Partha Chakrabortty

“I fought for this country. I sacrificed my youth for the freedom of this land. How do I go on now that my son is no more?” asked 80-year-old freedom fighter Sushil Gharami.

In the coastal areas of Bagerhat’s Kachua upazila, solar power has emerged as a boon for the people, especially amid natural disasters and routine power outages.

After years of oblivion amid a growing market for cheap plastic alternatives, clayware is again experiencing a rise in demand and popularity as it is utilitarian, eco-friendly, and culturally significant.

Boat makers in Kachua upazila of Bagerhat have turned to digital platforms using their mobile phones to sell dinghy boats, thereby transforming the way to reach out to their buyers.

The residents of six coastal upazilas under Bagerhat district are grappling with an acute crisis for fresh water for domestic consumption since the onset of dry season.

Stench of municipal waste lining the roadside welcomes anyone entering Bagerhat city.

An acute shortage of doctors and staff has left patients at the Bagerhat 250-bed hospital deprived of much needed medical care.

In 2002, the government banned thin polythene and plastic bags, making Bangladesh the first country in the world to slap such a restriction.

The Bangladesh Water Development Board recently dredged a 23-kilometre stretch of Bishkhali river at Badhal in Bagerhat’s Kachua upazila.

Kept in a row, unique two-wheelers will captivate the attention of any visitor once they enter the workshop of Natural Fiber, a company located at the BSCIC industrial zone near Bagerhat town.

Only a year ago, the 7,000 bighas of swampland of Sashikhali beel in Bagerhat’s Shatgambuj union used to be barren due to inflow of water with high salinity from Doratana river through a sluice gate.

A silent health crisis is unfolding in Gulishakhali village in Bagerhat’s Morrelganj upazila.

On a 23-acre land on the bank of Navaganga river in Narail’s Kalia upazila, where there was once a brick kiln emitting dark clouds of smoke, now lies a vast dragon fruit orchard.

Though over a century has gone by since its establishment, the Government Textile Vocational Institute in Bagerhat, is yet to get a permanent campus.

Staffers and service seekers at 27 Union Parishad buildings are at risk of accidents as these buildings in different upazilas of Bagerhat have become dilapidated due to a lack of renovation.

Although Mollahat Upazila Health Complex in Bagerhat has two government ambulances, only one of them is currently operational. With no intention of repairs or replacement, the other one has been sitting in their garage for the past one and a half years.

Boro paddies grown by a large number of farmers in Bagerhat have been ruined after some politically influential locals released saline water into the fields for the sake of shrimp farming.

Many Bagerhat farmers are now making vermicompost and using it in place of chemical fertilisers. It is quickly becoming the choice of fertiliser in the district

A drop in prices coupled with a rise in feed costs have put shrimp and prawn farmers of Bagerhat in a tight spot.

The Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) industrial area in Bagerhat is failing to reach its full potential owing to the poor road condition, fresh water shortage and inadequate drainage system.