A canal dredging programme has been launched in Rangamati to alleviate the sufferings of residents and implement the prime minister’s election pledge.
The dredging work was inaugurated on Thursday morning at Tripurachhara village in Rangamati Sadar Upazila by Union Parishad Chairman Amar Kumar Chakma.
Under this 40-day programme, around 8 kilometres of waterway will be dredged from Tripurachhara to Dwimukhyachhara.
A total of 600 villagers are participating as labourers in the project. Danis Chakma, the administrative officer of Bandukbhanga Union Parishad, stated that the initiative would benefit over a thousand people in the area.
The project comes as a relief to locals who have been facing severe navigation difficulties due to receding water levels in Kaptai Lake, which caused the area’s canals to dry up.
The lack of water has left engine-driven boats carrying agricultural produce stranded, causing significant distress to the community.
The lack of navigable routes has forced residents to carry patients on their shoulders, requiring four to six people to transport a single person to the city for medical treatment. Local beneficiaries expressed hope that the dredging would resolve these long-standing hardships.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Bandukbhanga UP Chairman Amar Kumar Chakma, Administrative Officer Danis Chakma, and UP Members Ripon Chakma, Chitta Ranjan Chakma, Purna Chakra Chakma, and Anjumoni Chakma, among others.
