Teachers, students and local residents have formed a human chain in Kurigram demanding measures to stop the ongoing erosion of the Dharla River and construction of a permanent embankment at Jagmener Char in Bhogdanga Union of Sadar Upazila.
More than 400 students, teachers, guardians and residents took part in the programme held on Sunday afternoon, September 27, near Jagmener Char Private Primary School.
Speakers said extensive cropland and homesteads in the area have been lost to Dharla River erosion over the past several years. The erosion has now reached dangerously close to the school, madrasa and mosque.
They warned that without the immediate construction of a permanent protective embankment, these important institutions and the homes of hundreds of families could be washed away by the river.
Local resident Kobad Ali said the river takes away their homes and farmland every year.
“Without a permanent embankment, there is no way to protect ourselves from this erosion,” he said.
Another resident, Kashem Ali, said hundreds of children in the char area could lose access to education if the school is washed into the river.
“Effective measures must be taken immediately,” he said.
At the human chain, affected residents called for the immediate construction of a permanent embankment to protect the Dharla River bank and urged the government to take urgent steps to provide sustainable protection to the erosion-hit area.
