While Bangladesh has always been known as a riverine nation, if recent events are any indication, it may not be long before we lose our identity.
Most of the prominent rivers in the country - one way or the other - have been taken over by grabbers who use their money and influence to use these rivers for their own nefarious purposes.
And while the authorities have always doubled down on promising to bring these criminals to justice, unfortunately, these words have turned into hollow promises.
The latest river in the list of casualties is the Harihar river, which has been occupied and divided into 50 small ponds by local influential people, who in turn use it for fish and paddy farming, sand lifting, and other purposes.
The 45km river was once a source of livelihood for the local people. Now, it only serves the interest of a select few. As per news reports, local authorities are doing nothing to recover the river or bring the grabbers to justice.
To reiterate, this is not singular to the Harihar river. This has become the unfortunate fate of most of our rivers across the country. This has resulted in a select few with friends in high places benefitting and getting rich, while ordinary people have had to suffer from disasters such as river erosion and flooding. While authorities have made multiple promises to stop this injustice, sadly, there have been little to no attempts to keep this promise.
Suffice to say, this cannot be the norm for a nation with ambitions such as ours. The authorities must bring these nefarious parties to justice. Rivers are the lifeblood of this nation. We cannot allow them to get sucked dry.
