road from Banani to Matidali is very narrow. This drain is filled with garbage throughout the year. In a little rain, the water from the drain overflows onto the road. And other roads in the city do not have enough drainage channels. Apart from this, due to the construction of illegal structures on both sides of the Karatoya River, water is not being released from the city. During the monsoons, waterlogging is the most tragic picture across the city.
Bogra Municipality says that during the expansion of the city’s main road in the fiscal year 2005-06, Sawaz constructed eight and a half kilometers of narrow canals on both sides. A large part of the city is drained by this canal, which is only three feet wide. However, the city’s hotels and restaurants, and various businesses throw waste into these drains. Stay away from monsoons, drains overflow with dirty and smelly water on main roads during the dry season.
Meanwhile, numerous illegal structures have been built on both sides of the Karatoya River.
The old canals of the city that have joined the river have been taken over and constructed. These drains are practically closed. The city’s subsoil canals and large reservoirs have been occupied and filled. City water from Barshi Canal falls into the Karatoa River through Phatki Bridge and Vadai Canal. The course of water drainage is also now obstructed in various ways. The city’s houses, roads, and businesses are flooded.
Masudar Rahman, president of Bogra Citizens Committee (SANAK). said that the sewage system is very fragile in this city of about 70 square kilometers built on the banks of the Karatoya River. If it rains a little, the whole city gets flooded. There is no initiative to improve the drainage system of the city. When it rains heavily. the dirty water of the drains filled with garbage also enters the house, spreading a bad smell. Traveling on the roads becomes a liability. There is no master plan for the development of this huge city of 1 million people. Without planned construction of drains and renovation of old drains. it is not possible to free city dwellers from the suffering of waterlogging.
Rezaul Karim, mayor of Bogra Municipality, said, “If it rains continuously for a long time. waterlogging occurs in different areas of the city. To solve this problem. the municipality needs 2,000 kilometers of paved drains on both sides of about 1,000 kilometers of roads. But there are only 621 km of canals for drainage. Cleaning these drains also costs a lot of money. Many important and old roads do not have drains. In the financial crisis, it is not possible to undertake new projects to solve waterlogging.
Although residents and passers-by suffered a bit due to the rain in Sylhet, many expressed relief. They said that a few days ago, due to the unbearable heat, the support became a liability. Demand for electricity increased during summer, causing frequent load-shedding.