Jorhat, July 16: Upper Assam
commissioner S.I. Hussain, who is also the chief executive officer of
the Majuli Cultural Landscape Management Authority, will submit a
proposal to the government to make the body functional and implement the
comprehensive development plan for Majuli.
Six international firms have been shortlisted to execute the development project.
Hussain said though the organisation had
been constituted in 2007 under the Majuli Cultural Landscape Region Act,
2006, it was yet to function independently, and it was imperative to
strengthen the authority for the development work to progress in Majuli.
The act was passed to protect Majuli from
floods and erosion and develop and preserve the unique identity of the
river island so that it would be considered for the coveted status of a
World Heritage Site from Unesco.
“Unless the authority is empowered to
undertake the work with separate offices and staff, the implementation
of the comprehensive development plan will not progress,” Hussain said.
In this context, the commissioner said
experienced hands could be drawn from other departments and experts on
Majuli could be appointed, as fresh hands would be recruited on
contract. “Majuli is still on the reckoning for Unesco’s World Heritage
Site tag and there should be a proper authority as an interface for the
island, which embodies Assam’s culture.”
The National Informatics Centre had been
entrusted with the task of preparing a website to showcase the heritage,
culture and biodiversity of Majuli, one of the largest river islands of
the world.
Hussain said the process was on to
finalise the appointment of six international consultant firms, which
had technical and financial competency to implement the comprehensive
development plan, the work for which would most likely start from
October.
“The first full-fledged work of the
authority was to formulate the plan, which will include boundary
delineation of the cultural region of Majuli, comprising the subdivision
areas and some outer regions like parts of Dhemaji, Neematighat,
Patiagaon upto National Highway 37 and a few other areas. Other plans
include water transport, infrastructure development, road connectivity,
maintenance of biodiversity and promoting of eco-friendly production
activities like tourism,” he said.
Hussain said the first priority would be
the submission of a proposal to the government to manage water transport
along with the inland water transport department.
Crossing over to Majuli by ferries is still an arduous journey and the proposal comprises the development of ghats
and to make the ferry services in Majuli visitor-friendly by fitting
those with modern amenities. “We can run ferries daily along with the
inland water transport department and increase the frequency of services
and spruce up the ghats so that they are more welcoming,” he said.
Hussain had also asked Hem Chandra
Goswami, the famous mask-maker of Majuli Samaguri Xatra, to compile a
miniature form of all those artefacts and elements, which represented
the uniqueness of the island as a heritage site.
These would be displayed in an auditorium, to enable a visitor to sample them at a glance and subsequently see the real item.
- Abakash Majuli
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