Staff Correspondent, Narayanganj

The groundwater level in Narayanganj is continuously declining. According to the Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), water motors are failing due to the inability to access groundwater. Emphasis must be placed on using surface water. The potable groundwater level is the lowest in Kutubpur Union of Narayanganj Sadar Upazila, where safe drinking water is found at a depth of 230 feet. By next year, this is expected to drop to 240 feet. Continuous water pollution has pushed the groundwater level even lower. Authorities are facing difficulties meeting water demands even after purifying nearby river water.  According to the DPHE, several areas including Gogonagar, Baktabali, Kutubail, and Shibu Market are currently at risk due to declining groundwater levels. Especially in industrial areas, the groundwater is depleting at an alarming rate, which environmentalists warn could trigger earthquakes and cause other environmental hazards.  In 2010, the groundwater level in Gogonagar was found within 51 feet, but over 10 years it has dropped to below 100 feet. By 2025, it has further fallen to below 151 feet. The situation is similar in Fatullah, Rupganj, and Sonargaon areas.  The DPHE regularly measures the potable groundwater level in Narayanganj each year. According to officials of the DPHE Sadar Upazila office, compared to the previous year, the groundwater level has dropped by an average of 10 feet in Fatullah, Enayetnagar, and Kashipur Unions this year. In Kutubpur, Gogonagar, Alirtek, and Baktabali Unions, it has dropped by 1 to 2 feet.  The DPHE office stated that Fatullah, Enayetnagar, and Kashipur are industrial zones where dyeing factories draw heavily from groundwater to meet their needs, putting extra pressure on underground aquifers. As a result, the groundwater level in these unions is falling more drastically than in others.  Last year, safe drinking water could be found at 175 feet deep in Enayetnagar Union. This year, it has gone down another 13 feet, now found at 188 feet. In Fatullah Union, the water level has fallen by 8 feet from the previous year. Previously found at 190 feet, it is now at 198 feet. In Kashipur, the level has fallen 6 feet to 171 feet. In Gogonagar, potable water is now at 142 feet, 2 feet deeper than last year. In Alirtek and Baktabali Unions, the water level has dropped by 1 foot, currently at 106 feet.  President of Bangladesh Environmental Movement (BAPA), AB Siddique, said, “I have been working on this issue for the past 8-10 years. As surface water is polluted, people have no choice but to install motors 500 feet deep for drinking water. Dyeing factories are the biggest consumers of groundwater. A single dyeing factory extracts enough groundwater in one day to meet the needs of half the city's population. 99% of groundwater extraction is done by these factories, but the government is not paying attention.” Due to the continuous drop in the water table, various complications are emerging. Private pump technician Ishtiaq from Fatullah said that over the past few years, the underground water level has been falling steadily, causing submersible pumps to frequently burn out due to lack of water access, resulting in many motors needing repair.  Investigations reveal that in suburban areas, tube wells for potable water now need to be dug as deep as 500 feet. However, even at that depth, water is found at 250 feet below, meaning the water table is actually much lower.  According to the DPHE Sadar Upazila office, to conserve groundwater, surface water sources like ponds, canals, and rivers must be utilized. However, these sources are also highly polluted, pushing people toward groundwater dependence. Meanwhile, at a seminar on the pollution of the Shitalakshya River, Dr. Muhammad Sohrab Ali, Additional Director General of the Department of Environment, stated that water is becoming increasingly scarce for Narayanganj residents. If garment and factory owners do not immediately start recycling and reusing water after purification, in the near future even groundwater will no longer be available in Narayanganj. Excessive extraction by industries is depleting underground water reserves rapidly. He mentioned that the Shitalakshya River is almost dead from pollution, and oxygen levels in the Meghna River (near Narayanganj) have dropped below 1%, whereas at least 5% is necessary. Dr. Muhammad Sohrab Ali called for industries to reduce their liquid waste discharge to zero within two years, warning that otherwise, the government may be forced to shut down factories. At the seminar, garment industry representatives demanded the establishment of a Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) in Narayanganj, saying that the cost of setting up individual ETPs is too high for small and medium-sized factories. They suggested that a government-initiated CETP through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) would benefit all stakeholders. The seminar was held at the Ali Ahmad Chunka Auditorium on Saturday (April 26) at 11 AM, organized by the Dhaka Regional Office of the Department of Environment. 

 Other speakers included H.M. Rashed, Deputy Director of the Department of Environment, Narayanganj; Mohammad Abul Kalam Azad, Director of Dhaka Region; Ashfaqur Rahman, Additional District Commissioner (Education and ICT); Zahidul Haque Dipu, Senior Vice President of BAPA; Tarek Babu, former General Secretary of BAPA; environmental activist and poet Arif Bulbul; Kovid Hossain Parvez, owner of Parvez Knit Garments; Engineer Zahirul Islam, GM of Knit Concern Garments; Mohammad Ali, AGM of Mother Colors; and Imtiaz Ahmed, Manager of Islami Fashion, among others.