Urgent Call for Erosion Control Measures Near Tinsukia's Eco Tourist Camp
Concerns Over Riverbank Erosion in Tinsukia
Doomdooma, Dec 19: The Dibrugarh-Tinsukia District Flood and Erosion Resistance Struggle Forum has raised alarms regarding the insufficient preventive actions against riverbank erosion affecting an approximately 800-meter stretch near the Canopus Eco Tourist Camp located in the Hatighuli region of West Saikhowa, Tinsukia district.
During a recent site inspection led by the Forum's president, Binod Kedia, it was noted that while significant progress is being made on embankment construction using sand-filled geo-bags in the highly vulnerable Milonpur, Felai, and Naokata regions, no measures have been initiated by the Water Resources Department to tackle the severe erosion near the eco tourist camp.
The Forum highlighted that substantial erosion during the previous monsoon season resulted in the creation of a large depression in the area, resembling a pond.
Experts have cautioned that with the next monsoon approaching, water inflow into this depression could worsen the situation, posing a significant risk to surrounding regions.
It was noted that previous embankment efforts using geo-bags had been conducted over a stretch of about 1,200 meters. However, most of these geo-bags were swept away during the last flood. The urgent need for repairs in this area has left local residents feeling anxious due to the lack of action from the Water Resources Department.
Residents have expressed that unless repair work is initiated along an estimated 1,100-meter stretch near the camp and erosion-control strategies utilizing geo-bags or geo-tubes are implemented over an 800-meter stretch during the dry season, any erosion-control efforts in the downstream Felai-Naokata area will be ineffective, regardless of the quantity of geo-bags deployed.
The Forum, along with local residents, has made a collective appeal to the Water Resources Department to promptly commence erosion prevention initiatives near the tourist camp.