LGRD minister warns Dhaka may flood as well

Local Government Minister Md Tajul Islam has said the extreme rainfall and water streaming from higher lands can flood Dhaka.

Tajul asked everyone to prepare for the worst ahead of a meeting at the Secretariat on Sunday.

“Low lands are actually flooded fast. It’s not that we’re done with all [crackdowns]. Some canals have been reclaimed and work continues to free others.”

On how many canals were freed so far, he said, “We’ve reclaimed 26 canals in the city so far. We freed 6.5 acres of land in Dhaka South City Corporation and 25 acres in Dhaka North City Corporation.”

On the flash floods in northeast Sylhet and Sunamganj, he said, “No institutions have provided us with forecasts about the intensity of the flooding. They’ve only given us warnings.”

The minister mentioned the floods that affected Bangladesh over the years, including that of 1998.

“It was predicted that 20 million people would die in the flooding of 1998, but that did not happen. People did not die of hunger at that time. We’re doing what needs to be done. But we must prepare for any calamity that may occur... and we are.”

Tajul also spoke about plans to prevent waterlogging. “Most of the new wards of the city corporation are lowlands with infrastructural issues. A project of Tk 40 billion has been approved to resolve these problems… It will improve things there.”

He identified waterlogging as the burning issue of Dhaka and Chattogram cities.

“We’re already reaping the benefits of reclaiming the canals. But many parts of these canals are still [illegally owned] and it’s quite difficult to free them.”

The minister brought up 2020 floods affecting Singapore and New York City. “...the cars were floating like boats [in Singapore]. We’ve seen such calamity in different parts of the world.”

“In New York, the subway was submerged and the whole city went under water. No one is actually prepared for natural disasters. But we’ve taken precautions.”

He referred to the prime minister’s directives on providing support to the flood-affected in Sylhet, and said, “...people have suffered losses due to the floods. Our army, navy, coastguards, police, and public representatives are all standing beside them.”

While speaking about preparations if Dhaka gets flooded, Tajul said such disasters occur every 100 or 110 years. The people of this area had fought against such calamities at different times.

He said the ministry formed a committee with Joint Secretary Jashim Uddin as convener to combat the floods. The committee will remain active until Jun 30 and is subject to change if necessary.

“Several roads are being dismantled to allow the floodwater to pass in Sylhet and Sunamganj… If the need arises, the same will be done in other places of the country.”