Channeling Concern

Encroachment of Canal threatens Bongaigaon

One would hardly find any trace of a 20 km multi purpose water canal dug during the tenure of the then Chief Minister, Sarat Chandra Singha in 1973 with a view to irrigate the paddy fields connecting Kuchia river as a source of water from Basugaon to New Bongaigaon.

Besides providing irrigation water to the paddy fields, it had stopped the entire area from flooding. However, this canal has undergone a sea change over the last 20 years owing to rapid urbanization in the area after the coming up many industries including BRPL in Dhaligaon.

However, New Bongaigaon comes under the Bhaolaguri village of Dalgaon gaon panchayat in Bongaigaon district. But now Bhaolaguri by no means is a village. Multi-storied buildings, schools, health centres, banks, markets connected to rail heads have come up and totally transformed the area into a satellite city of Bongaigaon.

The development of the area might be a blessing for the new settlers but it has proved to be a curse for the farmers who are dependent on the canal water for the irrigation of their fields as the entire canal is reeling under encroachment.

Bhaolaguri gaon panchayat member, Sushanta Sutradhar alleged that a lackadaisical attitude on the part of the concerned departments has aggravated the problem of artificial water-logging in the Bhaaolaguri gaon panchayat area.

Nearly 10,000 people of Bhaolaguri have been going through a great deal of problems during the rainy season as there is little space left in the canal to drain out the water, Sutradhar further alleged. Sutradhar also pointed out that the bed of the canal has been rising rapidly since 1990 due to factors like encroachment, dumping of waste and failure of the concerned departments to implement the schemes for increasing the depth of the canal.

A resident of Bhaolaguri, Ajoy Bose said that in the year 2000-2001, work was undertaken to clean the canal but surprisingly, the scheme did not cover the stretch from Basugaon to Bhaolaguri (New Bongaigaon).

Bose who is also the Secretary of a local club said that unabated encroachment of the canal compounded the problem of water logging and flood in the area and every year even at the slightest down pour, the entire area goes under knee deep water.

Bose also informed that they were going to submit a memorandum to Bongaigaon Deputy Commissioner urging him take immediate steps to evict the encroachers from canal.

When contacted, Bongaigaon Deputy Commissioner Santanu P. Gutmare said that the canal, if it has really been encroached upon, would be cleared. “No one can encroach upon the water canal and if there is encroachment on the canal then we will evict the encroachers,” Gutmare assured.