Surma flows over danger level to spark fear of floods

There is a risk of short-term flooding in Sunamganj, the WDB says

Mountain runoffs and torrential rain have caused the Sunamganj district’s main river Surma to flow above the danger level at two points.

The Water Development Board of WDB has said the water level will rise over the next three days, and there is a risk of short-term flooding.

Mamun Howlader, the executive engineer of WDB in Sunamganj, said for the first time this season, around noon on Sunday, the water level at the Shologhar point in Sunamganj flowed two centimetres above the danger level.

And since the morning, at the Chhatak point, it has been flowing 11cm above the danger mark.

The water levels in Sunamganj are 7.82 metres and in Chhatak 9.30 metres high. The danger level at Shologhar point in Sunamganj is 7.80 metres and in Chhatak it is 8.68 metres.

The engineer said there might be heavy rainfall in the next 72 hours. In the 24 hours from 9am on Saturday to 9am on Sunday, 441 millimetres of rain have fallen in Cherrapunji in India’s Meghalaya state.

Quoting from the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre of the WDB, Mamun Howlader said: "There is a risk of short-term flooding in Sunamganj for this reason. The water levels in the rivers and streams of Sunamganj might rise over the next 72 hours."

Hill torrents are damaging roads and paths in the border areas of Doarabazar and Chhatak Upazilas. The villages in the border areas are being flooded by water from mountain runoffs.

Locals have reported new crises due to unplanned roads and embankments built by the WDB to protect crops, which are obstructing the flow of floodwater.

Moreover, the problem is also occurring because sand and silt brought by the hill runoffs are filling up the border rivers.

Meanwhile, the water from the rains and hill torrents is entering the Haor or backswamps, making boat transport easier for people.

According to the office of the executive engineer of WDB in Sunamganj, from Friday morning to Saturday morning, 513 millimetres of rain fell, and from Saturday morning to Sunday morning, 441 millimetres of rain fell in Meghalaya.

Cherrapunji, located just above Chhatak Upazila, is one of the most rainfall-prone areas in the world. It takes just four hours for floodwaters from Cherrapunji to reach Chhatak and Sunamganj.

So, when it rains in Meghalaya, the water quickly descends through small border streams and channels into these two Upazila s.

This water enters various Haors and travels through the rivers and streams of the southern and western regions of Sunamganj to end up in the Meghna River in Kishoreganj.

Salehin Chowdhury Shubha, a leader of the Haor Bachao Andolon, said frequent problems are occurring because of unnecessary embankments and road constructions in the name of protecting crops in the haor, which are obstructing the descent of hill torrent water.

The border rivers have also become silted up and cannot hold as much water as before, causing damage to the local areas.

"Besides, the main problem in this area is being caused by the 'Pandarkhal Dam' built in the 1970s. The dam is causing obstructions to the flow of border water," said Professor Chittaranjan Talukdar, general secretary of the Haor Agriculture and Farmer Protection Council.

He added that since 2018 to 2024, more than 5,000 crop-protection embankments have been built, and thousands of roads have been constructed for rural infrastructure development.

However, in comparison, not even a kilometre of dredging has been done in the border rivers such as Chela, Khasiyamara, Sonai, and Cholti.

Researcher Pavel Partha said the problem is not only due to the construction of embankments, roads, or lack of dredging in the border areas. In Meghalaya, India, forests are being destroyed to extract coal and limestone, resulting in the clearing of forests, jungles, and trees.