Dakatia river, which cuts through Chandpur town, has now become a dumping ground for garbage.
Once, ships and large vessels used to navigate on Dakatia's waters. Now there are no ships and there are chances of water vessels to get stuck due to dumped garbage and shoals, said locals.
The dumping of garbage, rice husks and dusts into the river from rice mills, factories and households of Natunbazar and Puranbazar of the town, Hajiganj, Faridganj and Shahrasti upazilas has been going on for a long time, said one of the locals.
This has been polluting the river and affecting its fish and biodiversity, he added.
Dakatia river, a tributary of the mighty Meghna, flows in a zigzag way through Chandpur district town, Sadar, Faridganj, Hajiganj and Shahrasti upazilas.
Visiting these areas, it has been seen that there is no designated place for dumping garbage here. So, people dump their wastages directly into the river.
Large piles of garbage are seen dumped into the river. The river is also used for dumping medical wastes from hospitals and clinics.
Rahim Alam, 60, a local from Faridganj upazila, said, "Once, Dakatia was a turbulent river. Even in 1990s, it had strong currents. But now it is a dead river."
During the dry season, this river's water level comes down so low that passenger launches have already stopped their services to operate from Chandpur Launch Ghat to Eacholy Ghat, he added.
Rahmat Ali, another local from the same upazila said, "The riverbeds have now silted up. So, no two-storey launches can ply this river."
This river has not seen any dredging work in past 30 years, he added.
Dr Md Anisur Rahman, an expert from Fisheries Research Institute, Chandpur said, "Due to mindless dumping of garbage, the water of the river has gotten polluted. And so there is hardly any fish living in this river."
"In 2018, fish of various species were spotted dead near Eacholy Launch Ghat areas due to extreme pollution of river water. Chemical wastes from factories and power plants set up beside the river in Ghoramara village are still contaminating the river," he also said.
Chandpur Environment Office's Acting Deputy Director Mohammad Hannan said, "We are worried over the unhealthy environment of the town. Wastes are being dumped into the river unabated by numerous diagnostic centres, mills and factories."
"Already we have issued warning notices to the responsible mills and factory owners for polluting the river and asked them to keep it clean for the sake of environment and easy flow of river water", he added.
Contacted, local Councilor Habibur Rahman Dorji (Ward No 12) said, "Considering this problem, we, the councilors, are looking for an alternative place for dumping garbage. We hope we'll be successful."
