Khowai is a tranboundary river, originates in the hills of Tripura in India. It crosses
the India-Bangladesh border enters Bangladesh at Balla of Chunarughat Upazilla of
Sylhet Division. It continues to flow and falls into the Dhaleshwari River, a little
upstream of Lakhai Upazila, Habiganj District. Researchers have different opinions regarding the length of the river, which is
considered to be a
bout 109 miles. Its length has decreased a little due to the changes
of its directions in several places. According to the Water Development Board in
Habiganj, the length of the embankments by both its banks from Balla border to
Bajuka-Foridpur village of Habiganj is 90 km. There is no embankment for the rest of
the Khowai downstream. Khowai makes a significant contribution to the
Meghnariver-basin in the northeastern region of Bangladesh. The course of the River Khowai was such that its flow during the monsoon would
flood the whole Habiganj town, which in turn caused great damage to the urban areas. In response to this problem, the government initiated a Loop Cutting project to divert
the course of the river, which saved the town from frequent flooding. The first phase
of the Loop Cutting project on three kilometers of the Khowai River was conducted in
1976-77. The second phase was implemented in 1978-79 over two more kilometers. This resulted in a beautiful water body inside Habiganj, which was later called “Old
Khowai”, in addition to the current Khowai River.
