After rising suddenly on Wednesday, rivers girdling the capital have started falling. The Padma and Jamuna, which had pushed them up, were also sliding. The Buriganga fell by 12cm, Balu by 3cm, the Turag fell by 2cm at the Amin Bazar bridge point and the Tongikhal by 2cm. These rivers had almost touched their danger levels.
Even the Shitalakhya fell by 3cm at Narayanganj, though still flowing 18cm above its danger level. They rose because of high tides during Amabaishya, or the dark phase of the moon, on Tuesdaythat slowed the rate of drainage of the major rivers -- the Jamuna and the Padma -- down the Meghna to the Bay of Bengal, Sazzad Hossain, executive engineer at the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC), told The Independent yesterday (Thursday). The major rivers are falling and the trend is likely to continue in the next 72 hours, the flood watcher added.