BANGLADESH BANS GROUNDWATER IRRIGATION ACROSS 5,000 VILLAGES

The Bangladesh government has banned groundwater extraction for irrigation across nearly 5,000 villages in the districts of Rajshahi, Naogaon, Chapainawabganj and Natore. The affected areas have been formally designated as water-stressed zones for a period of ten years. Under the order, groundwater use is restricted to drinking purposes only, with irrigation and industrial extraction both prohibited. The ban followed a turning point in the region's worsening water crisis last year.

The restrictions affect the Barind region, historically one of Bangladesh's driest areas, which was transformed into a productive agricultural belt through deep tube wells over several decades. Farmers in Barind use groundwater to grow rice, wheat, maize and vegetables year-round. Recent studies indicate that more than 82 per cent of the region is already under serious water stress. Farmer Ataur Rahman, whose family has worked the same land across generations, said pipes must now be sunk deeper than before and still yield less water than previously. Farmer Sreemoti Shobdorani, from the village of Tilibari, said tube wells sometimes produce nothing during the dry season, with groundwater levels having fallen sharply.

The ban has caused disruption for many farmers who had already borrowed money for seeds, fertiliser and land preparation before the restrictions came into force. Irrigation across the region has become more expensive, less reliable and increasingly disputed between communities. In some villages, tube wells now barely supply sufficient drinking water during the dry season. The combined pressure of the climate crisis, erratic rainfall and decades of intensive extraction has accelerated the collapse of the aquifer system underpinning agriculture in Barind.