Hundreds of thousands of people have been marooned in floodwaters in three northern districts as the rivers Brahmaputra and Teesta have burst their banks.
These rivers are flowing above the danger level while the Dharla, Ghaghat, Dudhkumar and other rivers are flowing near the danger level.
According to the authorities, more than 300,000 people are stranded in floodwaters in Nilphamari, Kurhigram and Gaibandha districts.
At least 223 educational institutions in those districts have been closed.
Distribution of relief has started, but the flood-affected people have complained that the amount is not sufficient.
Gaibandha is the worst-hit district in the region. The number of people stranded in flood has crossed 150,000, with the situation worsening every day.
Bangladesh Water Development Board Executive Engineer Mahbubur Rahman said the Brahmaputra was flowing 17 centimetres above the danger level while Ghaghot water is only 1 centimetre below the level.
At least 130 families have lost their home to river erosion in Erendabarhi union, said union council chairman Azizur Rahman.
The primary and high schools, union council office and community clinic are also in danger of collapse, he added.
He also claimed no relief was distributed among the families that lost home.
Gaibandha Deputy Commissioner Goutam Chandra Paul said the administration has 'enough' relief to distribute. "There will be no problem," he said.
The district administration has allotted 125 tonnes of rice and Tk 1 million in cash, he added.
The situation is also worsening in Kurhigram, where around 150,000 people have been stranded for a week.
BWDB Engineer Mokhlesur Rahman said rising water of the Teesta, Dharla, Dudhukumar and other rivers was inundating new areas.
The Brahmaputra was flowing 10 centimetres above the danger level at Chilmari point.
Local union council chairman Abul Hossain said 100 families received 10 kg rice each on Monday after the Upazila administration cleared the relief of one tonne rice. "It was insufficient," he added.
He also said the flood-hit people were in need of drinking water and dry food. "But they cannot get those because they can't earn money due to floods," he said.
The district's Deputy Commissioner Abu Saleh Mohammad Ferdous Khan, however, claimed that the situation was under control.
He said 2,000 packs of dry food, 150 tonnes of rice and Tk 325,000 have been distributed across the district.
In Nilphamari, Teesta water rose following heavy rains and flash floods, and was flowing 32 centimetres above the danger level on Monday.
Over 5,000 people of 30 villages on the banks of the river Dimla and Jaldhaka have been stranded in flood waters.
Water Development Board Sub-Divisional Engineer Hafizul Haque, stationed at Dalia Barrage, said the Teesta was flowing 30 centimetres above the danger level at that point.
The WDB has opened all 44 valves of the barrage to control the water.
Haque said the water might rise in next two or three days.
Ataur Rahman, chairman of a union council in Dimla, said more than 10,000 people have been affected by the floods in 30 villages of the Upazila.
Nazrul Islam and Mohsena Begum, residents of Chhotokhata village, said they were living on dry food stored before the flood started.
Nilphamari Deputy Commissioner Khaled Rahim and Dimla Upazila Nirbahee Officer Rezaul Karim visited the flood-affected areas on Monday morning.
DC Rahim said 40 tonnes of rice and Tk 50,000 in cash has been allotted as relief for the flood-hit areas.-Source bdnews23.com.
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