Erosion by the Sandhya River has threatened the market, road, and mosque at Amrajuri union in Kaukhali upazila of Pirojpur.
Although the Water Development Board is currently throwing geo-bags into the river at a cost of about Tk4.7 million, it is not enough to prevent the erosion.
Pirojpur Water Development Board Sub-Divisional Engineer Abu Jafar Md. Rashed Khan said, “We are conducting a study for a permanent embankment of about 1,500 metres on both sides of the ferry pier, and the work on the embankment is underway at a cost of about Tk4.7 million.”
In recent weeks, the Amrajuri ferry ghat area on the junction of Swarupkathi and Kaukhali upazilas has been hit by river erosion.
As part of the Kaukhali-Shekherhat road has disappeared into the riverbed, people of Purba Amrajuri, Magura village of the upazila and Shekherhat village of the adjoining Jhalakathi district are facing extreme hardship during their travel.
Besides, more than a hundred establishments, including homes, agricultural lands, and mosques, educational institutions and other establishments on both banks of the river have been submerged or already eroded in the riverbed.
More than a kilometre of the Kaukhali-Shekherhat road next to the market has collapsed and disappeared into the river.
After visiting the area, it was found that about 1000 metres west of Amrajuri Bazar has been affected by the erosion of the Sandhya River.
According to local sources, a ferry runs from Amrajuri Ferry Ghat every day from Pirojpur Sadar to Nesarabad upazila via Kaukhali.
Locals complain that the Pirojpur Water Development Board has taken initiatives to prevent erosion at a cost of about Tk1.5 crore in the last one year, but it has not yielded any real benefits.
A trader in Amrajuri Bazar Md. Shahin said that river erosion occurs every year as the Amrajuri Ferry Ghat area is the mouth of the Sandhya and Gabkhan canals. Erosion has been increasing for several years. “My shop has had to be moved three times in a year due to river erosion.”
Local resident Iqbal Hossain Talukder said due to this river erosion, shops have to be moved every few months. Even piling and throwing sandbags in the river cannot prevent river erosion. It will not be possible to prevent river erosion unless effective measures are taken to build a sustainable river protection dam and regulate the river.
Imam of Purba Amrajhuri Bazar Mosque, Gazi Md. Anwar Hossain, said, ” Six months ago, prayers could be offered in the mosque, but suddenly the wall in front of the mosque collapsed and disappeared into the river. Earlier, there was a place for four rows of prayers, but now there are two rows of prayers, which is also a concern.”
