Completed in 1974–75, the Farakka Barrage is a dam on the Ganges River located in the

Indian state of West Bengal, roughly 10 kilometers (km) from the border with Bangladesh.
The dam was built to divert the Ganges River water into the Hooghly River during the dry
season, from January to June, in order to flush out the accumulating silt which in the 1950s
and 1960s was a problem at the major port of Kolkata on the Hooghly River.[1]

Bangladesh and India have had many debates about how the Farakka Barrage cuts off
Bangladesh's water supply. Also in Bangladesh, the diversion has raised salinity levels,
contaminated fisheries, hindered navigation, and posed a threat to water quality and public
health.[2] Lower levels of soil moisture along with increased salinity have also led to
desertification.[3]

This is the longest barrage in the world[citation needed] and has recently been entered into the
Guinness Book of World Records. The barrage was constructed by the Hindustan
Construction Company Limited. It has 101 gates and it serves water to the Farakka super
thermal power station(NTPC Farakka).

The rice bowl of India, Bengal, has the gift of water via its vast rivers. Food crops, fish
stocks, trade, transportation, nature, environment, flora, and fauna are part of people's life
lines that are the inhabitants in this area and by extension inhabitants, elsewhere. These
groups are both directly dependent on the river system of the Bengal region.

HISTORY OF FARAKKA

Posted by
SalimC
Thursday, May 21, 2009 - 11:02pm BST

In 1960 India started to make two barrages in Farraka and another one in Sindu river of Pakistan.
Pakistan President Ayub Khan strongly protest against this and took the issue to international court
and force India to negotiate with Pakistan and on that negotiation Ayub Khan successfully stop India
to make barrage in Shidhu river but took no initiative to stop Farrakka barrage.

This Ayub Khan is the main culprit of Farrakka barrage. He was very serious about Shidhu barrage
but not for Farrakka. This was actually part of Paki politics because in East Pakistan secular political
party were very strong and his plan was successful because on the issue of Farrakka there would be
an anti Indian sentiment would arise that would be the main support of Muslim league. So Ayub Khan
intentionally allowed India to construct this barrage. The way last AL govt made an accord with India
in the same way Zia or BNP able to make an accord with India. Another very Important information
after liberation when India like to open the barrage the AL govt allow them to open on the condition to
supply of 44 lac q-sec water per day.
Photo: Google Earth

This work is directly against the interest of Bangladesh done by Mujib is not servant of India then what
was this? AL govt in power that time India had blocked water by Farakka to Bangladesh. Now just
think who sell the right of Bangladesh to India. In very bad condition last AL govt made the 30 years
accord.

HISTORY OF FARAKKA:

Both of Pakistan and India is our enemy due to their activities. However, at the root of the conflict was
the Pakistani feeling that the Indian government was insensitive to the difficulties that might be caused
by large diversions from the Ganges. The basic problem was that during the dry season, the Ganges
had an insufficient amount of water to be supplying both India and Pakistan - a fact which India
refused to admit. Between 1961 and 1970, Pakistan approached India to hold talks; firstly, to
pressurize them to give up the barrage and when that failed, to have the right to be involved in
deciding how much water was to be diverted.

By 1970, after continued failed talks, Pakistan resorted to threatening India with a plan to build its own
barrage to account for the missing water that would be diverted by India. As Pakistan had hoped,
India had no interest in a counter-barrage that might threaten the existence of the one that had just
been completed (costing US $240 million), so Pakistan was assured it would be involved in
discussions on the amount of the diversion. However these talks were never held because in 1971,
the struggle for independence began. Between the years of 1972 and 1975 very little was achieved in
terms of negotiations for Bangladesh. Sk. Mujib agreed to India's proposal for test operation of the
barrage and feeder canal. Initially in 1975 India was allowed to divert flows varying from 11000 cusec
to 16000 cusec for a period of 41 days from 21 April to 31 May '75.
Between 1975 and 1976, India was continuing to withdraw almost the maximum amount of water
allowed by the project. During 1975, the Bangladesh government was preoccupied with it's own
internal politics and was busy dealing with the instability of coups and counter-coup attempts. By early
1976, Bangladesh had publicly protested that India was in breach of the agreement and that their
continued withdrawals were seriously harming Bangladesh. After an organized and peaceful march of
up to 500, 000 Bangladeshis in protest against the barrage - which stopped 6 miles short of the Indian
border. Bangladesh after failing in attempts to resolve this issue peacefully and amicably Bangladesh
raised the issue of Ganges water sharing in the UN General Assembly session in 1976.

Confronting adverse international opinion India had to sign an ad hoc agreement for 5 yrs on Ganges
water sharing in 1977 where she had agree to the just share of Bangladesh on the available flow and
to increase the flow at Farakka through augmentation to meet the increasing demand of water of both
Bangladesh and India. India also agrees to include Nepal for finding long term solution to the problem.

During the period from 1978 to 82 Bangladesh received more than its share for all the years excepting
one when the flow at Farakka fall unexpectedly but the India released the guaranteed minimum flow.
1977 agreement was expired in 1982 and India denied extending it. The then military ruler Gen.
Ershad success bed to the Indian pressure and signed a MOU scrapping the 1977 agreement where
the interest of Bangladesh was compromised and the guarantee clause was excluded. MOU signed in
1982 was expired in 1985 and extended to 1988 through two other similar extensions. From 1989
onward India refused to come to any deal with the Bangladesh on Ganges water sharing. No treaty or
agreement existed till 1996 during which the average low flow has come down to 10,000 to 12,000
cusec with one extreme event of 9000 cusec.

During the period of the last democratically elected Govt. of Bangladesh Begum Khaleda Zia tried her
best with her counterpart Indian Prime Minister Narashima Rao to reach a just solution to the Ganges
water sharing, India fully avoided reaching any agreement with the Govt. Bangladesh again raised the
issue in the UN General Assembly but to no effect. Because our opposition leader Sk. Hasina
declared “আমরা এই সরকারকে এক সেকেন্ডের জন্যেও শান্তিতে থাকতে দেবনা”!!!

We know BAL’s anti Bangladesh activities very well. We know BAL can do anything to get the power
and for their Masters. It is not difficult to understand, It was linked between BAL and Indian
government to create problems as much as possible to our country. BAL got the power in June 1996
and they signed agreement within few months!!!. The agreement of 1977 was based on data of 1948
to 1973 and the agreement of 1996 was based on 1949 to 1988. So the quantity can be more or less.
Ziaur Rahman has constructed a base and now whatever you are doing is on that base. It is easy
work to put something in a basket which has bottom but it was very difficult to repair a bottomless
basket. Ziaur Rahman establishes Nationalism in Bangladesh to bring all peoples under one Umbrella
regardless of Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Christian or Bangali and Pahari. He didn’t spoken to anybody
“তরা সব বাঙ্গালী হইয়া যা”।

Sk. Hasina did not get any mandate from the people of Bangladesh. She got mandate from that Mir
Jaafar Moin U. Ahmed now slowly coming into light. During his (Moin U. Ahmed) visit to India he was
given four horses as presentation and he was sold to India and Sk. Hasina by getting crores of money
deposited in his foreign bank account. In Pakistan what we have seen, army used to control and rule
over Pakistan by imposing martial law and used to come directly in the forefront but here Moin U.
Ahmed followed another tactics of ruling our country by undeclared martial law through Sk. Hasina
and played a hide and seek game.

Another thing what we have noticed during Pakistan time Pakistan army did not allow the students to
come out in the street every now than and tried to control the students in all possible way they can.
But here Moin U. Ahmed doesn’t like to disturb the students at all. That is why the two Joy Bangla
group(two Chatra League group) are fighting with each other to take control of different places, as if
Bangladesh now owned by them and they are the whole and sole authority of Bangladesh. To whom
Charley Chaplin of BAL, that lunatic Farouk Khan will blame now as he used to see everywhere JMB
Jungi and Jamaat involvement. Where Chatra League two groups are fighting with each other for
tenderbaazi and chandabaazi, they used to say infiltration of Chatradal, and where BDR mutiny
happened and investigation report gave the clue of involvement of their few BAL leaders like Mirza
Azam, Fazle Nur Taposh, Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir, Torab Ali, Jahangir Kabir Nanok including Sick
Hasina herself in association with Dada Pronob Mukharjee and many others, that Farouk Khan
discovered involvement of Jamaat and JMB group.

As soon as Awami League came to occupy the seat of government in Dhaka, a plot was hatched with
Indian complicity to teach the BD Army a lesson and this Farouk Khan knowing the facts very well
intentionally tried to divert the attention of the whole country by putting the blame over BNP and
Jamaat everywhere, wherever he likes. Now BAL is thinking again after Sk. Hasina’s turn and tenure
is finished to bring Sick Reahana in power and in this way will continue to bring Joy, Putul and so on -
all sick family one by one producing a Sheikhdom in our Bangladesh making our country a "Pagoler
Addakhana".

Long-Term Impacts on Bangladesh:

a) One fourth of the fertile agricultural land will become wasteland due to a shortage
of water.
b) Thirty million lives are affected through environmental and economical ruin.
c) An estimated annual economic loss of over half a billion dollars in agricultural,
fisheries, navigation and industries.
d) Frequent flooding due to environmental imbalance and changes in the natural flow
of the Ganges.

The Immediate Effect on Bangladesh:

a) Reduction in agricultural products due to insufficient water for irrigation.