Gabkhan Channel of Jhalakathi

 

Gabkhan Channel of Jhalakathi

Jhalakathi is one of the southern districts of Bangladesh which is also called Jhalokathi or Jhalokati. In the British regime, Jhalakathi along with Patuakhali and Barisal was a center of business with Calcutta.

Jhalakathi is famous for its beautiful rivers and canals. Beside this, ‘shitol Pati’ (plant-based bedding) which is very comfortable during summer hot days. In Jhalakathi, you can find fashionable houses, mosques, archaeological structures, potteries, lime preparation and many other historical arts and culture Especially in Jhalkathi, there are various types of heritage monuments including hand-made lime and clay pots which you will not only be enthralled by, but you will also be enamored by the artists who are the bearers of our tradition.

Being a riverine district, the best and cheap communication is waterways like launches, boats and ships. You can have busses to get to Jhalakathi as well For a better and comfortable journey, you have to get into big launches from Dhaka Sadarghat after sunset. If you like to enjoy nature, you can avail of the Land Cruiser in the morning You will find many amazing scenes beside the river Buriganga From Dhaka Sadarghat, you will reach Barisal Launch Ghat before sunrise.

From Barisal, you can go to Jhalakathi either hiring a taxi or bus. This district is crisscrossed by many big rivers like Bishkhali, Dhanshiri, Gabkhan, Sugandha and their tributaries. Jhalakathi town is located on the bank of the Bishkhali River. Being a coastal area, tidal surge cause the entrance of salt water. As a result, many ponds, small to large, were built in ancient times at Jhalakathi.

But there are even some small ponds inside the orchard to be used for household purposes. These ponds are linked with interior canals in the orchards. Rice is the main crop in the rainy season, but in winter many winter upland crops are grown. But you will have verities of crops in the Rabi season (winter) in this district. The district is characterized by low and high tides like other coastal areas, which made people accustomed to the watery wet environment of nature.

In monsoon, the villages take an amazing look at its floating beauties. Now let's go to the Gabkan River which people prefer to call the Gabkhan channel. In 1918, the British excavated this channel to reduce the distance between Jhalakathi and Calcutta. This channel connects the Pirojpur part of the Sugandha river with the Sugandha River of the Jhalkathi part. Due to the digging of this channel, the distance from Dhaka to Mongla or Chittagong to Mongla has been reduced by 118 km.

The length of the Gabkhan channel is 18 km. The Gabkhan Channel is called the Suez Canal of Bangladesh. From 20 to 40 ships pass through this channel every day. The government of Bangladesh collects a toll of 8 thousand taka from each ship. However, the water depth of the Gabkhan channel is decreasing due to ‘not dredging its bottom’ for many years. Due to this, the passage of large ships carrying over 1500 tons of cargo is now difficult.

The Gabkhan channel is very important for the import and export trade of Bangladesh with Haldia port in India. Gabkhan Channel, known as the Suez Canal of Bangladesh, is the name of a scenic watercourse in Jhalkathi. It is as important as the Padma Meghna and Jamuna for trade; and is also one of the most communication routes in Bangladesh. An amazing bridge has been constructed over the Gabkhan Channel in the Kefayet Nagar - Rupsia parts of Jhalkathi.

This beautiful bridge over the Gabkhan Channel was the 6th China-Bangladesh Friendship Bridge which was built in 2001. At present, this bridge is one of the tourist spots of Jhalkathi. If you wish, you could also visit the beautiful Gabkhan bridge over the Gabkhan channel in Jhalkathi.

Related video link:https://studio.youtube.com/video/girdFQmfjv0/edit