Several areas of the Sunderbans Delta, particularly in the Namkhana block of South 24-Parganas district, have been submerged because of heavy rainfall triggered by a low-pressure system over the Bay of Bengal.

The situation has worsened as earthen dykes in many regions have been
breached, exacerbated by high tides.

The weather office has forecast continued heavy rainfall because of the low-pressure area formed under the influence of an upper-air cyclonic circulation over southern Bangladesh and its neighbouring regions.

This low-pressure system, which developed on Sunday, intensified into a well-marked low-pressure area over Gangetic West Bengal on Monday. It is expected to move west-northwestward across Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand, and adjoining northern Odisha over the next two days.

As a result, moderate to heavy rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms is likely to persist across most districts in South Bengal.

In the last few days, incessant rain in South 24-Parganas district inundated numerous areas, raising concerns for the district administration. The breaches in earthen dykes, caused by both the rainfall and tidal waves, have left several parts of the Delta vulnerable. The affected residents blamed repetitive poor works by the district administration, instead of any permanent solution putting their lives in uncertainty and a struggle for existence.

An official of the South 24-Parganas administration said, “We have been monitoring the situation. People from submerged areas have been shifted, while the irrigation department has been asked to repair the damaged dykes”.

In the Namkhana block and other affected areas such as Sagar, Patharpratima in the Kakdwip subdivision, Gangasagar seashore, Mousuni Island, and Narayanganj, many earthen dams have already been breached, allowing
saltwater to infiltrate agricultural lands.

In the Narayanganj area of the Namkhana block, a 1,200-meter earthen embankment, along the Muriganga river, has collapsed. The dam, which was constructed last year at a cost of ₹6 crore, has already crumbled and sunk into the riverbed. Large cracks have also appeared in the remaining sections, causing alarm among local residents who fear that the entire structure could collapse at any moment.
“If it collapses, thousands of bighas of paddy fields, vegetable crops, and freshwater ponds could be flooded,” a villager said.

Suvankar Jana, a villager in Narayanganj, said, “Every year, crores of rupees are spent on repairing this dam, yet it is only patched with earth again. A concrete
dam, as a permanent solution, could save a significant amount of money from the state exchequer.”

Earthen dams on Mousuni Island and embankments along the Gangasagar coast are in a precarious state. Water has overflowed the dams in multiple locations.