Kuamara: The rate at which the Deo river has been eroding its banks, two riparian villages in Gopabandhunagar of Mayurbhanj district will soon cease to exist. Locals have expressed apprehension as the river is eating up land at a menacing speed. The villages of Hatasahi and Mathasahi are on the banks of Deo river. Locals pointed out that with every passing year the river is coming close to the two villages.
However, the Water Resources department is not doing anything to strengthen the embankments and prevent erosion, they added. “Since the 1999 Super Cyclone, erosion of banks due to Deo river has been increasing at a rapid pace.
Since the last 22 years, people of the two villages that have a population of more than 500 each are living in constant panic. The river has gobbled up acres of land. If nothing is done now to check erosion, the river will also destroy the two villages,” locals pointed out. The river bank was about 700 metres away from the two villages even a couple of years back. Now its distance with the two villages has decreased to less than 500m.
Residents of the two villages informed that during the monsoons, the river plays havoc in the riparian region, destroying farmlands and houses. During the 1999 ‘Super Cyclone’, ‘Phailin’ and ‘Hudhud’, large tracts of farmlands had been rendered useless after being covered by huge quantities of sand. The villagers added that keeping the current situation in mind, the river bank should be strengthened with stones and boulders to prevent erosion. It is the only way to save the two villages, they added