[🇧🇩] India's Water Terrorism Against Bangladesh

[Saif]

Students protest blaming India for flash floods

Students from several public universities today staged demonstrations, rallies, and torch processions blaming India for the flash floods in Bangladesh

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Students protest blaming India for flash floods

Photo: Screengrab

Students from several public universities today staged demonstrations, rallies, and torch processions blaming India for the flash floods in Bangladesh.

They also demanded fair water-sharing agreements with India.

They said the opening of the Dumbur dam upstream of the Gumti river in Tripura is the reason behind the sudden floods.

The universities include Dhaka University, Jahangirnagar University, Rajshahi University, Islamic University, Barisal University, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Begum Rokeya University, Jessore University of Science and Technology, and Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology, among others.

Meanwhile, India today refuted claims of causing floods in Bangladesh.

The flood situation in eastern Bangladesh has not been caused by the release of waters from an Indian dam on the Gumti river in Tripura, said India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

In DU, students of several educational institutions held a torch procession from the TSC around 7:00pm and marched through various roads on the campus.

During the procession, the students chanted slogans directed at India, including "Bharatiya agrashon rukhe darqao jonogon (People, stand against Indian aggression)," etc.

In JU, a few hundred students, alongside some teachers, organised a torch procession under the banner of Anti-Descrimination Student Movement around 7:30pm. Later, they held a rally at the university Shaheed Minar.

During the procession, students were seen chanting similar slogans as heard in DU.

In RU, several hundred students, alongside teachers from different departments, under the same banner, brought out a procession and staged a rally at the university's main gate at 1:00pm.

Golam Kibria Chowdhury Mishu, coordinator of anti-discrimination student movement, said, "For the past 53 years, Indian government has been torturing Bangladesh in different ways."

Students from Islamic University in Kushtia and Barisal University held processions from their campuses and staged rallies in nearby areas.

JnU students also staged a demonstration early today at the university's main gate.

Students of SUST, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Patuakhali Science and Technology University, Bangladesh University of Textiles, and Dhaka College also brought out protest programmes with similar demands in the last two days.

Besides, a seven-member delegation representing a faction of Gono Odhikar Parishad today submitted a six-point message to the Indian High Commission.

The demands include immediate closure of all dams opened towards Bangladesh within 24 hours.​

 

[Saif]

Chief adviser proposes high-level Bangladesh-India mechanism for flood response

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has shared the idea of developing a high-level mechanism between Bangladesh and India to jointly tackle emergency situations like floods

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Chief adviser proposes high-level Bangladesh-India mechanism for flood response

Photo: PID

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has shared the idea of developing a high-level mechanism between Bangladesh and India to jointly tackle emergency situations like floods.

This suggestion was shared during a courtesy meeting with Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma at the state guesthouse Jamuna yesterday.

He also referred to flag meetings that Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Border Security Forces (BSF) hold on an emergency basis when Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma had a courtesy meeting with the Chief Adviser at state guesthouse Jamuna on Thursday.

Briefing the media at Foreign Service Academy after the introductory meeting, Chief Adviser's press secretary Shafiqul Alam said Prof Yunus laid emphasis on high-level collaboration on water issues and activating this in emergency situations.

Alam said the issue of rainfall and floods in Tripura came up in the discussion.

On the flood issue, the press secretary, quoting the envoy, said water was "released automatically" due to the water level rising. "The water was very high."

The high commissioner described the flood in Tripura as something "very unprecedented," causing displacement of 50,000 people. He said it has created havoc on both sides of Bangladesh and India.

Prof Yunus said water-sharing of the joint rivers can be resolved through working together and referred to the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan.

He also said Bangladesh is a "big family".

Minority issues were also discussed at the meeting.

Prof Yunus had earlier said that the reports of attacks on the minorities have been "exaggerated" and invited Indian journalists to visit Bangladesh and report from the ground on the issue.

The chief adviser told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that his government is committed to safeguarding every citizen of the country including the minorities when Modi raised the issue during a telephone conversation.

At the meeting today, the chief adviser also talked about BIMSTEC and SAARC, and laid emphasis on bringing young people together in South Asia.

Prof Yunus also talked about his good relations with India where he has many friends. Yunus Center is operational in 18 Indian universities.

He also talked about a world of three zeros - the new economics of zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions.

High Commissioner Verma reiterated India's commitment to working with Bangladesh to fulfil the shared aspirations of the people of Bangladesh and India for peace, security and development.

They exchanged views on issues of shared interest and discussed avenues to further strengthen people-to-people ties.​

 

[Bilal9]

 

[Bilal9]

Chief adviser proposes high-level Bangladesh-India mechanism for flood response

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has shared the idea of developing a high-level mechanism between Bangladesh and India to jointly tackle emergency situations like floods

www.thedailystar.net

Chief adviser proposes high-level Bangladesh-India mechanism for flood response

View attachment 7707
Photo: PID

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has shared the idea of developing a high-level mechanism between Bangladesh and India to jointly tackle emergency situations like floods.

This suggestion was shared during a courtesy meeting with Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma at the state guesthouse Jamuna yesterday.

He also referred to flag meetings that Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Border Security Forces (BSF) hold on an emergency basis when Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma had a courtesy meeting with the Chief Adviser at state guesthouse Jamuna on Thursday.

Briefing the media at Foreign Service Academy after the introductory meeting, Chief Adviser's press secretary Shafiqul Alam said Prof Yunus laid emphasis on high-level collaboration on water issues and activating this in emergency situations.

Alam said the issue of rainfall and floods in Tripura came up in the discussion.

On the flood issue, the press secretary, quoting the envoy, said water was "released automatically" due to the water level rising. "The water was very high."

The high commissioner described the flood in Tripura as something "very unprecedented," causing displacement of 50,000 people. He said it has created havoc on both sides of Bangladesh and India.

Prof Yunus said water-sharing of the joint rivers can be resolved through working together and referred to the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan.

He also said Bangladesh is a "big family".

Minority issues were also discussed at the meeting.

Prof Yunus had earlier said that the reports of attacks on the minorities have been "exaggerated" and invited Indian journalists to visit Bangladesh and report from the ground on the issue.

The chief adviser told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that his government is committed to safeguarding every citizen of the country including the minorities when Modi raised the issue during a telephone conversation.

At the meeting today, the chief adviser also talked about BIMSTEC and SAARC, and laid emphasis on bringing young people together in South Asia.

Prof Yunus also talked about his good relations with India where he has many friends. Yunus Center is operational in 18 Indian universities.

He also talked about a world of three zeros - the new economics of zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions.

High Commissioner Verma reiterated India's commitment to working with Bangladesh to fulfil the shared aspirations of the people of Bangladesh and India for peace, security and development.

They exchanged views on issues of shared interest and discussed avenues to further strengthen people-to-people ties.​

I think we should ban all imports from this "friendly" country in addition to cancelling all transit deals and facilities given or planned to be given to them.

If this is what a "friend" does, then who needs enemies? They need to pay reparations in the short term for causing the damage irresponsibly as they have.

There is a long term price to pay for their actions as well, and they will need to pay. We will need to ensure this - they will do nothing of course.

 

[Saif]

'Why do we only have agreements on eight rivers when we share so many rivers with India?'

In conversation with Syeda Rizwana Hasan, adviser to the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change

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'Why do we only have agreements on eight rivers when we share so many rivers with India?'

The situation in Feni is particularly bad, so we are giving our utmost attention there. PHOTO: STAR

Syeda Rizwana Hasan, adviser to the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, discusses the severity of the floods, challenges of rescue efforts in Feni and next steps of the interim government in addressing this unexpected national crisis in an interview with Sushmita S Preetha of The Daily Star.

Flooding has taken a dire turn in the country within a very short time. Feni, in particular, has not faced such a critical situation in living memory. What's the latest update from the ground?

We are hearing the same thing on the ground. There has been flooding in Feni before, but never to such an extent. Feni locals are not used to such terrible flash floods, neither are government and non-government authorities. Now we are hearing that water is coming into the city as well, which is a matter of great concern. The most challenging aspect has been reaching remote areas and carrying out rescue operations. On Wednesday night, there was no electricity or mobile network, so the rescue mission became very difficult. We could not restore electricity as there was the risk of electrocution. Most of the rescue operation has to be conducted during the day, so the situation really is severe in those areas.

Feni locals are not used to such terrible flash floods, neither are government and non-government authorities. PHOTO: RAJIB RAIHAN

What immediate measures are the interim government taking to help the affected communities?

There is enough relief to provide immediate support, as per government data. But the real issue, as I said before, is accessing the affected people. One of the demands coming out of the flood-affected areas has been to use helicopters to rescue those who are marooned, but we are not able to do so because the weather is still quite treacherous, so helicopters still cannot reach those areas. There is also a demand that helicopters be used to provide relief; even that is not possible at the moment because 1) there is too much water, and 2) when you drop relief from a helicopter, people rush towards it and there is a risk of loss of life, which we must avoid. Right now, we are taking urgent measures to rescue people; the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) is sending boats, the army is there, a lot of volunteers are working; but then again, they are faced with difficulty in accessing places where people are trapped.

Excessive rain and hillside runoff are causing the flood. But many are also speculating that the situation has worsened because a dam in India's Tripura has been opened. What is your take on this?

This is not a matter of personal opinion. It is a government-to-government matter. There has been a lot of rain, and as a result, some dams have been opened on the Indian side. What we are trying to figure out is whether we were told before the [Tripura] dam was opened. We may not have a treaty on this particular river, but there are international treaties—such as the no-harm principle, principle of cooperation—on how to manage transboundary or shared resources between countries. Our chief adviser is set to speak with the Indian prime minister and raise these concerns.

The other issue is, why do we only have agreements on eight rivers when we share so many rivers with India? The chief adviser will address what happened in this particular instance, but he will also discuss and prioritise how to prevent such things from happening in the future.

The climatic threats should be taken as an opportunity to start dialogue and reach agreement for basin wide river management. The challenges include involving all basin countries within the framework of existing agreements, getting consent of the upper riparian countries that are naturally placed in advantageous position, adhering to the principles, norms and processes prescribed in the 1997 UN Convention as none of the riparian countries is a party to it and of course putting in place an effective dispute resolution mechanism.

There has been flooding in Feni before, but never to such an extent. PHOTO: RAJIB RAIHAN

How is the shuffling of the local government going to affect disaster and relief management?

A local government is, of course, of tremendous help in such situations. Even though there has been a reshuffling in local government, it is not that it has collapsed. Someone from each of those local government offices has been appointed as the administrator. And during disasters, as you also know, one institution may be tasked with the primary role, but all institutions must come together and give their all. To ensure that all departments and ministries can work effectively and urgently together, the disaster management ministry, along with the ministries of fisheries and livestock, agriculture, health, etc, is taking coordinated efforts at the field level as well as the national level.

The adviser for disaster management and relief, who could not go earlier because of bad weather, went to Feni today. He may not have been able to visit the remote areas, but he will oversee the coordination from a nearby area.

Besides Feni, there are other districts such as Cumilla, Khagrachhari, etc, which have also been affected by the flash floods. What steps are you taking there?

The situation in Feni is particularly bad, so we are giving our utmost attention there. But local government agencies, ministries, and the army have all been instructed to do their due diligence in other affected areas, and they are being deployed in the places where the embankments have not broken yet, and to ensure that they are ready with whatever is necessary to tackle the situation. Every area is getting attention, but we are particularly worried about Feni because the communication system there has broken down completely.

Many have also questioned the government's poor river conservation and management initiatives amid the increasing intensity and frequency of floods in the country.

Today, we discussed in a meeting that in many areas, water is not receding because of the arbitrary way in which embankments, bridges and/or culverts have been constructed. Since this is a flash flood, when the rain lets up, the rainwater is supposed to recede quickly. There may be river erosion at that time. However, when the water recedes, there must be no obstruction. So, the bigger concern as to whether we have done adequate river management keeping in mind how flood-prone we are was discussed, though the immediate focus is now on rescue and rehabilitation. I have long been saying that our rivers are losing navigability. We have to address these wider concerns in the long run.​