The continuous erosion of Bishkhali River which flows through Kalikabari village in Betagi upazila of Barguna district has been threatening Kalikabari Government Primary School, the only educational institution and cyclone shelter in the area.
The locals are now living in fear of losing their shelter and the only educational institution for their children during a disaster.
When this correspondent visited the area he found that hundreds of acres of land, houses, social, educational, religious institutions and structures have been destroyed by the erosion of the Bishkhali River for decades.
Established in 1938, the school was built as a cyclone shelter with a new building in 2009 at a cost of about 1.25 crore taka by the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED).
However, in less than a decade and a half, the continuous erosion of the river has caused the embankment to break and the river to reach the school’s doorstep.
The Kalikabari-Phulyjhuri road in front of the school has already disappeared into the Bishkhali River, as a result of which students have to walk through water and mud to reach the school decreasing the number of students to 70 from 300.
So the school, which was built to provide shelter during disasters, itself is now looking for a safe shelter.
Maryam Jahan, a third-grade student of Kalikabari School, told “My house is near this school, so I have no other place to study except this school.
We come to class with great difficulty. If there is excessive tide, we cannot come to school.”
Local resident Kabir Hossain said, “The old school building here was half a kilometer away from this place.
Later, when the erosion started, the school was built at this place considering it a safe place.
But the river erosion is so severe that the ring embankment here has broken and the river has now reached 50 feet in front of the school cum only cyclone center of the area.”
“I have written a letters to the higher authorities including Water Development Board since the erosion started.
Now we are somehow continuing to teach the students. If the river rises a little further, the building will also be submerged in the river.”
In this regard, Barguna District Primary Education Officer Abu Zafar Md Saleh said “The school is now under threat due to river erosion.
We have had several meetings with the Water Development Board and the district administration regarding this.”
Water Development Board Chief Executive Engineer Abdul Hannan said, “A project worth about two crore taka has been undertaken to protect the Kalikabari Government Primary School cum Cyclone Shelter building and the eroded river bank in that area.
The project is awaiting approval, work will begin soon after approval is received”.
