Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer and Opposition Leader in Parliament Dr Shafiqur Rahman has welcomed the government’s nationwide canal excavation initiative, highlighting the critical importance of restoring the navigability of rivers to secure long-term environmental and economic benefits.
In a statement posted on his official Facebook page, Shafiqur Rahman recalled that Bangladesh was historically a riverine nation, where waterways played a central role in transportation, trade, agriculture, fisheries and maintaining ecological balance. Proper river flow in earlier times helped reduce the frequency of floods and mitigated their adverse effects on communities.
The Jamaat leader noted that since independence, several factors - including the construction of the Farakka Barrage and widespread encroachment, filling, and neglect of major rivers, canals, and wetlands - have significantly disrupted water flow. Consequently, many rivers now struggle to retain water during the monsoon, causing early floods, while during the dry season, riverbeds often appear dry and barren.
Dr Shafiqur Rahman warned that the disrupted water flow has also led to severe waterlogging in urban areas, while agricultural lands and river transport face shortages during dry months.
He urged that proper dredging and restoration of rivers should be treated as a national priority and that the government must ensure transparent and efficient implementation.
He also stressed that canal excavation alone would not deliver expected benefits unless the rivers connected to those canals are properly restored and navigable. Public funds allocated for river management must be used effectively, with accountability at all levels, to guarantee sustainable outcomes for both the environment and local communities.
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