Government readies intensive plans to prevent flood in Sunamganj haors

The Ministry of Water Resources has adopted stern measures to prevent seasonal and flash floods from ruining crops in Sunamganj, said the newly appointed Minister for Water Resources Anwar Hossain Manju. The minister also warned the authorities concerned saying severe actions will be taken if they fail to prevent the flood. “The order from our prime minister is very clear. If you do not do your part in preventing the flood, you will lose your head,” he said while visiting crop protection embankment at Jowalvanga Hoar in Sadar upazila of the district on Friday. He said: “I am not here to enjoy a picnic. I came here to protect the crops in the Haor areas. The government is funding projects to bring engineers and take necessary steps to preventing the flood water.” Canals are already being dug, he added. There is no embankment project with a budget of less than Tk300 crore, said the minister. According to the minister, the officials from the Ministry of Water Resources will visit Sunamganj at least 10 to 15 times over the next three months. The Water Development Board has also been provided with sufficient manpower. Senior Secretary of Water Resources Ministry Dr Zafar Ahmed Khan said: “People who were involved with mismanagement in the haor projects last time have been punished severely. A total of 815 Project Implementation Committees (PIC) have been formed, among which, 131 have already started working. 302 projects have been inaugurated and hundreds of crores have been sanctioned by the government for the embankment projects. “Last monsoon, the embankments overflew due to heavy rainfall and caused flood. This was an unfortunate incident. The government has taken necessary steps to confront the crisis.” The minister visited Pangar Haor of Jamalganj, Dhankunia Hoar of Dharmapasha upazila, Halir Haor of Biswamvarpur upazila via speedboat. Additional Secretary Md Yusuf, Additional Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Emran Hossain, Superintendent of Police Barkatullah Khan, Executive Engineer of Water Development Board Abu Bakkar Bhuiyan accompanied the minister during his visit.