The water level of the Jamuna River has started receding at Sirajganj and Meghai Ghat in Kazipur, improving the flood situation in the district. However, many waterborne diseases are emerging in areas that have been waterlogged for a long time.
Sirajganj Water Development Board Sub-Divisional Engineer Ranjit Kumar Sarkar said on Saturday morning: "In the last 12 hours, the water has decreased by 10cm at the hard point of the Jamuna River's city protection embankment in Sirajganj and is flowing 35cm above the danger level. At Kajipur’s Meghai Ghat point, the water has fallen by 12cm and is now 10cm above the danger level.”
Despite the receding water, about 100,000 people in 34 unions of five upazilas remain trapped in water. Eight people have died so far in Sirajganj Sadar, Shahjadpur, and Chauhali due to the ongoing flood.
According to local sources, flood-affected people who had taken shelter elsewhere began returning home when the water started receding in Sirajganj on July 7.
However, on July 10, the water level once again rose in the Jamuna River, causing further trouble. Two days later, the water began to decrease again, along with the levels of the internal Hura Sea, Katakhali, Phuljhar, and Ichamati rivers.
Mahbubur Rahman, executive engineer of the Sirajganj Water Development Board, said that although the Jamuna River's water level has started decreasing, heavy rain upstream could cause it to rise again. To prevent erosion, sandbags are being placed in erosion-prone areas. He noted that there is no immediate danger of major floods.
Mahbubur also mentioned that around 100,000 people in the riverbanks and char areas of the internal rivers, including the Jamuna, remain waterlogged. Approximately 10,000 hectares of crops are underwater.
Sirajganj relief and rehabilitation officer Aktaruzzaman reported that 133 tons of rice, Tk500,000, and 300 packets of dry food have been distributed to the flood-affected people. Four people died in boat capsizing incidents and four drowned in the current flood.