<p>Order of the National Green Tribunal (Eastern Zone Bench, Kolkata) in the matter of Sudhan Das Vs State of Asssm & Others dated 26/11/2021.</p> <p>The matter related to discharge of sewerage and
The Ministry of Water Resources (MoWR) has denied having received any report from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) experts on the flood and erosion problems of Assam.
No matter all the huge efforts put together by experts and stake holders, proper management of the water resources of the State, including the Brahmaputra, will be a distant dream unless political willingness is accommodated in the water management initiatives. This observation was made by the Non Resident Indian Association of Assam, which has urged all the authorities concerned to take a serious approach to managing the enormous water resources for speedy economic development of the State. In a seminar organised by the NRI Association of Assam recently at its office premises in the city, water resources engineering expert of Texas, USA and hony adviser of river linking project initiated by the Government of Assam, Barada Charan Sarma stressed on the need for political willingness to resolve the problems created by the water resources. He dwelled at length on ways for solution of the devastating flood and erosion problems of Assam, and boosting development activities like power generation by utilising the vast water resources of the Brahmaputra. "To achieve these goals we all should understand that political accommodation will be necessary with regard to the development of the Brahmaputra,' he remarked. Members of the Association who took part in the seminar narrated their experiences verging on the nightmarish at the time of a smart downpour in the capital city. Earlier, Dr Karuna Sagar Das, general secretary of the Association explained its aims and objectives and expressed the NRIs' keen interest to be a part of the welfare activities of their homeland. The seminar was presided over by Dr Anil Ranjan Borthakur, president of the Association.
River dolphin, an endangered river animal found in the Brahmaputra and a few of its tributaries, is going to be declared as the State River Animal by the State Government soon. This was disclosed by H Sarma, DFO, Dhubri at a meeting organised here by the Centre for North East Studies and Policy Research (C-NES) recently. The NGO C-NES, which is working on the conservation of this rare and endangered water animal in the rivers of Assam since 2006, is holding this public awareness programme at Dhubri for the second time. In this connection, the NGO brought out an awareness rally, which was participated by fishermen families of Panchpeer char and Bahadurtari, the two riverine villages near Dhubri town where the dolphin project is run by the NGO. The rally was flagged off by Bhuban Saikia, retired lecturer of BN College. The rally was followed by spot drawing and essay writing competitions among the school students. A documentary film by Sanjay Hazarika on river dolphin of the Brahmaputra was shown to the audience. The open meeting was presided over by the DFO H Sarma, who in his presidential remark, said that dolphin is now found in Ganja, Meghna, Brahmaputra and in a river of Nepal in small numbers. This mammal's procreation period being three to four years, its population is gradually decreasing. Moreover water pollution, poaching and fishing by fine gill net have added to rapid depletion of dolphin population, he added. According to him the only remedy is awareness of the people both in poaching of the animal and in keeping the water unpolluted. He also suggested preservation of the breeding ground of the river creatures. Generally dolphins came to the marshy lands (beels) for breeding purposes. The Sareswar bill in Dhubri district is one such breeding ground for the water creatures, Sarma added. The meeting was also addressed by Mehboob Hussain, DPO, SSA, Dhubri and a few others. The meeting started with a couple of Goalparia songs sung by radio artist Charu Bala Roy wihle Manik Barua of C-NES anchored the meeting successfully. The aims and objectives of the NGO was narrated by Bhaskarjyoti Saud. Saud revealed that poaching of dolphin has come down after fishermen were provided with an alternative bait for cat fish fishing. The NGO is also trying to provide the people with some alternative means of earning through formation of self help groups.
The Central Government has approved 75 flood control and anti-erosion schemes proposed by the State Water Resources Department (WRD) for implementation from this financial year. The schemes are worth around Rs 434.839 crore, 29 thousand. The Centre is releasing before March next the first installment worth Rs 97.83 crore against the schemes. However, the release of funds will depend on the progress of implementation of the schemes.
NEW DELHI, Feb 12
KALGACHIA, Feb 11
using cow dung as cooking fuel could expose people to arsenic. A recent study shows villagers on the Ganga Meghna Brahmaputra plain were exposed to smoke containing high levels of arsenic
Two waves of big floods have devastated Bangladesh, killing over a thousand people and seriously affecting agriculture, rural industries and infrastructure. Although Bangladesh is spread across the flood plains of the Brahmaputra, the Meghna and the Ganga, floods in succession are unusual, say experts.<br>
This year in mid July, the Baghmati, Budhi Gandhak and Lakhandai went into spate in Bihar. In Assam, several districts were engulfed by the waters of the Brahmaputra. Uttarakhand experienced flash floods and waters surged in Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat
