Bangladesh monsoon turns vital village road into mud track

More than 50,000 residents of 25 villages in Bangladesh face severe travel problems each monsoon as a vital 1.5-kilometer road turns into a mud track.

The unpaved route connects Kumariabari Bazar to the Jhalupara Bridge area and serves communities in Kazipur upazila of Sirajganj and Sarishabari upazila of Jamalpur. Residents use it to reach schools, colleges, markets and government offices.

Farmer Mojibor Rahman said he must carry sacks of produce on his back because van and rickshaw drivers refuse to use the rain-soaked road.

“Our suffering during the monsoon is beyond description,” resident Altaf Hossain said, alleging that demands to pave the road had been ignored for 50 years.

Local Government Engineering Department engineer Golam Kibria Tomal said a proposal had been submitted and construction would begin after approval.