Call for enforcing laws and supporting alternative livelihoods for affected farmers

Speakers at a human chain in Shyamnagar upazila of Satkhira district on Sunday called for strict enforcement of laws to stop shrimp and crab farming on agricultural land, warning that the intrusion of saline water is destroying cropland, reducing soil fertility and threatening local livelihoods and food security.

They demanded an immediate halt to the entry of saline water into farmlands, implementation of effective legal measures to prohibit such farming in croplands, provision of alternative income and rehabilitation for affected farmers, and an end to land-use changes without the consent of local people.

The human chain was held at Nawabenki Bazar and jointly organised by COAST Foundation and Udayan Bangladesh, according to a press release.

The event was moderated by COAST Foundation’s Head of Climate Change, M A Hasan, and presided over by Sheikh Asad, Executive Director of Udayan Bangladesh. Several local activists and representatives also spoke at the programme.

Mr M.A. Hasan said, apart from natural disasters caused by climate change, shrimp or crab enclosures are artificially making the area saline and increasing environmental disasters.

Although salt, shrimp and crab farming by injecting saline water into agricultural land are profitable for some people, it is also destroying biodiversity and pushing the future of many people towards uncertainty by destroying their land, food, and livelihood.

He hopes for the implementation of the Agricultural Land Preservation Act (ALPA) 2000.

Sheikh Asad, Executive Director of Udayan Bangladesh, said that due to shrimp and crab farming in Shyamnagar and Satkhira, agricultural production and land formation are under threat due to the salinity intrusion, directly affecting local agriculture and livelihoods.

Monthly allowances, short-term loans, or assistance to start new businesses are important for the affected farmers, he said.

Shyamnagar Press Club President Samiul Islam Monir said, the illegally granted canal lease must be cancelled; river erosion is intensifying due to illegal sand extraction; illegal sand extraction must be stopped.

“We must return to agriculture; our lands have become single-crop lands, we must convert them into triple-crop lands, and we must increase our rice and vegetable production to achieve self-sufficiency in food.”

Shibu Prasad Vaidya, executive director of the Ganachetna Foundation, said there is already a severe shortage of drinking water throughout the coastal region. Wherever shrimp and crab farming are prevalent, the shortage of drinking water is more severe. If the uncontrolled shrimp and crab farming is not brought under strict regulations now, the environment, nature, and economy of the southwestern region will be further disrupted. The encroachment of salt, shrimp, and crab farming on agricultural land must be stopped.

Jharna Khatun, a female representative of the affected population, said, “We women are at grave risk due to the effects of salt poisoning; our health risks are increasing day by day. Due to the decline in agricultural production, food crises are occurring locally. Agriculturally dependent families are unable to produce their own food, increasing their dependence on the market. Due to poverty and rising commodity prices, families, especially women and children, are suffering from malnutrition due to la ack of supply according to demand. The crisis of clean water in the coastal region is intensifying. The government must take effective steps for a sustainable solution.”

Development activist Imran Parvez said that there is an acute shortage of drinking water, and the government must take effective initiatives to address it, develop climate-adapted agricultural management, train farmers on this issue, and increase incentives for them.