Erosion by Bangali and Karatoya Rivers Devastates Bogura Communities

Sitting silently on the banks of the turbulent Bangali River, 75-year-old Chaitanya Sarkar wept as he watched the water swallow what remains of his ancestral village. A resident of Hawladar Para in Chokkhanpur village under Sherpur Upazila, Bogura, Sarkar recounted the painful erosion that has destroyed his community over the years. Once home to 130 households, the village has seen 110 families displaced over the past 15 years, leaving merely 20 families desperately clinging to their remaining land.

Hawladar Para is predominantly inhabited by traditional fishing families who have relied on the Bangali River for generations. Today, that same river threatens their very existence. Torrential rainfall combined with an influx of upstream river water has drastically elevated the water levels of both the Bangali and Karatoya rivers, triggering severe bank erosion. Large swathes of arable farmland and numerous residential homesteads are now at risk of being completely lost to the riverbeds.

The severe impact of riverbank erosion spans across several unions within the Sherpur Upazila:

• Khanpur Union: Bank erosion along the right bank of the Bangali River has reached approximately 250 metres in Boroitoli Uttar Para, 400 metres in Chokkhanpur’s Hawladar Para, and 150 metres in Dohakhanpur Para.

• Sughat Union: Erosion stretches across 500 metres near Sughat Bazar along the left bank, 150 metres in Modhyabhag, 600 metres along the right bank in the Sahebbari area of Binodpur, and 300 metres in Chokpahari village.

• Simabari and Khamarkandi Unions: Disruption includes 300 metres in Ghasuria village, 200 metres in Naluya, 100 metres along the left bank in Khamarkandi, and 200 metres along the right bank in Jhajhor Uttar Para.

• Garidaha and Mirzapur Unions (Karatoya River): Rising waters have eroded 150 metres near the Fulbari Ghatpar bridge, 200 metres near Kalshimati School, and 200 metres in Kasiyabala village.

Local residents face grim prospects. Sadhana Rani Hawladar, who has already relocated her homestead three times, voiced her fear that no land remains for further movement. Similarly, day-labourer brothers Abdus Sattar and Abdus Salam from Ghasuria village shared that parts of their home—including half of their kitchen—have fallen into the river. They noted that erosion intensified significantly following a dredging project on the Bangali River two years ago.

Educational infrastructure is also suffering. At Naluya Government Primary School, acting headmaster Golam Mostafa confirmed that at least 40 metres of the school’s playground has already been swallowed by the river.

In response to the crisis, local leadership including Khanpur Union Parishad Chairman Piar Uddin, Khamarkandi UP Acting Chairman Majedur Rahman, and Garidaha UP Chairman Tobibur Rahman have reported the matter to the Upazila administration, which subsequently alerted the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) in Bogura. Local Member of Parliament (Bogura-5) Golam Mohammad Siraj inspected the affected zones and urged prompt protective measures.

Addressing the issue, Mahmud Hasan, Executive Engineer of Bogura BWDB, explained that formal anti-erosion interventions will be initiated once funds are allocated under the new financial year.