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Bangladesh's Perspective

Farakka Impact Observation Trip
March 30 – April 7, 1997

Twenty kilometers before the Ganga becomes a border river between India and Bangladesh, the Farakka Barrage across it diverts water through a short feeder canal to the Bhagirathi River, a distributary of the main Ganga. Further downstream the Bhagirathi becomes the Hoogly which sustains Kolkata port. This port is vital not only for India but also for her smaller land-locked neighbours, Nepal and Bhutan. India claims the diversion of 40,000 cubic feet of water per second is required at Farakka Barrage commissioned in 1975 to prevent the Hoogly from choking up with silt and making the docks inaccessible for large ships. Bangladesh has cried foul, maintaining that the reduced natural flow of water in the Ganga has affected agriculture, fisheries and navigation. The lower riparian claims that the Gorai, a distributary of the Ganga, has all but dried up causing increased salinity and endangering the freshwater mangrove forests, the Sundarbans, in the delta. The dispute was even taken up to the United Nations by Bangladesh. After a number of ad hoc sharing arrangements a Treaty was signed in 1997, an important element of which is the search for means to augment the flow of water in the Ganga at Farakka.

The Bangladesh water study trip for journalists was organized to observe the impact of the Farakka Barrage because of its controversial nature and because it has often been made the ‘scapegoat’ for a multitude of problems. The Barrage was, of course, not to be seen in isolation and journalists were sensitised to other issues and factors relating to water-related problems in Bangladesh.

After two days of briefing in Dhaka where a host of scholars, scientists, engineers and bureaucrats provided the background to the problems faced by Bangladesh and the local perception of water-related issues, the group made a number of field visits. They traveled to Natore to observe the alleged process of desertification taking place (because of diversion of water at Farakka) and the falling water table in the area. The journalists also visited Hardinge Bridge where the discharge measurements on the Ganga is made and spent time in the delta observing the effect of saline water intrusion on the mangrove forest.

List of participants

• Mostafa Kamal Majumdar – The Independent, Dhaka
• Inam Ahmed – The Daily Star, Dhaka
• Rewanul Huq Raja – Jana Kanta, Dhaka
• Mahumuda Chowdhury – Dinkal, Dhaka
• Ramyata Limbu – Asian Age, Kathmandu
• Rajendra Dahal – Freelancer, Kathmandu
• Suman Pradhan – The Kathmandu Post, Kathmandu
• Kalpana Sharma – The Hindu, Bombay
• Binod Kumar Dubey – The Hindustan Times, Patna
• Anupam Mishra – Freelancer
• Shudhirendra Sharma – The Pioneer, New Delhi
• Debjani Sinha – Ananda Bazaar Patrika, Calcutta
• Suparna Pathak – Ananda Bazaar Patrika, Calcutta

• Damandeep Singh – The Indian Express, New Delhi

• Ajaya Dixit (Resource Person) – Water Nepal, Kathmandu

• Dr. Ashok Swain (Resource Person) – Upsala University, Sweden

• Carmen Miranda – Panos Institute, London

• Resource persons at briefing sessions

• Smitu Kothari – Lokayan, New Delhi

• Dr. Hari Man Shrestha – Kathmandu

• Dr.Q.K.Ahmad,– Chairman, Bangladesh Unnayan Parishad (BUP), Dhaka

• Prof Monir Uzzaman Mia – BUP, Dhaka

• Amjad Hossain Khan – BUP, Dhaka

• Prof Ainun Nishat – BUET, Dhaka

• Prof Sajjadur Rashid – BUP, Dhaka

Source: http://www.panos.org.np
 

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