By Bangladeshi standards, the Banari Multilateral School is very old. More than 500 students from nearby villages are enrolled, mostly from very poor families, their parents being fishermen or agricultural labourers, with only a handful having small plots of land.
Located along the banks of the Padma River in the Tongibari sub-district of Bangladesh’s central Munshiganj region, 40km from the capital, Dhaka, Banari typifies Bangladesh’s struggle against floods and river bank erosion.
In the local language, Padma is called “Kirtinasha”, meaning “destroyer of establishments”, and for Banari this is particularly true.
Since its establishment in 1900, the school has been hit six times by the river and each time it has had to relocate to safer ground.
The last time the school was struck was in 1972. After this year’s particularly heavy monsoon season, the Padma hit again.
“Large-scale erosion began from mid-July. The river began to move toward the school. We were worried about the movement of the river, but could not anticipate that it would tear the whole school down,” Anisur Rahman, the acting headmaster, said.
 Photo: Shamsuddin Ahmed/IRIN  |
| When the Padma devoured the Banari Multilateral School in Tongibari local volunteers worked overtime to salvage these benches and furniture |
Yet that did not stop school administrators from holding classes.
“We salvaged some of the benches and teaching material. After a three-day break we were able to resume classes at a makeshift house in nearby Hasail village. With the support of the local community, we made a temporary tin shed where classes are now held,” Rahman said.
Collapse of schools continues
Along this part of the Padma - the primary distributary of the Ganges that originates in the Himalayas of India - such stories are common.
Munirul Alam, sub-district executive officer for Jajira, told IRIN that river erosion, which has long been a problem in the area, had grown more severe in the past weeks.
“We don’t have material and resources to prevent or fight erosion,” added Habibur Rahman Khan, district executive officer of Shariatpur, noting that sub-district officers and staff had been instructed to distribute relief to the affected people where possible.
According to media reports, 400 families lost their homes and 600 hectares of agricultural land due to erosion in Jajira, Bhederganj and Naria sub-districts of Shariatpur.
Disappearing act
 Photo: David Swanson/IRIN |
| More than 2,500 primary schools nationwide were affected by this year’s flooding |
“It was midday on 24 September. I stood about 50 yards away watching helplessly as the Kanaipara Government Primary School disappeared into the river,” Amirul Islam recalled.
A recent report by Bangladesh’s Ministry of Primary and Mass Education revealed that 2,571 primary schools across the low-lying nation of 150 million-plus inhabitants had been affected by this year’s floods.
Of them 45 had been fully and 1,920 partially damaged. An additional 318 primary schools had been used as flood shelters.
Ekramul Huq, Deputy Director of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education, said 12 high schools, one college and two madrasas (religious schools) had also been completely damaged.
$75 million IDA credit
The government has signed a credit agreement for US$75 million with the World Bank International Development Association to help finance the immediate needs for livelihood support and reconstruction after the floods, which affected more than 10 million people.
“Donor funding for the rehabilitation of flood-damaged educational institutions may be available by next January after completion of the negotiations and approval by the development partners,” remarked Subodh Chandra Dhali, a senior information officer at the Bangladeshi Ministry of Education.
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This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
