Posted on August 29, 2016
After years of debates and an earlier attempt that was aborted due to the high costs involved, the state government has engaged Dredging Corporation of India Limited to dredge the Brahmaputra every year to get relief from annual bouts of floods and erosion.
A team of the public-sector undertaking will visit the state within eight to 10 days to carry out a survey of the 720-km stretch of the 2,800-km-long river that flows through Assam before draining into the Bay of Bengal.
Based on the findings of the survey, an action plan will be prepared to dredge the river on an annual basis.
CM Sarbananda Sonowal said, “To give succour to the people ravaged by the perennial floods and erosions in the state, we, with the help of Dredging Corporation of India Limited, will start dredging the Brahmaputra.”
“Dredging will primarily emphasize on erosion control, sediment management and flood control. The whole process will be carried out in line with the hydrological character of the Brahmaputra,” he added.
The annual silt load of the river has had an adverse effect on its water-carrying capacity, causing floods during the monsoon.
Sonowal said, “Since the Brahmaputra serves as the lifeline of Assam, it has to be harnessed to serve the people.”
The government’s decision is based on a suggestion by a parliamentary panel of the Union water resources ministry. The first dredging operation on the river began in 1970 but was discontinued soon after because of the high costs involved.
A standing committee of experts for protection of Majuli Island in 2014 stated that in 2013, the Brahmaputra Board had hired dredger from Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) for a pilot project. The project was aborted after some employee of Brahmaputra Board were threatened by some unidentified persons.
Source: The Times of India
