Majuli, the island on the Brahmaputra that is also the constituency represented by Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal in the state assembly, was cut off from the rest of world with the authorities suspending boat services to the island because of the Brahmaputra flowing above the danger level. [related-post] Watch Video: What's making news "We had to suspend plying of ferry boats and other vessels between Nimatighat and Majuli after the Brahmaputra had crossed the danger level on Thursday morning. While the water level has slightly receded later in the day, boats are likely to ply on Friday," Jorhat deputy commissioner Roshni Aparaji Korati told The Indian Express over the telephone. For the 1.53 lakh population of Majuli, said to be one of the largest inhabited river islands in the world, boats and ferries are the only means of surface communication to the outside world. While a large number of people from the island travel to Jorhat on a daily basis for livelihood, hundreds of students and patients also travel to Jorhat for education and better healthcare. Assam chief minister Sonowal, who was elected from Majuli – also an assembly constituency – had on Tuesday announced that his government would not only put in its best efforts to solve the island’s problems, but also mount a global campaign to attract tourists and also get Unesco’s World Heritage Site tag for Majuli. Several satra institutions – vaishnavite monasteries – established in the 16th and 17th century which are both religious as well as cultural centres, attract a large number of tourists during the non-monsoon months.
