The five recorded canals of Bagerhat municipality have been encroached upon, with illegal permanent structures erected along their banks.

Once navigable and vital for drainage, these canals are now nearly dead due to encroachment, obstruction of tidal flows, and indiscriminate dumping of waste.

Residents are demanding the canals' reclamation and excavation to alleviate the suffering caused by waterlogging.

Municipal authorities admitted that over 500 illegal structures have been built along these canals, and assured that a project is in place to restore them through eviction and re-excavation.

Photo: Partha Chakrabortty

Bagerhat municipality, spanning 15.88 square kilometres, was established on April 1, 1958 and is home to over 125,000 residents.

Situated along the Bhairab river, the municipality consists of nine wards and five recorded canals. These waterways once accommodated large boats but have now turned into waste dumps.

In several areas, illegal occupiers have constructed buildings, making it impossible to recognise them as canals anymore.

The canals in question include Harikhali Canal, Harinkhana Canal, Badiar Canal, Nagerbazar Canal, and Wapda Canal.

Photo: Partha Chakrabortty

Residents allege that influential individuals have illegally occupied the canals and built multi-storey structures, leading to severe waterlogging during the monsoon. Many locals struggle to rent out their homes as streets remain submerged for weeks after rainfall, with no effective drainage system in place.

Habib Sheikh, a resident of Basabati, recalled a time when large boats traversed these canals, and locals would swim and bathe in them.

Now, the canals are all but extinct. He lamented that the inability of the canals to drain away rainwater causes severe waterlogging during the monsoon, leading to immense hardship.

Abdur Rahman of Nagerbazar said the canals have been filled up due to encroachment and indiscriminate dumping of waste, causing waterlogging in roads and houses during the rainy season.

Assistant Engineer of Bagerhat Municipality, TM Rezaul Haque Rizvi, said the municipality has five canals, many of which have been illegally occupied, with more than 500 structures built along them.

Due to the accumulation of waste, water drainage has become severely obstructed.

Rezaul said, the five canals, stretching approximately 23 kilometres, are set to be excavated under the Coastal Towns Infrastructure Improvement Project. The tendering process will soon commence to restore these canals and eliminate prolonged waterlogging.

This project is expected to cost over Tk 7.5 crore. Once implemented, it is anticipated to alleviate the suffering of municipal residents, he added.