Manu River threatens to swallow Kaukapan Bazar

The century-old Kaukapan Bazar in Hajipur Union of Kulaura Upazila, Moulvibazar, is on the verge of being swallowed by the Manu River, even before a Water Development Board (WDB) project intended to protect the market could be completed.

During the 2018 floods, around 36 shops were lost to river erosion, while the Kotarkona-Kaukapan-Tarapasha road passing through the market was also damaged. Although the WDB launched a project six years ago to protect the area, the work remains incomplete.

The eroded section currently poses a serious risk to local residents and vehicles using the road.
Local residents and traders said around 50 feet of the market area was washed away by the river on June 15, 2018. Thirty-six shops were completely destroyed, while 17 shops in three market complexes were damaged.

During a visit to Kaukapan Bazar on Thursday afternoon, it was found that local residents, including students travelling to schools, colleges and madrasas, as well as vehicles, were using the erosion-hit section at considerable risk and with great difficulty.

Bidhan Chandra Dey, president of the Kaukapan Bazar Merchants’ Association, said the market was once accessible by river, and traders from different areas used to bring their goods there by boat.

“At one time, Kaukapan Bazar was a prominent market and had more than 100 shops. There are currently around 65 shops,” he said.

He said a breach occurred in the middle of the market during the 2018 floods, while recent flooding caused the affected area to subside by another five to six feet.

Dey alleged that during the previous Awami League government, some influential people, in collusion with a contractor and certain corrupt WDB officials, collected signatures on an application under the pretext of land acquisition. He claimed the pages of the application were later replaced and used to submit a request to the WDB stating that no work was being carried out at the erosion-hit site.

“Two years ago, we submitted another application to the WDB executive engineer along with members of the market committee, requesting that work be started at the site.

But no work has begun yet due to the negligence of the authorities concerned,” he said.

When contacted about repairing the eroded section, local MP Shawkatul Islam Shoku said he had issued a demi-official (DO) letter to the concerned authorities regarding the matter.

Following the erosion, the then-MP Abdul Matin, Superintending Engineer of the Sylhet WDB Abdus Shahid and Moulvibazar Executive Engineer Ranendra Shankar Chakraborty inspected the erosion-hit area along the Manu River at Kaukapan Bazar on June 24, 2018.

Subsequently, in 2020, the WDB undertook a separate project worth Tk 7.85 crore to carry out work along a 450-metre stretch. A joint venture of Aradhana Enterprise and Moon International was appointed to implement the project.

However, only 43 percent of the work, mainly dumping operations, was completed over three years. Despite six years having passed since the project was initiated, the remaining work has not been completed.

Local traders said they had repaired the damaged section five times through their own initiatives. They warned that unless repair work resumes soon, the century-old market could eventually be swallowed by the river.

They also said hundreds of students from Kaukapan village face difficulties while travelling through the erosion-hit section to attend Nayabazar KC School and College in Hajipur Union, Sadhanpur Madrasa, Harichak Primary School, Sadhanpur High School and BF Shaheen College in Shamshernagar.

Journalist Abdul Basit Bachchu, former chairman of Hajipur Union Parishad, said, according to local accounts, Kaukapan Bazar was established about a century ago after the area became inhabited.
“Large markets were still held here around 2014-15. However, severe erosion began in 2016, and shops started disappearing into the river one after another,” he said.

He urged MP Shawkatul Islam Shoku to take the initiative to launch a project in consultation with the WDB and higher authorities to protect local residents and the century-old market from river erosion.

Md Al-Amin, sub-assistant engineer of the WDB, said a tender was issued in 2020 for work along a 450-metre stretch, including the Kaukapan Bazar area.

“Over three years, 43 percent of the work was completed at the project site. The allegations made by market traders and others that applications were submitted secretly through collusion are unfounded. There is no evidence to support such claims,” he said.

Kulaura Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sanjida Akter said she would personally visit the affected area of Kaukapan Bazar and consult the WDB executive engineer about resuming the work.

Md Khaled Bin Walid, executive engineer of the Moulvibazar WDB, said, “I recently inspected the damaged area at Kaukapan Bazar. A project had previously been undertaken to protect the market, but work was halted three years ago after local residents submitted a written request saying the project was unnecessary.”

He said there was currently no scope for land acquisition.
“If the actual owners of the market land submit a written request consenting to the work proceeding without land acquisition, steps will be taken to resume the work,” he said.

He added, “Had the project been completed with the cooperation of local residents while it was underway, this situation would not have arisen.”