Assam: Tengakhat under Threat from Floods and Erosion in Dibrugarh District

A Correspondent

DIBRUGARH: The severe erosion occurring in the Buri-Dehing river region since 1980 has gobbled up 100 bighas of land of 55-year-old Bidhan Sonowal.

“My landmass, which my father used to cultivate, has been devoured by the ravenous river. Our community has been devastated by this year’s floods, and in order to rescue ourselves, we have relocated to a safer location. However, floodwater swept away my daughter’s matriculation certificates. Such a deluge has never occurred in our area before,” said Sonowal. Bidhan Sonowal is a resident of Dehing Kinar Nepali Gaon, situated at Tengakhat under the Duliajan Legislative Assembly Constituency in the Dibrugarh district.

“Since our land mass has been shrinking due to erosion and the river is getting closer to our community, we are unsure of what will happen to us. Our village will disappear off the map if the government does not act right now,” Sonowal said.

Another villager, Sita Chetri, said that erosion and flooding are a major threat to their community. “We are not getting any help from the government side. This year’s flood has devastated our lives because we have lost most of our valuable things. If the erosion continues, our village will be wiped out,” Chetri said.

Several villages under the Tengakhat revenue circle in the Dibrugarh district witnessed massive floods during the current year.

The Buri Dehing river, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, breached an embankment and flooded almost 40 villages in a matter of hours, forcing hundreds of local people to remain in relief camps established by the government.

After battling the onslaught of the floods, which brought untold sufferings for the villagers, people in the area are now battling against severe erosion in the riverine villages.

It was somewhat of a revelation when journalists from Dibrugarh visited the region under the auspices of the Dibrugarh Press Club in collaboration with the Tengakhat Hatibondha Flood and Erosion Resistance and Embankment Protection Samity to get a firsthand look at the issues the locals were facing.

The tour entitled “Gaonoloi Jaw” (Let’s go to the Villages) is a unique initiative of Dibrugarh Press Club during which members of the club who are from print and electronic media as well as from Doordarshan Kendra embark on a daylong tour to the interior villages of the district to interact with the people for a first-hand knowledge of the issues concerning the locality.

During the tour to some of the worst flood- and erosion-hit villages of the area, it was found that although the government is planning some measures to arrest the problem of flood and erosion in the area, villagers are not convinced over the fact that the government and the water resources department are unnecessarily dilly-dallying in the implementation of the anti-erosion schemes.

Tengakhat has always been known for its fertile soil, which yields good paddy as well as various types of rabi and cash crops. Vegetables produced in the villages of the Tengakhat area find good markets in places like Dibrugarh, Duliajan, and Tinsukia. However, now, due to the onslaught of erosion, villagers are losing their fertile land at a rapid pace, which has become a major concern for them. Peeved due to the delay in the implementation of anti-erosion schemes, villagers have now taken it on themselves to check the matter of erosion by the Buri Dehing River.

Accordingly, villagers have started to put bamboo porcupines in a bid to arrest the problem of erosion. According to the villagers, the efforts are showing encouraging results.

Senior citizens and villagers have now urged the government to expedite the process of implementation of anti-erosion schemes in the area so that the villages in the area get permanent protection from erosion.

 Also Read: AASU Protests Across Assam Demanding National Status for Flood and Erosion Issues

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