The looming threat of floods

That floods in this deltaic plain are recurrent is no news. The news is that the timing of this type of natural calamity has changed remarkably. Floods and the monsoon are interlinked. Before the month of Ashar on the Bangla calendar, the onset of monsoon was unimaginable. But this unprecedented phenomenon now looks all set to become a reality. At a time when in mid-Jaistha, sweltering heat was the norm with hardly any rain, the country this year is experiencing an early monsoon brought ahead by at least two weeks. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department has confirmed this. The heavy rains most of the country has witnessed over the past few days have threatened to cause floods in at least four districts in the north-eastern region of the country. Sunamganj, Sylhet, Moulvibazar and Netrakona districts are under threat of floods.

With the possibility of heavy rainfall continuing for five more days in the Sylhet region and mid-northern part of the country, the rivers there are likely to be in spate. The situation has been further complicated by the excessive rains in Mehgalaya where Cherrapunji is known for the heaviest rainfall in the whole world, which is located just on the other side of the border of north-eastern Bangladesh. To make the matter worse, excessive rainfall in that upper riparian Indian state comes rushing down the common rivers flowing between the two countries.

So, the country has to brace for floods in the making. Mercifully, though, this time Boro harvest in the haor areas of Sylhet and Sunamganj was completed earlier. For the last few years it had been a race against time for farmers to harvest the main crop of that area. The floods that caused extensive damage to standing Aman crop in wide areas of Feni and Cumilla in July-August last year actually had a negative impact on the country's food reserve. The newly installed interim government had to bear the brunt of this food shortage because millers and traders seized the opportunity of raising the staple price to a new level that still refuses to come down to the level before that astronomical price escalation.

Even if the projected floods strike after harvest of the main crop, the areas apprehended to fall under the calamity's sway will suffer a lot. The suffering will depend on the enormity of floods. Sylhet's sufferings due to floods last year was no less telling. The visitation of floods in the hilly areas is different from those in plain lands. Torrential rains conspire with rivers flowing in full spate to create strong currents that sweep everything ahead of those. On that count, damage to crops including vegetables, livestock and immovable property is far greater than in areas where flat plain can disperse the flow of waters to temper the speed.

The rains of the past few days have already made some impact on the market. Almost all kinds of vegetables have become dearer and if floods wreak havoc with such green crops, their price will shoot up triggering inflation that gave an indication of relenting during the past few months. Struggling to stay afloat, the country's economy will be in real danger if a natural calamity causes widespread disruptions to its agriculture. Last time the administrative response to various needs of the flood-stricken and displaced people was poor. Let the administrative apparatuses responsible for undertaking relief and rehabilitation works be kept ready for any eventuality for an early and effective response.

Climate has become capricious and the monsoon's arrival earlier than schedule speaks volume for the unexpected exigencies the government will have to handle. There should be more allocation for short-term relief and rehabilitation of people falling victim to river erosion, floods, storms and cyclones. The frequency of such Nature's convulsions including earthquake has become higher over the past few years. These may be considered an early warning for what the nations everywhere, particularly this calamity-prone country, are expected to encounter in the days to come. At a time when the pipeline of international aid has been drying up, the challenge will prove even more daunting than before.              

nilratanhalder2000@yahoo.com