Guwahati: The Chief Minister of Assam, Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, accompanied by Agriculture, Irrigation and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pijush Hazarika, on 10th November, visited two sites on to review ongoing work and future plans for tackling riverbank erosion and utilising newly formed land in the state.
Assam loses an estimated 8,000 hectares of land to riverbank erosion every year, while silt deposition simultaneously leads to the formation of new land in other areas.
During the visit, Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma reviewed the government's two-pronged strategy to address the challenge. The first approach focuses on strengthening embankments to protect vulnerable areas and minimise land loss caused by riverbank erosion.
The second component involves developing newly formed land for productive purposes, particularly agriculture and tourism, with the aim of creating additional economic opportunities. The visit was aimed at assessing the progress of ongoing initiatives and reviewing proposed measures to ensure the effective utilisation of newly emerged land.
The state government's strategy seeks to address the recurring challenges of erosion while turning land created through silt deposition into productive assets.