Piyain River in Sylhet now in death throes

Piyain, an India-Bangladesh trans-boundary river in Sylhet, alongside many other rivers in the district, runs dry due to lack of re-excavation.

Local sources said, over the past 35 years, once mighty Piyain in Gowainghat of the district has gradually been buried under a thick layer of sand, leaving no trace of its once-powerful currents.

The river, which once served as a vital source of livelihood for many people, has now been reduced to a mere memory.

According to Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB), Piyain cannot be excavated without concern of India as it is a cross-border river between the two countries.

Due to its location at the foot of the Khasi-Jaintia mountain range, during monsoon, the rainwater used to flow through the river down south. However, the water now overflows and causes floods in the surrounding areas.

The river is gradually narrowed down due to the accumulation of sand and is currently running dry. The possibility of waterlogging, soil erosion and hill collapse has become a reason for distress among the locals due to this.

According to the locals, the main cause of the Piyain River’s death is unplanned stone quarrying. The neighbouring Goyain River may also face a similar fate for the same reason.

Illegal sand extraction from river beds is a common occurrence and has become the major cause of floods in many rivers of the district, locals allege.

Due to the silting up of rivers and canals in the Sylhet division, the natural network of water flow in the low-lying areas has gradually disappeared. The water bodies of the region are now unable to hold the excessive flow of water during monsoon, leading to waterlogging and severe floods.

The haors (back swamp wetland) and baors (channels to change the course of a river) have also gradually lost their navigability over the years due to a lack of re-excavation.

During monsoon haors and baors receive surface runoff water from rivers and canals to become vast stretches of turbulent water. However, now they just overflow and cause floods.

There are some 114 rivers and canals in Sylhet division, and a majority of them dry out during winter and overflow in monsoon. According to related sources, 133 out of the 281 beels of Hakaluki Haor have been fully and partially filled out.

The origin of the rivers in the region is in the Indian mountain ranges. Therefore, when it rains in the mountains of North-East India, sand and soil wash down the slopes and accumulate in the southern riverbeds.

Soil accumulation has led the rivers and other connected waterbodies to lose navigability crop fields and rural areas get flooded as the waterbodies have become unable to hold the excess water during monsoon.

Experts believe the increased amount of sand and soil being washed down the mountain is mainly the effect of uncontrolled deforestation and unplanned coal and stone mining in North East India.

The sand and soil are not only filling up the river bodies but have also started to block the mouths of the rivers, leading them to go gradually extinct.

Due to the Surma River narrowing down from the source, about 85 per cent of the water from Barak River flows through Kushiara during the dry season.

The once mighty Surma is full of shoals and almost runs dry during winter. Some people have started cultivating crops on the riverbed.

Purba Jaflong Union Parishad Chairman Lutfar Rahman Lebu said, during the rainy season Piyain River overflows and floods the surrounding areas.

Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon’s (BAPA) Sylhet office General Secretary Abdul Karim Kim said that the death of Piyain River is causing severe damage to the environment and the neighborhood.

“Jaflong is also losing its popularity as a tourist spot. The river needs to be re-excavated soon to bring back the navigability by proper planning.”

According to Gowainghat upazila administration sources, landslides caused silt and sand to fill the source of Piyain River in 1988. Since then the river started to run dry.

Elder Joseph Tangchong, a resident of Sangrampunji, said, Piyain was a clearwater river with a heavy current. “Large boats use to ply the river once. But after the flood in the 80s unplanned stone quarrying became a common occurrence leading to the death of the river.”

In May 2019, the Chairman of the National River Protection Commission visited Piyain and assured that the river will soon be re-excavated.

However, no such initiatives have been taken so far.

In this regard, the Executive Engineer of Sylhet BWDB Asif Ahmed said, “India's consent is required to excavate Piyain as it is a transboundary river. Related authorities are currently discussing the matter.”