1.1Background W etlands are an invaluable component of the environment and biodiversity in Bangladesh . The important coastal and inland wetlands encompass the vast floodplains and delta system of the Ganges , Meghna and Bramaputra rivers. The total area of the wetlands in the country has been estimated at 7 to 8 million hectares, or about 50% of the total land surface. Beel Dakatia is one of the coastal area was empoldered by the polder no.25 under CEP to save it from both sweet and saline water. Beel Dakatia was not a typical wetland. It was a typical cultivable land and people’s life style was fully oriented toward cultivation. But a noticeable change occurs due to the construction of embankment during 1960s. Polders were constructed in the project area, under USAID’s Coastal Embankment Project, covering 400,000 ha to protect land from daily inundation by saline waters and from peak seasonal or storm flood levels. Initially, the polders helped imp
