Doomdooma: The Assam Jatiyatabadi Yuva-Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) on Thursday staged a three-hour sit-in protest in Guwahati, demanding a permanent solution to the state’s recurring flood and river erosion crisis and its recognition as a national problem.
AJYCP members raised slogans and urged the Centre to provide immediate financial assistance and long-term measures to address the devastation caused by floods and erosion.
They said Assam’s flood and erosion problems are not merely natural disasters but have become a major crisis that affects the state’s economy and public life every year.
The organisation demanded that the Centre formally recognise Assam’s flood and erosion crisis as a national problem and urgently release Rs 10,000 crore as special assistance for the economic revival of flood-hit Upper Assam.
AJYCP leader Bijan Bayan said the Centre must also allocate Rs 10,000 crore annually through the Union Budget to rebuild Assam’s economy, which suffers recurring losses due to floods and erosion.
“Assam’s flood and erosion problems need a permanent solution. The Centre must stop treating Assam as a stepchild. If Assam’s resources are considered national resources, then Assam’s problems must also be treated as national problems,” Bayan said.
The AJYCP warned that if the Centre failed to provide annual assistance, it should stop collecting royalties from Assam through public sector undertakings such as Oil India, ONGC and Coal India.
The organisation also demanded that Assam be given greater rights over its mineral and natural resources.
The statewide agitation sought to highlight that recurring floods and erosion have gone beyond seasonal disasters, causing extensive damage to homes, farmland, infrastructure and livelihoods.
The AJYCP said sustained central investment and a comprehensive long-term strategy were essential to protect Assam from the recurring cycle of destruction and economic losses.