Khiro River set to disappear

BHALUKA, MYMENSINGH, Feb 11: Khiro River in Bhaluka Upazila of the district is set to disappear.
It is now a channel of waste and contaminated water. Its bio-diversity has already disappeared.   
But using its polluted water, farmers are cultivating crops.
The crop production has also declined. The river has been free of fish and frog.  
 In a visit to different points of the Khiro River, severe foul smell of  chemical was felt. The river water has got rotted due to industrial effluent.   
It was learnt, the river got into this critical condition about 18 years back. Since then the river condition has been continuing to deteriorate.
Earlier people would use the river water and take bath.
Now the water of the river has been so worse that tubewells along its banks are pumping out foul-smelling water.
Talking with this correspondent, some famers of Boyra Village said, due to the rotted water of the river, the riverbank-based  cropping has been cut to one-cropping from previous two-three cropping; at present, only Boro is being cultivated.
Earnings of people from the Khiro River banks have declined. They said, they have to use irrigated water in farmlands in a compelling situation.
Crop production will be two times if the river water is good, they added.
Principal of Apollo Institute of Computer ARM Shamsur Rahman said, the river will lose its existence if waste dumping cannot be stopped.
Effective measure is needed to this end, he added.
Bhaluka Upazila Agriculture Officer Nargis Aktar said, "Our food safety has been risky because of polluted water.  Cropping in use of polluted water can be harmful for our body."
If effective role is not taken immediately, we may be affected by incurable disease, she added.
Upazila Nirbahi Officer Salma Khatun said, industries and factories have been instructed not to dump waste into the river.
Local MP Alhajj Kazim Uddin Ahmed Dhanu said, all industries and factories have been asked to activate effluent treatment plants (ETPs).
 If not, legal action will be taken against them, he added.