Severe erosion threatens north-west Jorhat villages JORHAT, July 22: About 20 km from here, the residents of Neol Gaon and 33 other villages under Dergaon Legislative Assembly Constituency in north-west Jorhat are waging a grim struggle against severe erosion which is threatening to uproot them. The Brahmaputra river, which flows close to these villages, is dangerously poised to breach the strategic dyke running along from Khutiapota check bund to Negheriting-Rangagara. In the worst case scenario, as many as 40,000 residents, mostly hailing from Mising and Deori communities, will be affected if the red river washes away a chunk of the embankment which lies just 250 metres away from it. When contacted, official sources at the Upper Assam Investigation Division, which operates under the State Water Resources Department, confirmed the precarious situation at the site. Though temporary measures have been made to check the unabated erosion, these are not likely to be effective. The situation may turn disastrous if there is no permanent protection for the embankment, constructed way back in 1952, by the next two years. The sources pointed out that the last major works were executed in 1992 when the embankment was raised. The Upper Assam Investigation Division is understood to be pressing for a permanent anti-erosion scheme, valued at Rs 4 crore, to protect the area. At such short notice, the project can be sponsored under Calamity Relief Fund. Meanwhile, the Division has already got the nod for a Rs 7-crore anti-erosion project to secure Kolbari and other villages in the vicinity. The project under the flood management programme of the Centre's task force, constituted in 1998, will involve the installation of porcupines and the reinforcement of the existing Lality check bund. The Upper Assam Investigation Division is entrusted with the task of controlling floods and erosion along the south bank of the Brahmaputra for a total length of 48.35 km. The embankments and other protective structures extend from Jhanjimukh in the eastern part of the district to Bohikhuwa in the far north-west adjoining Golaghat district. The Division administers a total flood-prone area running into 40 square kilometres. The dykes along the Brahmaputra in the north and north-west of the district were built in the 1950s after the river started to flow southwards. A total eight spurs spread across a distance of 15 km in the Kokilamukh area were built in 1969. The ambitious Neamati-Hatisal project, which extends from Hatisal to Dainigaon covering a total distance of 12 km, was completed in June, 2007. Under the project, two bullheads and three spurs were built at a cost of Rs 31.77 crore to protect 15 villages in the area and also divert the channel of the Brahmaputra away from the town. Though spurs No 5, 6 and 8 also need reinforcement, the need of the hour is the protection of the 17-km stretch running beyond spur No 8, the official sources pointed out. An amount of Rs 11 lakh has already been spent on the temporary protection works, but these are not likely to be of any great help, they stressed. It may be mentioned that the area under consideration is known for its widespread agricultural activities and has emerged as the vegetable bowl of the district.