[Assam] Artificial Floods in Guwahati - AP Borgohain

[Jyotirmoy Sharma]

Without going into the technicalities of diverting water from Meghalaya, the
points raised in the article seem valid and logical except this one.
"Let us cut the hills inside Guwahati and fill up low lying areas with the
cut materials. Let us build wide roads to the top of the hills like in San
Francisco."
I would have though that if you destroy the hills, then no hills remain to
build roads. Can't the same be achieved from the sand banks of Brahmaputra
without destroying the hills?
JS

>From the Assam Tribune Editorial
http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=jul0608/edit2


Artificial Floods in Guwahati - AP Borgohain
In 1950, the natural drainage system along with the wet spaces were
sufficient enough for carrying the surface run off of the present catchment
area of Guwahati to the outfall at Bharalumukh. As the low lying places are
filled up and sewage added to run off, flood occurred. To decrease the
quantity of surface run off, flowing to the natural drainage system, it is
necessary to catch the run off and divert it on gravity flow. The level of
Brahmaputra at Palasbari is 6 m below the level of Guwahati. The storm water
coming down the hills of Meghalaya, enter Guwahati through the bridges on NH
37 via Bahini and Basistha rivers near Khanapara and flowing via Bharalu
river in the city exit Guwahati through the bridge on NH 37 near Jalukbari.

Let us catch this water at the foot of the hills and divert it to Dipar Beel
and then to Palasbari. Let us not allow the storm water from the hills of
Meghalaya to cross NH 37 and come to Guwahati. The watershed so contained at
the foothills will form into an artificial lake, becoming a place of tourist
attraction with water sports in it. Harvesting of rainwater like this will
assist in maintaining the ground water level of the city also. Similarly,
the water coming down to Silarshaku Beel from Jorabat Amsing Hills can be
caught at the foothills and diverted to this lake via Khanapara. Catch water
drains can be built under the roads in all the hillocks of Guwahati and the
water can be diverted to Brahamaputra directly on gravity flow. Then,
Bharalu and Bahini will flow with the run off of the plains of the city and
there will be no overflowing.

Let us have a good Town Planner. Let us cut the hills inside Guwahati and
fill up low lying areas with the cut materials. Let us build wide roads to
the top of the hills like in San Francisco. This will automatically stop
haphazard settlement on hills. The street level in the plains of Guwahati
city maybe fixed at two feet above the HFL of the rivers.

Let us evict all the shops in front of residences of residential locality.
The building Byelaws of the GMDA require front open space of minimum 3 m to
9 m regulated by width of street and height of building. Therefore, all
shops built up to the road or footpath is illegal and these shops are the
main root of blocking of drains and streams. Even shops built in front of
multistoried buildings on the main roads are illegal. GMDA should take
immediate steps to evict all illegal structures. GMDA can encourage
construction of mall with sufficient parking in each of the localities.

A modern sewage treatment plant and solid disposal system is the immediate
necessity of the city but let us ensure that: (i) there shall be no house in
the city without a septic tank; (ii) no septic tank should be permitted
without a covered soak pit; (iii) households disposing effluent from septic
tanks directly to roadside drains may be fined and sealed; (iv) usage of
imported porous soil for the soak pit for proper soaking maybe made
statutory; (v) disposal of sullage (water from bathrooms, kitchens and
laundry) to roadside drains maybe immediately banned. Owners must arrange
soak pits for sullage soaking within their own compounds; (vi) bulky
household waste and solid waste must also be incinerated inside compounds
only. Throwing of such wastes to roads, rivers, drains, should be severely
punished by law; (vii) every citizen must keep his compound and the road and
the roadside drain in front of his house clean: otherwise he should be fined
in thousands of rupees daily; (viii) all hotels in Paltan Bazaar area and
other places dispose the sullage into roadside drains. Hotels, apartments,
commercial places disposing sullage into roadside drains should be
immediately sealed; (ix) roadside drains, streams, rivers in the city should
carry storm water only; (x) implementation of the above civic rules will
have added benefit of mosquito control with empowered existing
organizational structure of the authorities.

Let us take the following steps for beautification of the city. A cleaner
city will draw out its surface water: (a) Let us keep removable big plastic
buckets, garbage bins with potythene carry bags inside, in large numbers in
all public places, commercial place, markets, roadsides etc. like in
Singapore and keep one watchman for regular removal and replacing of the
carry bags and arrange for their immediate disposal. Unemployed youths can
take up this business and collect fees from the shops and residents.

(b) Let us remove all roadside advertisements. These are unlawful, not found
in Delhi, give a clumsy look, encourage littering and their legs block
waterways and the flicker of a glance at these, causes accidents throwing
scraps to drains. Let us plant flowers and trees instead. When you can build
such costly roads why do you allow someone to put his sign in the middle of
the road in the name of a barrier.

(c) Let us forbid and remove all tea and pan tables, vegetable vendors etc
from footpaths, roadsides etc.

(d) Let us forbid and remove storage of sand, soil, bricks, and aggregates
etc on roads for sale. It should be statutory that materials collected on
road for construction of building do not see daylight.

(e) Let us enforce along the road parking only. Across the road and double
parking maybe banned. Close all gaps in median in all the roads of Guwahati.
Like, why do you allow the gap in front of the Saraogi petrol pump on GS
Road, when there is a rotary one hundred feet away in front of the
secretariat.

(f) Let the rickshaws, the autorickshaws, the taxis, the trucks and the
buses find their own parking lots. Their parking on roads should be banned
immediately.

(g) GMDA should encourage multistoried private parking places.

(h) Let the city have red lights immediately. Make GS Road and AT Road
freeways and introduces traffic signal on all other streets. A disciplined
traffic will receive lesser litters

Let the GMDA engage a sanitary inspector, a housing inspector, a health
inspector, a traffic inspector etc on each road and let them enforce the
building bye laws. Let them interact with the local residents' Associations.
Superintendents may be engaged in each locality to check upon the
inspectors. These superintendents should be answerable to the CEO, Minister.
Let the residents bear the cost and let them live in healthy Guwahati.
Stringent laws empower the GMDA but their strict implementation is the need
of the day.
(*The writer is a retired Commissioner, Assam PWD.*)