Buriganga River

Photo caption : Buriganga river pictures.....

Buriganga River

Buriganga River a tide-influenced river passing through west and south of Dhaka City. This river is the main river flowing beside Dhaka city, capital of Bangladesh. The average depth is 39 feet and maximum depth is 93 feet.

History

There is a traditional story behind naming it. In ancient times one course of the ganges used to reach the bay of bengal through dhaleshwari. This course gradually shifted and ultimately lost its link with the main channel of the Ganges and was renamed as the Buriganga. The water levels during high and low tides in this river astonished the Mughals.

The Buriganga originated from the Dhaleshwari near Kalatia. Its average width and depth are 400m and 10m respectively. This river is only 27 km long. The turag has joined the Buriganga at Kamrangirchar of Dhaka City. In fact, the main flow of the Buriganga comes from the Turag. It meets with the Dhaleshwari at munshiganj. The present head of the Buriganga near Chhaglakandi has silted up and opens only during floods, but the lower part is still open throughout the year. The downstream junction with the Dhaleshwari fluctuates from time to time according to changes in the position of the latter river; at present it lies about 3.22 km southwest of Fatullah. Its course by Dhaka is stable, fixed by the resistant clays marking the southern edge of the madhupur tract.

Bangladesh's historic Buriganga river used to be a must for visiting dignitaries but these days they are confronted with foul smells and rotting fish resulting from massive pollution.

Hundreds of years ago, the banks of the Buriganga were a prime location when the Mughals made Dhaka their capital in 1610. The house-turned-museum of the Nawab (ruler) overlooks the river, which is the country's main waterway for trading and ferry travel. It was once the main source of drinking water for Dhaka's residents and an hour downstream from the capital city the river is still crystal clear.

Although the history of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, dates back to the 7th century, the city didn’t become prominent until 17th century. It flourished as a provincial capital of the Mughal Empire in 1610 AD and became a major trading port, attracting merchants and travelers through ages from England, Holland, France, and other parts of the world. Dhaka grew up on the banks of the river Buriganga.

Now, however, the waters of the once beautiful river are an environmental disaster, heavily polluted with human sewage and industrial waste. It is black and foul-smelling.


Economic significance

The Buriganga is economically very important to Dhaka. Launches and Country Boats provide connection to the other parts of Bangladesh, a largely riverine country. Due to siltation, large steamers can no longer go through the river channel in the dry season. In 1989, a bridge was built over the river for vehicles and pedestrians. In 2001, a second bridge over the river was built at Babubazar for vehicles and pedestrians.

The Buriganga and her mother river Dhaleswari connect Dhaka to the other rivers and through them with almost all the districts of Bangladesh. Sadarghat, a large quay on the river Buriganga, is the gateway to the capital city from the southern districts of the country.
The Buriganga is of great economic importance to Dhaka as well as Bangladesh. Historically, it has been always a hub for commercial activities. It has always been busy, vibrant, and full of life.

Problems

According to the Environment Department, up to 40,000 tonnes of tannery waste flows into the river daily along with sewage from Dhaka, a city of more than 10 million. Human waste is responsible for 60 percent of pollution in the river, followed by industrial waste at 30 percent. The rest is solid waste.

Illegal structures have sprung up along its banks, narrowing the river and adding to the dirt, while ferries spill oil into its waters.

"It is a poisonous river now and dying, but if we could implement existing laws it would a go a long way to help the river survive," said environmentalist Philip Gain of the Society for Environment and Human Development NGO. "We have no choice but to save the river at any cost."

Waterflow in the Buriganga is low except during the monsoon season. During this flood period the river is "flushed" every year. It gets progressively worse until the next monsoons.

Land grabbing is a serious issue in Dhaka. The Buriganga is also a casualty. River land is "reclaimed" and built upon. This river bed loss of course means a narrower river bed which exacerbates flooding.

In an effort to reduce flooding, the river is often dredged. Ironically, this results in the branching rivers and canals to dry up, which are subjected to further land grabbing.

The Independent newspaper recently complained that the government was doing nothing to clean up the river. "The government's inaction is as incomprehensible as it is painful," it said in an editorial.

Government adopted a plan to maintain the navigability and normal flow of Buriganga and remove all illegal structures on its banks.

Water pollution in the River Buriganga is as its highest. The most significant source of pollution appears to be from tanneries in the Hazaribagh area. In the dry season, the dissolved oxygen level becomes very low or non-existent and the river becomes toxic.