Farmers protest solar power project on farmland in Moulvibazar

A farmers’ movement has begun in Moulvibazar to protect the haor wetlands. On Sunday (October 19), farmers, fishermen, and members of the Haor and Environment Protection Movement staged a human chain, protest rally, and procession on Adalat Road in the district town, protesting against the construction of a solar power plant in Puber Haor under Sadar upazila.

Puber Haor is part of our lives and livelihoods. Around 90% of the villagers depend on agriculture. Without the paddy harvested here, people will face famine. We not only meet local demand with this paddy but also sell it to buyers from other regions. Now, with this solar project, farming here will stop entirely. We will no longer have enough rice to eat, let alone sell. Along with paddy. -Farmers

The solar panel project under construction in the Athangiri Puber Haor, part of the Boro Haor — once a vast stretch of paddy land that sustained thousands of people in the surrounding agrarian villages for centuries. Photo: Abdur Rob

Participants demanded an end to the conversion of fertile agricultural land in haor areas for solar power projects and called for the preservation of the remaining parts of Puber Haor, which they say is vital for the region’s ecology and livelihoods.

The movement, organized by local farmers and fishermen from Athangiri, Mokambari, and Noapara villages—areas surrounding Puber Haor—was supported by the Haor Protection Movement, Moulvibazar.

Farmers said, “Puber Haor is part of our lives and livelihoods. Around 90% of the villagers depend on agriculture. Without the paddy harvested here, people will face famine. We not only meet local demand with this paddy but also sell it to buyers from other regions. Now, with this solar project, farming here will stop entirely. We will no longer have enough rice to eat, let alone sell. Along with paddy, farmers also graze cattle and goats around the haor—this too will be lost.”

They also expressed fear of harassment and false cases for protesting against the project.

Speakers at the rally also protested similar solar projects proposed in Hail Haor and Kawadighi Haor in Moulvibazar district.

The rally and human chain were held at noon in front of the Old Shilpakala Academy on Adalat Road. Farmers, fishermen, environmental activists, and members of the Haor Protection Movement joined the demonstration.

Farmer leader Abdul Sobahan presided over the event, while Md. Shahin Iqbal, executive member of the Haor Protection Movement, conducted the session. Among the speakers were environmental activist and central executive member of Dharar Parishad Abdul Karim Kim, Professor Selimuzzaman, A.S.M. Saleh Sohel, convener of the Moulvibazar Haor Protection Movement, M. Khosru Chowdhury, member secretary, former vice-chairman of Rajnagar Upazila Parishad Maulana Ahmad Belal, and executive members Shamsuddin Master, Alamgir Hossain, and Md. Khairul Islam. From Puber Haor, Shamim Ahmad, Maulana Mohsin Ahmad, and Abdul Qaiyum also spoke. The event was attended by NCP leader Ehsan Zakaria and other notable social and cultural figures from Moulvibazar.

Farmers and activists’ statement

Speakers called for an immediate halt to the 25-megawatt solar power project in Puber Haor, saying it is destroying farmland unnecessarily when alternative sites are available.

In a press note issued at the end of the protest, leaders of the farmers, fishermen, and haor protection movement stated:

“Puber Haor fulfills the food and livelihood needs of about 15,000 farmers and fishermen in Athangiri, Mokambari, and Noapara villages under the 4th No. Upper Kagabala Union of Sadar Upazila. Around 2,500 families directly depend on this haor for paddy, freshwater fish, and other crops. It is their only source of livelihood.”

They added that 100 acres of cultivable land in Puber Haor have already been converted for a 10 MW solar power project by Moulvibazar Solar PV Park, resulting in the permanent loss of one-third of the haor’s farmland.

They recalled that late Finance Minister M. Saifur Rahman had initiated a Rubber Dam Project during the 2004–2005 fiscal year to bring water from the Gopla River for irrigation to increase crop production in this haor.

“We farmers didn’t realize so much land would be lost to this project. Before installation, company officials assured villagers that solar panels would not affect paddy or fish cultivation — but those promises have proved false. No paddy, fish, or crops can now be grown on the occupied land,” the statement said.

They also warned that after the initial 10 MW project, the company plans to expand across the remaining two-thirds of the haor with a 25 MW solar project, along with industrial development that could fill and destroy water bodies.

“If this continues, the haor’s ecology, biodiversity, and traditional livelihoods will collapse. Farmers will lose their work, and once self-sufficient families will have to buy food year-round,” they said.

“Bangladesh is a small country with limited farmland. Establishing solar power plants by destroying fertile haor and violating land and environmental laws cannot be justified as green energy policy. We also question how such a project received environmental clearance and land-use permission.”

They urged all people of Moulvibazar to stand with them in saving the rest of Puber Haor and protecting agriculture, farmers, and the environment.

Local farmer Bachu Mia said, “This haor is also famous for its delicious freshwater fish — now even that is under threat.”
Elderly resident Abdus Sobahan Chufai said, “We’re watching the haor disappear before our eyes. The company has taken over the land, and people are building houses inside the haor.”

Residents dependent on the larger haors — Puber, Hail, and Kawadighi — are deeply worried as they watch fertile paddy lands and wetlands vanish, threatening their food security and biodiversity.

Earlier, on October 12, farmers and fishermen of Athangiri, Mokambari, and Noagaon areas held a similar protest at Puber Haor, where leaders of the Haor Protection Movement also participated and heard their grievances.

Note: This article was originally published in Bengali on eyenews.news and has been translated into English by the author.

• Read more: Wetlands Under Threat in Bangladesh – Initiatives to Protect