Teesta irrigation canals in Saidpur 'disappearing' fast
Locals cultivate crops on dry portions as water never reaches there
The concrete structure in a portion of T3D tertiary canal near the plywood factory at Koya Golahaat village in Saidpur municipality has disappeared, right; the area of T4D tertiary canal at Majapara village in Saidpur upazila of Nilphamari district gets filled up as farmers cultivate crops on the dry portions of the canals under Teesta Irrigation Project. Photo: STAR
Large portions of two canals under Teesta irrigation project, the largest of the kind in the country, have disappeared in Saidpur upazila under Nilphamari district as local influential people demolished the concrete structures and gradually filled them with earth to grow crops there. The unscrupulous people did the callous act on the pretext that water from the Teesta River never reached the remote part of the canals that are under Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB). During 1996-1997, BWDB constructed an 11.95-kilometre-long secondary canal called S5D canal originating from Dinajpur main branch canal near Nilphamari bus terminal at Kalitola of Sadar upazila with a target to irrigate 1,347 hectares of land in Sadar and Saidpur upazilas, sources said. After proceeding 11.95 kilometres near Dhelapeer Bazar of Saidpur upazila, the S5D canal bifurcated into two tertiary canals -- T3D canal stretching three kilometres and T4D canal stretching 4.58 kilometres. The canals are supposed to irrigate about 650 hectares of land in ten villages of Saidpur upazila in dry season. While visiting T3D canal ((total length 3 kms)) last week, this correspondent found no trace of its one-kilometre portion at the down end from plywood factory point at Koya Golahat village to Fida Ali Institute in Saidpur municipality. Turned into a plain land and merged with the surrounding crop fields, the canal area is now used for cultivating aman paddy. Influential people have smashed the canal's concrete slabs and levelled it to the ground to cultivate paddy as irrigational water never reach the fag end of the canal since commissioning of Teesta irrigation project in 1998, said Mojibar Rahman, a resident of Koranipara village adjacent to the canal. Same is the condition of 4.58-kilometre-long tertiary canal T4D at its tail end stretching two kilometres as influential farmers at Majapara, Fakirpara, Bagdogra and Motir Bazar villages in Kamarpukur union filled it with earth or demolished its concrete structure to level it with surrounding fields to 'recover' land for cultivation. The encroachers cultivated turmeric, pepper, dhoincha, leafy vegetables, sugarcane, bean and paddy there. An inhabitant of Majapara area, village doctor Mohammad Ali said that BWDB could never supply irrigational water through the canal, much to the frustration of the farmers. Several encroachers seeking anonymity said the canals got damaged due to lack of proper maintenance and for remaining unutilised and so, they now use the abandoned land to grow crops. Former chairman of Kamarpukur union parishad Shafiqul Islam said he verbally informed BWDB officials several times regarding the damage and encroachment of the canals but no step was taken to save them. The government allocates a good amount of money for maintenance of the canals under the irrigation project every year but the money is not properly utilised, BWDB sources said. When contacted, Ananta Kumar Roy, section officer of BWDB under Nilphamari division, also in charge of canal maintenance, admitted the deplorable condition of T3D and T4D tertiary canals. “We have filed several cases with local police stations against those responsible for damaging the canals. I also informed the higher authorities regarding the physical condition of the canals," he said. In fact we are facing acute manpower shortage at the field level, he added.
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