Water logging, knee deep, remains for two weeks or more. Given these conditions, diseases are common but health facilities are minimal. There is lack of any awareness on reproductive health and no child born in this char has a birth certificate issued in his/her name. Out of the 12 chars that fall under the Malda district, only one has a functional clinic. This islet called Khatiachar also houses a primary school. The rest of the chars do not have any schools, including Khasmahal, where a small one roomed makeshift mosque cum madrasa doubles as an elementary school. Due to the massiveness of this river, accessibilities to the basic facilities of the school and clinic are reduced. We were reported that 13 pregnant women died on their way, while going to the clinic in the boat itself.
Interestingly, the Jharkhand government has shown a lot of interest in the inhabitants of these chars. They have provided the adults of Khasmahal with the voter identity cards issues from the state of Jharkhand. Yet for their tax registrations, these same people are registered under the West Bengal Jurisdiction. There seems to be a continuing confusion about the administrative status of this char.
One major dispute that arose between the cultivators and the government of West Bengal was the West Bengal Act XXXI of 2000. Initially farmers losing land due to erosion would take proportionate land risen or alleviated on the other side. The provision of this act states that any alleviated land would vest in the hands of the government and the state could lease the land to any Raiyat or tenants without accrediting it to their names. The Ganga Bhangan Pratirodh Action Nagarik Committee has taken up the cause, along with other causes of the people losing land due to diluviation and not getting it compensated with alleviated lands.

After our brief visit to the Khasmahal char, we had to miss the opportunity of going to the islet of Khatiachar, as this would delay our return. Instead we directly returned to Paglaghat. After having our lunch there, we left for Bangitola, a 20 minutes drive from the ghat. Reaching there, we went to the office of Ganga Bhangan Pratirodh Action Nagarik Committee to have half an hour of question and answer session to clarify our doubts and queries. 
While explaining the work done by the committee, the members told us that the first task was to make everyone including the government recognise that the river bank erosion is not an exaggeration but an everyday reality with the potential of rendering lacs (1 lac = 100 thousand) of people as internally and permanently displaced population. There is an urgent need to address not just the erosion, but to provide the victims and potential victims with relief and rehabilitation, to live a life of dignity. 
To Barbara’s question of any communication between the affected people and the authority of the Farakka Barrage since the worsened condition of the riverbank erosion was a result of this barrage, the reply was that a Public Interest Litigation has been filed in 2006 asking the government to review if the barrage has delivered what it had promised. The barrage failed to provide free or cheap electricity in the region, it did not improve cultivation nor did it stop the heavy silting in Calcutta port.  It only succeeded in joining the North East of India with West Bengal, but building an overbridge could have done this. But building the barrage has forced Ganga to erode eastward. To Tiina’s question of whether other organisations or groups visit the island, the answer was that CRY, Care International, Fian International and also a researcher Julian Hadley had visited the area to study river bank erosion. To the answer of Tarangini’s question as to what are they doing to prevent the river erosion, they said that erosion will take place and it