River erosion in Babuganj and Ujirpur upazilas of Barisal district has reached alarming levels, threatening agricultural land, rural infrastructure, and livelihoods of thousands of people living along the banks of the Sugandha and Sandha rivers, according to a formal appeal sent to the Ministry of Water Resources by the local member of parliament.
In a letter addressed to the Minister for Water Resources, Member of Parliament for Barisal-2 constituency Sardar Sarfuddin Ahmed has urged the government to expedite approval and implementation of a long-pending riverbank protection project. The appeal highlights severe losses of farmland and agricultural production, alongside increasing risks to connectivity and local economic activities.
According to the letter, which has been circulated in policy circles and reported by The Daily Industry, nearly 6,805 hectares of fertile agricultural land are being lost to river erosion every year in the affected regions. The erosion is also contributing to an estimated annual loss of 862 metric tons of paddy production alone, raising serious concerns about local and national food security.
“The situation has become extremely critical. Every year, the rivers are swallowing vast areas of cultivable land, leaving farmers helpless and pushing rural families into uncertainty,” MP Sardar Sarfuddin Ahmed stated in the letter, as quoted by The Daily Industry.
Fear and insecurity among local residents: Residents of Ujirpur Upazila reportedly live under constant fear during the monsoon season, as riverbanks continue to collapse unpredictably.
Locals are often forced to remain awake at night, monitoring rising water levels and erosion patterns, fearing sudden loss of homes, farmland, and livestock.
“River erosion has become a cruel fear for the people of Ujirpur,” the letter noted. “During the rainy season, families stay awake throughout the night, worried that their houses and fields may disappear into the river at any moment.”
The ongoing erosion has also severely damaged rural infrastructure, including roads, bridges, culverts, and power lines. These repeated damages have disrupted communication networks and forced the government to allocate substantial funds for reconstruction works every year, creating a cycle of recurring expenditure without permanent solutions.
Strategic importance of affected areas: The letter also emphasized the economic and cultural significance of the affected unions within Ujirpur Upazila. In particular, Satla Union has gained national attention for its red lotus fields, which attract thousands of domestic tourists annually. The area is also known for producing high-quality boro rice, contributing significantly to local agricultural output.
Meanwhile, Harta Union is identified as one of the largest domestic fish markets in the region, supplying fish to various parts of the country. These economic activities, combined with agriculture and tourism, form the backbone of local livelihoods.
However, the only major connecting road serving five unions runs dangerously close to the erosion-prone riverbanks. Local authorities fear that continued erosion could lead to the complete loss of this road, effectively cutting off transportation routes for thousands of residents and disrupting tourism to the red lotus fields.
“If the road is lost to erosion, not only will communication be completely severed for five unions, but one of the region’s key tourist attractions will also be permanently affected,” the letter warned, as reported by The Daily Industry.
Project status and government review: According to official information cited in the letter, a verification meeting has already been held at the Ministry of Water Resources regarding the proposed river protection initiative. The project is currently listed as serial number 382 in the “unauthorized new projects (green category)” under the revised Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the fiscal year 2025–26, funded by the Government of Bangladesh.
The MP has urged the Ministry of Planning and the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) to prioritize approval of the project, emphasizing its urgency in preventing further land loss and infrastructural damage.
“Immediate approval and implementation of this project are essential to protect lives, livelihoods, and vital infrastructure in Babuganj and Ujirpur,” the letter stated.
Call for urgent action: The appeal has drawn attention to the broader issue of river erosion in Bangladesh, particularly in southern coastal and riverine districts where land loss is accelerating due to climate change, unregulated river flow, and weak embankment systems.
Experts quoted by The Daily Industry have repeatedly warned that without long-term river management and embankment strengthening projects, thousands of hectares of agricultural land across the country could continue to disappear annually.
Although the Ministry of Water Resources has not yet issued an official public statement regarding the Barisal-2 MPs proposal, officials familiar with the development process indicated that such projects typically undergo technical review, planning ministry scrutiny, and final ECNEC approval before implementation.
Growing pressure for sustainable river management: Local representatives, community leaders, and affected residents are now urging the government to treat the project as a national priority rather than a routine development proposal. They argue that timely intervention could prevent irreversible economic losses and protect both agricultural productivity and rural infrastructure.
As highlighted in the letter, the situation in Babuganj and Ujirpur is not merely a local concern but part of a larger pattern of river erosion affecting multiple regions across Bangladesh.
With increasing climate vulnerability and shifting river dynamics, stakeholders stress that integrated riverbank protection projects must be implemented without delay to safeguard food production zones, rural economies, and essential transport links. For now, all eyes are on the Ministry of Water Resources and ECNEC, as the fate of thousands of hectares of farmland and several key rural communities hangs in the balance.
