ATMA spearheading Save Brahmaputra Mission

ATMA to soon come out with scientific approach on magement of the Assam's lifeline

From a Correspondent

DHUBRI, Jan 9: Appropriate Technological Mission of Assam (ATMA) is an NGO creating not only awareness on the conservation of Brahmaputra, but studying as how to save this massive water resource and use it for the betterment of the people living in its valley. The organization has been spearheading a movement – Brahmaputra  Bachao Andolan (Save Brahmaputra Movement) for the last 30 years. ATMA expressed deep concern over the recent detection of high turbidity and change in water content in Brahmaputra coupled with formation of river islands at an alarming rate, particularly in the downstream of the river.

 The Brahmaputra is the lifeline of Assam and any damage in its aquatic properties and resources caused by unknown reasons, will certainly bring disaster to the valley, ATMA observed. It also said that though it was yet to be ascertained as what were the factors responsible for high turbidity and change in water content, but it was enough to sound alarm to be alert, and act fast in a positive direction to save the river. Expressing deep concern over the formation of the river islands from Pandu to Dhubri in the lower Assam districts, ATMA said they had been closely monitoring the river system for quite a long time. It said that there had been an unprecedented increase in the formation of river islands in the downstream areas over the past couple of years and about 65 new river islands had been formed in recent years.

Talking to The Sentinel, director of ATMA, Parimal Kumar Das said since that after the devastating flood of Assam in 1988, the organization had been working on how the problems of flood and erosion could be mitigated with adopting an appropriate scientific approach.       

“Apart from recent detection of high turbidity and change in content of the river, the formation of numerous chars (river islands) is also a matter serious concern. Because it is not only making transportation of goods to lower Assam districts through the Brahmaputra route difficult, but the river bed is also rising up and water level is going extremely down,” Das added.

Das opined that if the present trend continued for coming another five years, there would be hardly any water in the downstream areas of the river, particularly during winter.

 Less rainfall and erosion in the down-stream areas of the Brahmaputra had not only affected human habitation, but also eroded thousands of hectares of land, and ATMA could not sit idle to see the river drying and dying, he added. Das said that formation and inundation of river islands was a tural phenomenon, but the Brahmaputra had a unique character and was the only river having undercurrent, and these were some of the factors which had to be studied before taking scientific approach to control the river and save it.