Standing up to the Brahmaputra

Rohmoria village in Assams Dibrugarh district battles the Brahmaputra river and government apathy....

When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh came to this village four years ago,he stood by the Brahmaputra for some time,watching the river swallow up chunks of land every five to ten minutes. Hum dekhenge,kuch karna hoga, he said. It was not an assurance that instilled any confidence in the inhabitants of Rohmoria,a village by the Brahmaputra,about 20 km east of Dibrugarh district in Assam.

This river has been playing havoc with our lives and properties for several decades now, says Ghanen Gogoi,a farmer. Gogoi is also president of the Rohmoria Khahaniya Pratirodh Sangram Samiti,a platform of various organisations that have united to save the village from the fury of the river.

Rohmorias is,in fact,an endless tale of the havoc wreaked by the Brahmaputra. The river has come into the village by more than 10 km in the last three decades. At least 28 of Rohmorias 38 revenue villages covering an area of about 30,000 bighas have disappeared into the river. And at least 2,500 people have been rendered homeless.

Three schools,one police station,one government sericulture farm and at least two tea estates have also disappeared, says Ghana Baruah,a school teacher.

Erosion by the Brahmaputrawhich has a tendency of shifting southwards,and whose problems have been compounded by massive deforestation and earth work in Arunachal Pradeshis an old story here. The erosion has threatened several vital installations,including the civil aerodrome at Mohanbari,and at least three defence establishmentsthe Dinjan Army Cantonment,Dinjan Air Force Base and Nadua Air Force Stationapart from Dibrugarh town.

One tea estate,Oakland,has completely disappeared. Five others,Balijan,Nagaghuli,Mothola,Greenwood and Maijan,are also under serious threat. This is no longer a threat to Rohmoria alone. This is a threat to Dibrugarh town too, says 70-year-old Rajanikanta Phukan.

But no government has ever been rehabilitated. Most of these people have mostly shifted to encroach upon government land in nearby areas. A number of families have migrated in groups to Digboi,Filobari,Jagun,Doomdooma and other places in search of livelihood. Many are working as labourers in coal mines in Makum and Margherita.

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We have written hundreds of news items about Rohmorias woes. But nothing happens. The prime ministers promise too has become history now. Leaders will come to Rohmoria again,with numerous promises,as usual. The people have become indifferent to such promises, says Nripen Chandra Gohain,a local journalist who is also president of the Chabua Press Guild. Rohmoria has about 15,000 voters.

Of late,Oil India Ltd too has got entangled in the Rohmoria fiasco. The PSU struck oil here about a decade ago. But we refused to let them drill oil unless they did something for us. They Oil India promised us 360 dampners,but only 20 have been set up so far, says Ghana Baruah. Having drawn their lesson from their experience of official apathy,the villagers have thus asked the company representatives not to turn up till they fulfilled their promise.