Wednesday, 25 July 2012
Sattradhikar dead :
The 'sattradhikar' (head
priest) of Majuli's Ahotoguri Borsattra, Bhoben Narayan Dev
Goswami died in the Vaishnav monastery today.
He was 86, monastery sources said.
He was head of one of the oldest sattras in Majuli,
which is the world's largest river island and seat of Vaishnav
culture. The monastery was established in the 15th century by
Madhavdeva, a disciple of Sankardeva who was the founder of
Vaishnavism in Assam.
The sattraadhikar was later cremated within the sattra
premises, sources added.
(News from IBN live )
-Abakash Majuli
Sunday, 22 July 2012
Friday, 20 July 2012
Flood of relief materials in Majuli :
| - NGOs in queue as administration tackles ‘heartening’ response |
|
Jorhat, July 19: Managing the flood
was hard, but controlling the overwhelming response in terms of relief
is not proving to be a cakewalk either for the Jorhat district
administration.
As the floods hit Majuli island twice
within a span of less than 20 days — on June 25 and July 15 — the Majuli
sub-divisional and Jorhat district administrations tackled the problem
by setting up relief camps, providing relief to the victims and taking
measures to prevent the spread of water-borne disease. But now the
administration is confronted with the task of managing the rush of
relief material for the flood-hit victims.
Relief materials, worth nearly Rs 1 crore,
have already been distributed. The administration has now asked a few
organisations, which have come forward to help people affected by the
second wave of floods, to wait for a few days.
More than one lakh people have been hit by
the two waves of floods but the intensity of the second wave has been
less than the first one with only about 10 villages under Luitporia gaon
panchayat being affected. No relief camp has been set up this time, as
houses were not submerged.
Jorhat deputy commissioner R.C. Jain told The Telegraph
here today that the response from various groups, including
international organisations, for the flood-affected people of Majuli was
“very heartening”. He said over 20 organisations had contributed in a
big way. Many local groups had also contributed on a lower scale, he
added.
“Altogether Rs 1 crore worth of relief
materials given by NGOs has already been distributed to the flood-hit
people of Majuli and many are still coming forward. We are requesting
them to wait a few days to let those organisations who are distributing
relief material at present to complete their work,” Jain said.
He said as news of parts of Majuli getting
submerged was splashed in the media, his office got offers of
assistance from various organisations and agencies. The administration
had to make plans to allot and guide the organisations in distributing
relief materials in the affected areas.
Some of the top donors are Ramkrishna
Mission, Belur Math, which distributed relief materials worth about Rs
25 lakh, the International Red Cross Society, which gave shelter kits
worth about Rs 20 lakh, the Rotary Club of Jorhat, which distributed
kits (each kit having 52 items) worth Rs 15 lakh, ONGC, which handed
over materials worth Rs 4 lakh, the Upper Assam Chamber of Commerce,
which distributed materials worth Rs 3 lakh, Supreme Master (Ching Hai),
which distributed materials worth Rs 3 lakh, and the Thengal Kachari
Autonomous Council, which gave materials worth Rs 3 lakh.
Majuli sub-divisional officer (civil) S.R.
Khanikar said at least six organisations have been requested to wait
for a few days so that there was no overlapping in the distribution of
the relief materials.
-Abakash Majuli
|
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
International Conference on Majuli :
The background note on Majuli and the endeavour to get it listed it as a World Heritage Site was presented by GSV Suryanarayana Murthy. He described the geo-cultural features of Majuli and explained the salient points of the dossier prepared by him. He revealed the discriminatory attitude by the Govt. of India, which had listed Majuli in the third position in submission of three sites to UNESCO for inscription as World Heritage Site. He appreciated the role played by Society for Srimanta Sankaradeva and Friends of Majuli in this process. He suggested a proactive role by MCLMA and for that matter Govt. of Assam.
Eminent Gandhian Natwar Thakkar from Nagaland Gandhi Ashram released the news-letter MITRO, published by Friends of Assam and Seven Sisters (FASS). He was assisted by Nabajit Roy of FASS. Releasing the special issue of the news-letter on Majuli, Thakkar said that it was every one’s duty to keep alive the contributions of Srimanta Sankaradeva, who was one of the leading religious preachers in India. He reminisced his journey to Majuli and lauded the present effort to create awareness about this culturally rich river island.
Narayan Chandra Goswami spoke briefly about the significance of Majuli. He said that it was the centre of Assamese culture and Vaishnavite movement launched by Srimanta Sankaradeva. He expressed concern over irresponsible news items by electronic as well as print media over the extent of flood damage, since it might affect the prospect of Majuli’s inscription as WHS. He said that flood was normal for Majuli and people there co-habitated with flood.
Jayanta Barman, Vice President of FASS made a presentation about FASS. He also dwelt upon the future plans of the organization in Majuli. Prof. Chandan Mahanta of I.I.T., Guwahati spoke briefly about Core Professional Group-Brahmaputra and its activities. He highlighted the need for serious academic discussion as well as setting up of a research centre to solve the problems of Brahmaputra River and valley.
Prof. Arvind Phukan, the Chief Resource Person of the conference made an elaborate presentation about the nature and changes in the Brahmaputra river over time. He highlighted the braided nature of the river and talked about the need to channelise the river. He showed the dimension of erosion in Majuli and other parts of the river. He said that erosion could be checked if one proceeded with proper mathematical model, if concrete lining was done, if the embankments were designed scientifically and repaired regularly. He said that rats dug up the embankments making them weak from inside. He said that embankment should be made with soil dug from river-bed. Such soil could be deposited in the Majuli island too, thereby helping in land reclamation. He lamented the non-cooperation of bureaucrats in anti-erosion planning. He showed video footage of erosion.
Sayed Iftikar Hussain, CEO of Majuli Cultural Landscape Management Authority gave a presentation on the perspective of Govt. of Assam on Majuli. He said that the Majuli Cultural Landscape Management Act passed by the Legislatures in Assam was unique in the world and hoped that it would help in getting Majuli inscribed as WHS. He said that six international firms had been shortlisted for preparing the Comprehensive Development Plan for Majuli, but the initiative of Govt. of Assam was not adequately supplemented by Govt. of India, who went about the entire nomination process in a disinterested manner. He also revealed that Archaeological Survey of India did not invite any official or expert from Assam to offer suggestions while preparing the present dossier on Majuli. He hinted at forces working against the interest of Majuli in the entire process. He showed power point presentation depicting the details about Majuli. He said that while some chaporis had been lost in erosion, new chaporis had been created amidst Brahmaputra. Bhakat chapori was one such sand bar, he said.
Prof. Dilip Medhi, head of Anthropology Deptt., Gauhati University spoke about the massive cultural wealth of Majuli. He said that what was the most important thing for Majuli was its preservation and protection. He stressed on creating greater awareness about these issues in different fora. He said that a long-term vision was necessary for Majuli. The role of Brahmaputra Board was crucial for the island, he said. He also opined that the dams being constructed in upstream would affect Majuli badly.
A paper sent by Gili Navon, research scholar of Hibru University, Jerusalem was taken as read since she was not physically present. The paper suggested setting up a cultural centre in Majuli.
Prasujya Gogoi, research scholar of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi presented a paper on ‘Eco restoration of Majuli island’. She described the wide variety of flora and fauna available in Majuli. She said that increase in human population in the island had created problem for nature. She suggested zonation of critical areas of the island. Tourism also should be planned properly so that it does not hurt the ecology. Guides should be qualified. Resorts should be made with locally available materials like bamboo, thatch etc. A traffic management also was necessary.
Dr. Arun Kumar Sarma, President of Majuli Island Protection and Development Council (MIPADC) gave an account of their initiative for inscription of Majuli as WHS. He suggested GVS Suryanarayam Murthy to involve more people, especially those having exposure to the life in Majuli, in the revision of the dossier.
Bharat Saikia, retired Engineer and Secretary of MIPADC, who had prepared the first dossier on Majuli, spoke about the faulty embankments on Brahmaputra. He said that the embankments had led to rise in the river-bed and braided nature of the river. He suggested installation of good quality hard plastic pipes of one foot diameter in the embankment, at intervals of say one Km. in order to inject flood water inside the island and release of the same later to the river. This would prevent breaches in the embankment, bring in fertile sediments and wash away stale water inside.
An interaction session took place with Prof. Arvind Phukan in afternoon. M.N. Dutta Bordoloi, former G.M. of Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizer Corporation Ltd. and Putul Mahanta, General Secretary of Asom Sattra Mahasabha, Majuli branch took part in the interaction. Mahanta submitted that Prof. Phukan’s data about erosion was old and new found data had proved that erosion had been checked in Majuli, leading to increase in land mass marginally.
In his presidential comment, Dr. Sanjib Kr. Borkakoti said that the Society for Srimanta Sankaradeva would remain associated with the Comprehensive Development Plan of Majuli initiated by MCLMA. He lamented the lack of interest by Indian representative in UNESCO on Majuli’s nomination for WHS. He also pointed out that the dossier needs greater emphasis on Sattriya Culture. He stressed the need of more academic analysis of Majuli’s problems. He thanked Dr. Sanjib Bhuyan of ASAF for mooting the idea of such a conference in the first place.
Several dignitaries like Ripu Mahanta, Vice President of Asom Sattra Mahasabha, A.K. Mitra, Chairman of Technical Advisory Committee, Water Resource Department, Anjana Chaliha, Retired Principal of J.B. College, Manoj Kr. Das, DGM of NEDFI, Sankar Das, prominent social activist, Satyajit Mahanta, Deka Sattradhikar of Natun Kamalabari Sattra were present in the conference. Representatives of several NGOs and Sattras attended the conference. President Dr. Sanjib Kumar Borkakoti thanked all of them as well as the members of Facebook groups ‘Followers of Srimanta Sankaradeva’ and ‘Friends of Majuli’ for their support.
Neilh M. Gautam, General Secretary of the Society offered vote of thanks to all participants and collaborators. With that, the conference came to an end.
(News from: Assam Times Online News)
-Abakash Majuli
Official push to Majuli landscape authority :
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
Dyke breach prompts alert in Majuli :
Jorhat, July 16: The Majuli
administration is on an alert after the Brahmaputra breached a portion
of the embankment at Sonowal Kachari near the eastern tip of the island,
flooding over 10 villages.
Just last month, a breach in the same
embankment wreaked havoc on the island and flooded 30 villages with the
Salmora area being badly hit.
Sources in the sub-divisional
administration said the water level of the Brahmaputra kept rising all
through yesterday, and eventually water gushed in through the
200-metre-long breach.
Preliminary work by the water resources
department to repair the embankment began last week. The plan was to
build a cofferdam near the breach but work had to be called off after
the sudden rise in water level, sources said.
Majuli Sub-divisional officer (civil) Sonaram Khanikar told The Telegraph
that about 10 villages under Luitporia gaon panchayat were partially
submerged. Water entered the compounds of the houses in the villages,
roughly affecting around 10,000 people, Khanikar said. In a few houses
water had entered the houses.
The SDO said so far the situation had not
turned grim and people were not forced to leave their houses. If the
situation demanded, relief materials would be provided to the families,
he said.
Khanikar said the administration had
sufficient food and medicine stocks in Majuli and contingency plans were
ready to deal with a big flood. Adequate number of vehicles, boats,
medical staff and manpower were ready to act in case of a flood, he
said.
Khanikar said according to the latest
reports received today from Dibrugarh, which lies east of the island,
the water-level of the Brahmaputra in the upper Assam district was
receding and if the same trend continued, then by tomorrow morning the
water would move out of the island.
Ramakrishna Mission (Belur Math) has
decided to offer a helping hand to Majuli’s flood-hit people. Talking to
reporters at Ramakrishna Mission’s branch here today, Swami
Gitatmananda, the secretary of the Narutamnagar branch (Tirap district
of Arunachal Pradesh) of the mission, said the organisation would
distribute 5,000 tarpaulin sheets worth Rs 25 lakh to flood-hit families
on the island from tomorrow.
He said last week, members of the mission
conducted a survey in flood-hit areas of Majuli and distributed coupons
to genuine flood-affected families so that they could collect relief
materials from volunteers during the time of distribution.
The organisation had distributed about 200
kits containing blankets, mosquito nets, and biscuits to flood-affected
families at Tengapani area in Tinsukia district last month.
(News from : The Telegraph Tuesday , July 17 , 2012 online news)
-Abakash Majuli
Sunday, 15 July 2012
Governor warns Brahmaputra Board :
Staff reporter
GUWAHATI, July 14 – Assam Governor Janaki Ballav Patnaik on Friday made an aerial inspection of the flood-affected areas of Nagaon, Jorhat and Kaziranga National Park, and issued a warning to the Brahmaputra Board that it would be held responsible for “any flood in the southern part of Majuli” in the future.
Patnaik first met the flood-affected people to understand their problems and grievances and upon obtaining a firsthand knowledge of their plight, he assured the affected people from Salmora that they could be rehabilitated segment by segment in various vacant lands of the river island to be allotted by the administration.
In reply to a query from the devastated folks of Sonowal Kachari regarding the sand deposition in their homes and fields, the Governor directed the Water Resources Department to take immediate steps to arrange for removing the sand and make the land plough-able and habitable. After the discussion, the Governor distributed relief materials to the affected people.
The Governor later held a discussion with the district administration where a power point presentation on the flood scenario was made by the Deputy Commissioner, Jorhat. The Governor obtained the commitment from both the chairman of the Brahmaputra Board and the Principal Secretary to the Government of Assam, Water Resources Dept that they would be able to complete the works entrusted to them on time on the south and north banks of Majuli respectively.
Patnaik told the Chairman of the Brahmaputra Board, for which a deadline had already been fixed for March 2014, that after 2014, if there is any flood in the southern part of Majuli, the Board would be held responsible.”
Regarding the northern bank, he directed the Principal Secretary, Water Resources, to give their assurance to the local MLA and Minister, Rajiv Lochan Pegu that they would live up to their commitment.
GUWAHATI, July 14 – Assam Governor Janaki Ballav Patnaik on Friday made an aerial inspection of the flood-affected areas of Nagaon, Jorhat and Kaziranga National Park, and issued a warning to the Brahmaputra Board that it would be held responsible for “any flood in the southern part of Majuli” in the future.
Patnaik first met the flood-affected people to understand their problems and grievances and upon obtaining a firsthand knowledge of their plight, he assured the affected people from Salmora that they could be rehabilitated segment by segment in various vacant lands of the river island to be allotted by the administration.
In reply to a query from the devastated folks of Sonowal Kachari regarding the sand deposition in their homes and fields, the Governor directed the Water Resources Department to take immediate steps to arrange for removing the sand and make the land plough-able and habitable. After the discussion, the Governor distributed relief materials to the affected people.
The Governor later held a discussion with the district administration where a power point presentation on the flood scenario was made by the Deputy Commissioner, Jorhat. The Governor obtained the commitment from both the chairman of the Brahmaputra Board and the Principal Secretary to the Government of Assam, Water Resources Dept that they would be able to complete the works entrusted to them on time on the south and north banks of Majuli respectively.
Patnaik told the Chairman of the Brahmaputra Board, for which a deadline had already been fixed for March 2014, that after 2014, if there is any flood in the southern part of Majuli, the Board would be held responsible.”
Regarding the northern bank, he directed the Principal Secretary, Water Resources, to give their assurance to the local MLA and Minister, Rajiv Lochan Pegu that they would live up to their commitment.
(News from The Assam Tribune Sunday, July 15, 2012)
-Abakash Majuli
Friday, 13 July 2012
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