Residents of the Fakirganj village in Assam’s South Salmara Mankachar district on Saturday staged a protest on the banks of the Brahmaputra against rampant erosion in the area.
They also immersed effigies of Dhubri MP Badruddin Ajmal and South Salmara MLA Wajed Ali Choudhury in the river as a mark of protest.
The Fakirgang village has been reeling under the problem of erosion for years and residents live in constant fear of the Brahmaputra devouring their homes and land.
Residents of the village alleged that Ajmal and Choudhary have failed to take any measure to check erosion despite the assurance the duo gave before the recent Assam assembly elections that took place in April this year.
“The erosion problem in the area has turned grave, so much so that today people had to come out and protest,” said a resident of Fakirganj.
“Many hectares of land including many houses were washed away by the mighty Brahmaputra in the past decade. Although the situation is taking a turn for the worse, our elected representatives have done nothing to address this issue,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dhubri deputy commissioner Anbamuthan MP visited the riverine area of Bholarkhas village in Chotoguma to take account of the erosion of the embankment of the Gangadhar river on Saturday.
“Executive engineer of the water resources department has been instructed to take up immediate measures to prevent the breaching of the embankment,” said a district official.