Fears of catastrophic monsoon flooding are escalating along Feni’s Parshuram border as India rapidly fortifies its Kahua River embankment with concrete blocks while vital repairs on the vulnerable Bangladeshi side remain dangerously incomplete.
Local residents fear that rising river pressure during the monsoon could trigger severe erosion and flooding if vulnerable stretches of the Bangladeshi embankment are not repaired promptly.
The anxiety is particularly acute in North Kolapara, South Kolapara, Baspadua, and Parshuram Bazar, where thousands of families face the threat of inundation unless the weakened structures are reinforced soon.
On Saturday, 7 November, work began to install cement and concrete blocks along several sections of the Kahua River embankment in Amzadnagar, near Belonia in India.
As news of the construction spread, residents gathered at Khilpara in North Kolapara on the Bangladeshi side, demanding equivalent repairs to their stretch of the riverbank.
Sources familiar with the matter confirmed that Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and India’s Border Security Force (BSF) recently held a flag meeting regarding the embankment work near border pillar 2163.
During the meeting, both sides agreed to repair approximately 2.3 kilometres of embankment in Amzadnagar on the Indian side, alongside a 250-metre section in North Kolapara on the Bangladeshi side.
However, residents noted that a further 200 metres beyond the agreed 250-metre stretch still urgently requires repair.
Although the Bangladesh Water Development Board (WDB) allocated funds to construct a 250-metre embankment near the Mazarbari graveyard, the project has not been fully completed.
Local resident Mostafa Khokon stressed that the remaining 200-metre section must be reinforced with concrete blocks without delay.
Failing to do so, he warned, would leave Mazarbari Mosque, the adjacent graveyard, and several thousand local families vulnerable to flooding.
Nasim, who lives along the Kahua River, pointed out that the embankment on the Indian side is roughly four feet higher and considerably stronger than the one in Bangladesh.
He warned that this disparity in height and structural strength places the Bangladeshi bank under heightened pressure, leaving it susceptible to collapse during the monsoon unless urgent repairs are carried out.
Local sources noted that around 25,000 concrete blocks were cast in 2003 for embankment construction along the North Kolapara section of the river.
Although work originally began east of the village railway bridge, the initiative was halted following objections from the BSF.
Some of the blocks stored in Kolapara and Nij Kalikapur were subsequently deployed in 2024 to repair a major breach in the Ballamukha embankment.
The resumption of work on the Indian side has renewed widespread anxiety among residents along the Bangladeshi bank.
Emran Hossain, another local resident, recalled the extensive damage suffered during previous floods, warning that the area faces another major disaster if the embankment is not fortified in time.
He added that once the Indian side completes its works in the coming days, executing repairs on the Bangladeshi side could become significantly more challenging.
Abul Khayer, a resident of North Kolapara, echoed these concerns, saying, “How well will the embankment withstand the pressure if the river rises? If it breaches, vast areas, including Parshuram Bazar and both North and South Kolapara, could be inundated.”
Residents are calling for repair works to be extended beyond the designated 250 metres to cover all vulnerable sections. They have urged Feni-1 MP Rafiqul Alam Majnu and the relevant WDB authorities to intervene effectively.
Feni WDB Executive Engineer Mohammad Monirul Islam said that works on the Kahua River embankment had been launched on an urgent basis. Confirming that concrete block installation is currently underway on the Indian side, he assured that he would inspect the site and take the necessary measures.
Attempts to reach Lieutenant Colonel Md Hasibul Islam, commander of the Feni Battalion (4 BGB), by telephone for comment were unsuccessful.
