Guwahati: Assam has lost around 4.27 lakh hectares of land because of erosion caused by the Brahmaputra river, greatly impacted the overall development of the country, the Assembly was told on Wednesday.
Replying questions by all India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) MLA Sirajuddin Ajmal, Minister of Water Resources Pijush Hazarika said that floods and erosion were the main disasters caused by the Brahmaputra river and their tributaries.
The Department of Water Resources has implemented erosion protection schemes from time to time as needed on affected sites, he said.
“This scheme has produced the desired results in terms of controlling eternal problems erosion by different rivers,” Minister said.
Assembly Assam in 2015 has passed the resolution for the inclusion of river erosion in the National Disaster Response Guidelines (NDRF) and state disaster response funds (SDRF).
Revenue and Department of Disaster Management of the State Government has told erosion as a specific disaster of the state in 2015 and according to the norm, 10 percent of the funds allocated under the SDRF can be used for specific disasters of the country, said Hazarika.
The 15th Finance Commission has considered erosion as a disaster and discussed two aspects of erosion which included mitigation measures to prevent erosion and resettlement of displaced by erosion, he said.
The Commission recommended Rs 100 Crore under the NDRF for resettlement of erosion and 1,500 crore rs under national disaster mitigation funds (NDMF) separately for steps to control erosion, the minister added.