Padma River erosion displaces thousands, swallows farmland along border

The Padma River is eating away at villages along the Bangladesh-India border, as erosion worsens each day in four unions of Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj.

Hundreds of homes and thousands of bighas of farmland have already been lost to the river’s current, along with mosques, madrasas and schools.

The destruction has displaced thousands, and even a camp of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is now at risk of being swallowed by the water.

Over the past two years, at least 10 villages in Char Ashariadaha and Dewpara in Rajshahi’s Godagari Upazila and in Char Alatuli and Char Debinagar in Chapainawabganj Sadar Upazila have disappeared into the Padma.

Families who have shifted their homes multiple times to escape the erosion say their remaining possessions are also in danger.

For many, life on the riverbank has become defined by fear of losing their land, their homes and their very place on the map of Bangladesh. Residents say only a permanent dam, not temporary defences, can save the border communities and their infrastructure.

 “Once, our village had more than a thousand homes. Now not even half of them remain. The Padma has taken everything away,” said Md Siddiq, a farmer from Char Alatuli Union.

 “The rest of us don’t know if we will survive tomorrow. That is why we want sustainable dams, transparent work and corruption-free projects.”

In the Chapainawabganj village of Debinagar Poladanga, a once vital bridge is now at the edge of collapse.

The river that was 3km away now laps at its base.

For villagers, it is their last link for movement and survival, but it too may soon be claimed by the Padma.

Union leaders say at least 10,000 people have been displaced in the border areas of Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj over the past decade.

Several thousand bighas of land have vanished, schools and mosques remain under threat, and more than 1,000 families continue to live under immediate risk of losing their homes.

 “The villages are constantly shrinking due to the erosion,” said Marfat Ali, a former member of Debinagar Union.

 “Poladanga and Harma are disappearing from the map of Bangladesh. The BGB camp on the border is also at risk. If it collapses into the river, the Indian Border Security Force will practically take control of the area, creating a terrible crisis for border security.”

For others, the fear is more personal.

 “About 450 families and a thousand acres of land still remain in our village,” said Shetu Ali of Poladanga.

 “If erosion cannot be stopped, we will lose our homes and the border will be under threat.”

 “Every time the Padma erodes, we have to move overnight,” said Rehana Khatun, a housewife from Char Alatuli.

 “There is no safety for children, the elderly or animals. I cannot sleep at night. I feel like the land will be washed away, that we will be swept away with it.”

Efforts to halt the erosion have, so far, been limited.

In Harma village, residents said the Water Development Board had used geo bags but failed to fill them properly.

 “The bags should weigh 250kg, but they are filled with only 100kg,” said Amin Ali.

Arifur Rahman Ankur, executive engineer of the Rajshahi Water Development Board’s regional office, said work was under way to prevent further damage.

 “Geo bags are being placed at several points, and we are maintaining round-the-clock monitoring,” he said.

 “But the strong current makes it difficult to sustain the defences.”