Bangladesh’s southeastern Comilla district borders the Tripura state of India to the east. Both regions have been drenched by heavy monsoon rains, with Tripura experiencing significantly more rainfall than Comilla over the past 72 hours.
Amidst the chaos, authorities in Tripura made an impromptu overnight decision to open a sluice gate of the Dumboor Reservoir, releasing a large volume of floodwaters downstream to Comilla in Bangladesh via the transboundary Gomti River.
The consequences were immediate: since Wednesday morning, a vast swath of farmland in Comilla has been submerged by the oncoming waters, with people losing their livelihoods, homes, and crops across thousands of hectares. This caught authorities on the Bangladeshi side of the border off guard, as there had been no official communication from the Indian or Tripura authorities about their decision to open the sluice gate a move taken for the first time since 1993.
It’s understandable that the decision to open the gate after 31 years was driven by the relentless heavy rains battering Tripura. However, the most unfortunate aspect of these events is the glaring communication gap between the two neighboring countries, who share many common rivers.
Officials confirmed to the Dhaka Tribune that India did not inform Bangladesh when one of its states (Tripura) took an action that significantly impacted the lives and properties of people on the other side of the border in Comilla.
Officials involved in flood forecasting and disaster management find it very unfortunate that, after years of apparent close cooperation between Bangladesh and India, the two South Asian neighbors still haven’t managed to collaborate on crucial issues like flood forecasting.
https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/355624/bangladesh-caught-off-guard-by-india%E2%80%99s-reservoir
