Major streams and floodplains of Motihari block
Monsoon will arrive within a month, the most prone panchayats of Motihari block named Jhitkahiya, Naurangiya and Lakhaura are preparing to counter the cycle of misery that repeats year after year. The tributaries like Pasaha, Tilawey, teeyar and Dudhaura bring heavy load of silt. Breaches in embankment are becoming frequent. These tributaries along with river ‘Budhigandak’ often breaches the embankment during the rainy season and make floodplains in GPs of Motihari and Banjariya block. The floodplain of Motihari block hosts the water with silt from above mentioned source. Primarily inundation starts from tributaries in Jhitkahiya and Naurangiya Panchayats while Kataha and Ramgarhwa GPs inundates by natural occurrence of excessive water from ‘Burhigandak’.
Major streams in Motihari block:
Burhi Gandak: It flows about 40.2 kms in Motihari block. The starting points coordinates are 26.727758 (Latitude), 84.920547(Longitude) and end points are 26.541667&85.049033. In this 40 kms of run, it breaches the boundary of the block twice.
Dhanauti : Flows 5.2 kms in Motihari municipal area and 14.2 kms in block area before flowing into the Budhi Gandak. It merges with Budhigandak in Bardaha GP of Motihari block area. The end point of Dhanuti is 26.551463 and 85.042257.
Dudhaura: This is a stream with permanent white (milky) water colour in Jhitkahiya, Naurangiya and Kataha GPs. The length of this stream is 7.74kms. It merges with Tilawey just before merging into Burhigandak at Loknathpur village in kataha panchayat.
Tilawey: the stream enters in Motihari block area at Jhitkahiya panchayat where another stream named Bangri merges into it. After 13.8 kms run in the block area it flows into the Burhigandak at Loknathpur.
Pasaha: It is about 7 kms of drainage line. Middle part of the stream is silted up and disturbing the smooth flow of water. The elevation at the entering point in the block area is 215 feet and at the end is 216 feet, but in the middle part the elevation varies from 217 feet to 223 feet.
Imerti : The Stream originates from Ramsingh Chhatauni GP and is 11.5 kms long along the Burhigandak river. Elevation starts from 215 feet and at the end is 207 feet but in the middle of the drainage there is some elevation of 217 feet to 220 feet. There is no dam exists on the both banks of the stream because surface runoff water also comes from the field. The silted up Imerti slows down the drainage from Ramsingh Chhatauni, Kataha and Basmanpur panchayats.
Pakaha Naala: It originates from a chaur located at border area of Motihari and Chhauradano blocks in Jhitkahiya. It connects another stream in upper part of Chhauradano and Adapur block. This 7.64 km drainage line drains the excessive breached water of tributaries and surface runoff. The stream connects Dudhaura and Pasaha at Naurangiya Panchayat of Motihari block. It is most important drainage line at the flood or flash flood time. This drainage line has no sharp bends like tributaries running in this elevation. The end point is in Pasaha river but a structure can be seen from 150 meters from the end point with similar shape and plantation pattern. Local insisted that the missing part is individual’s land.
Kharwa Naala: Another important structure to mention here, It is a connecting naala from Dhanauti to Burhigandak. 1.15 kms in Motihari block and total length is 15.2 kms. Originates from Turkauliya and Banjariya border area(26.668181&84.860242) and enters in Motihari block through the panchayats of Banjariya block and merges with Burhigandak at loknathpur(26.726533&84.936532). It drains the surface runoff of Sugauli, Banjariya and municipal area.
There are some common features of these tributaries and naala
-It gets dry post monsoon compared to the historical data
-Have issues of excessive siltation
-Drainage lines of Catchment area too have the issues of excessive siltation
The information about these streams, their course, the area they cover in the panchayats and the damage they can cause can be brought into use to design efficient strategies to tackle the problems related to flood and drainage during monsoon and prevent the damage that it causes every passing year.
