Residents of Mongla and Rampal upazilas in Bagerhat are rejoicing as their families now have access to safe drinking water. Photo : BSS

KHULNA, Aug 26, 2025 (BSS) - Residents of Mongla and Rampal upazilas in Bagerhat are rejoicing as their families now have access to safe drinking water, following the installation of rainwater harvesting tanks by the Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE).

Nazrul Fakir, 50, a shrimp farm worker at Bashtala village in Mongla upazila, said his family had long suffered from waterborne diseases, including diarrhea, due to the scarcity of potable water in the salinity-affected coastal area. 

"For years, our biggest problem has been saline water. Earlier, we had to fetch water from faraway places. But now DPHE has set up this tank free of cost, and I have already stored rainwater. I believe this will meet my family's drinking water needs even after the rainy season," he told BSS.

Fakir added that his wife and two young daughters faced serious hardship collecting water, often traveling four kilometers to a tube-well near the upazila headquarters. 

Another villager, Israfil Sheikh, expressed similar relief. "I could never afford such a tank. For years, I had to drink saline water. Now, thanks to this project, my family has access to safe water," he said.

DPHE is installing 7,387 rainwater harvesting tanks in Mongla and Rampal upazilas under two government projects funded by the Climate Trust Fund and the Coastal Rainwater Harvesting Programme. 

So far, around 6,000 families have received tanks, providing relief to residents suffering from acute salinity intrusion.

Jayanta Mallick, DPHE Executive Engineer of Bagerhat, told BSS that salinity has created a severe safe water crisis in the upazilas near the Sundarbans. 

"Under the Climate Trust Fund, Tk 10.10 crore has been allocated to install 2,000 tanks in Mongla and Rampal. Work is about 70 percent complete, though fund shortages temporarily slowed progress. After receiving an additional Tk 2.5 crore on August 18, installation has resumed and the project is expected to finish by December 2025," he said.

Under the Coastal Rainwater Harvesting Project, Tk 17.70 crore is being spent to install 4,023 tanks in Mongla, while Tk 6.16 crore will fund 1,364 tanks in Rampal. This project will continue until December 2026.

Professor Samiul Haque of Khulna University emphasized the importance of such initiatives, noting that shallow tube-wells yield highly saline water and that rainwater harvesting is the most reliable solution. 

"We hope the government will allocate more projects to ensure safe water for coastal communities across the south-western belt," he said.