Assam: Water resources minister visits erosion site in Dibrugarh

Dibrugarh: Asam water resources minister Pijush Hazarika on Thursday visited the site of the massive erosion that occurred at Kachari Ghat in Dibrugarh.

The Brahmaputra River, flowing along the edge of Dibrugarh town, has been causing severe erosion during every monsoon, creating panic among the residents.

During his visit, the Minister said that it is extremely difficult to control a mighty and fast-flowing river like the Brahmaputra, and achieving 100 percent protection from erosion is never possible.

However, he said the authorities are currently implementing an anti-erosion project worth around Rs 300 crore for Dibrugarh.

He added that the department has already arranged around 32,000 C-type geo-bags needed for the protection work and is executing the project on a war footing.

Notably, the recent wave of erosion near Dibrugarh city has left residents sleepless and deeply concerned.

Within minutes, the mighty Brahmaputra washed away hundreds of geo-bags and eroded about 100 meters of land, including a park, a large playground, a yoga centre, and a site used for immersion of idols.

The devastating erosion occurred at Kachari Ghat, located just behind the old court building in Dibrugarh.

The river, turning fierce, devoured nearly 100 meters of the main protective embankment.

The rushing waters swept away most of the geo-bags that the Water Resources Department had placed, causing a large area, including a yoga camp site, to cave in as if an earthquake had struck.

The erosion has now reached dangerously close to the Dibrugarh town protection dyke — one of the major safeguards of the city.

In recent days, the Brahmaputra has already eroded several meters of land at Maijan Thakurabari on the outskirts of Dibrugarh, and it has begun fresh erosion in the downstream areas as well.

Many blame the lack of timely and adequate anti-erosion measures for the current alarming situation of the river.

Minister Hazarika assured that the government is giving utmost priority to the issue and that all necessary efforts are being taken to contain the erosion at Dibrugarh.