A severe water crisis has engulfed parts of Bangladesh, leaving tens of thousands of people without access to safe drinking water, particularly in the Feni district. The crisis is not only posing significant public health risks but also threatening agricultural output. More than 1.67 lakh tube wells in the coastal district have dried up due to a sharp decline in the underground water layer.
According to the Feni District Public Health Engineering Department (DPHED), 1,67,386 tube wells are now non-functional. The situation is even worse in several upazilas, where around 70% of the tube wells have stopped yielding water. With the water sources depleting, locals are forced to rely on unsafe water from ponds and ditches, leading to outbreaks of diarrhoea and other waterborne diseases.
The Executive Engineer of the health department, Md Shafiul Haque, stated, “There is no water in tube wells, ponds, or canals. Rain is the only solution.” Reports further suggest that a significant number of tube wells have not been functioning for a long time, worsening the crisis. Out of 36,811 registered tube wells, 9,871 are not working, and nearly half of the remaining ones have dried up. Additionally, about 50% of privately installed shallow tube wells are no longer producing safe water.
The situation is especially dire in the Fulgazi Upazila of the district. Kulsum Akter Sharifa, a resident of Sharifpur village, expressed the severity of the problem, saying that out of 11 families in her area, five rely on deep tube wells, but none provide safe water. She added, “We’re suffering terribly trying to collect water for drinking and cooking. We’re forced to fetch water from distant sources.”
This crisis is part of a broader, escalating issue affecting several districts in Bangladesh, including both urban and rural areas, with the struggle for safe drinking water becoming more severe each month.
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