Large areas in Rayer Bazar, Katashur waterlogged
Toxic wastes from the tanneries and other industries keep accumulating in these densely populated areas with the drainage system collapsing due to encroachments on Katashur canal
Morshed Ali Khan
Thousands of families in the city's Rayer Bazar and Katashur areas are exposed to serious health hazard due to a sudden waterlogging caused by construction of an illegal structure on the Katashur canal. Liquid toxic wastes from the tanneries, other industries and sewerage water has flooded many roads in this densely populated area protected by a flood protection embankment. At low-lying places the wastewater has created ponds with children from the local slums playing in the toxic water. According to an engineer of Dhaka Wasa's Drainage Circle the sudden water logging occurred as Noor Real Estate, a developer in the area filled up the Katashur canal and installed only four concrete pipes underneath for the drainage of the wastes. "The four pipes are too small in diameter to drain out the huge volume of waste water generated by industries and thousands of households," said Zahurul Alam, Superintendent Engineer of the Wasa'a Drainage Circle. On March 22 the Dhaka Wasa knocked down dozens of structures from the Katashur canal in a bid to bring back flow in the canal. Still more than a hundred structures encroach the Katashur canal that carries wastes to the retention pond in Kalyanpur. "We have to conduct several more drives to remove those encroachments," Alam said. Water Development Board (WDB) engineers said that millions of gallons of highly toxic wastewater is fast accumulating inside the Rayer Bazar and Katashur areas. "Encroachments on the canals are preventing drainage so badly that our sluice gate on the embankment hardly receives any wastes these days," said an engineer of the WDB Dhaka Division. Most of the tannery wastes flow into the river Buriganga through the Rayer Bazar sluice gate, maintained by the Water Development Board. In the small lanes and by-lanes of Katashur liquid waste from the underground sewerage lines was gushing out yesterday, flooding the roads. A pungent smell filled the air. "We are living with this for the last seven days, it is very unhealthy," said a grocery shopkeeper in Katashur. The low-lying area on the western side of Rayer Bazar kitchen market has been completely inundated with wastewater that looked thick and black. The wastewater pond was created within the last seven days, locals said.
| 
