Corrective dredging of Brahmaputra yet to be a reality

GUWAHATI, June 15: Dispur’s failure in not taking the right decision at the right time in procuring a dredger has been proved costly for the State and its people.

It was in 2017 the State Government took a decision to procure a dredger for corrective dredging of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries. However, despite allocation of funds for the purpose, no such dredger has been procured as yet.

The government allocated Rs 18 crore to the State Water Resources Department for procuring a dredger in 2017. However, without carrying out any market research on the availability of such dredgers in India, the department floated a national tender for procuring a dredger. Despite response from bidders, the department failed to get any suitable bidder to supply a dredger that can serve the purpose – corrective dredging of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries.

Surprisingly, the department made the same mistake and floated another national tender afresh only to be bemused at not getting any suitable bidder again. It is now that the department has decided to float a global tender for the procurement of the dredger.

Had the department done a market study and floated a global tender, it could have procured the dredger much before the current wave of floods in the State and done something tangible by now.

It may be mentioned here that corrective dredging is not general dredging. It is done to correct river courses. Such a dredging of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries has been suggested by local experts.