GUWAHATI: The lives of several lakhs people living in the riverine (char) areas in at least eight districts of Assam have been affected by the temporary ban on the operation of mechanised countrymade boats on rivers of the state.
The state government has clamped a temporary ban on the plying of such boats in the wake of five people drowning after an “overloaded” ferry had an engine breakdown, hit a water project structure and capsized near Ashwaklanta in north Guwahati on September 5. A one-man committee was constituted on Saturday to probe the incident and submit a report in 30 days. The government has ordered replacement of single engine boats with double engine ones as a safety measure.
Residents of lower Assam districts of South Samara-Mancachar, Dhubri, Goalpara, Kamrup (Rural), Nalbari, Barpeta, Bongaigaon and Morigaon have been the worst affected by the ban. A majority of them travel between these districts by boats to work/trade, avail education and healthcare every day as rivers are the only mode of communication
While people have expressed safety concerns in regard to ferry operations on rivers, what has irked the civil society is the indifferent attitude of the state government towards the difficulties faced by the people living in the riverine areas whose lives hinge on river transport.
Condemning the government’s lack of foresightedness and reactive methods at the cost of public convenience, the All Assam Minorities Students’ Union president, Rezaul Karim Sarkar rued the fact that the water transport department failed to put in place an alternative mode of communication after the ban on ferry plying.
“Our children have stopped going to schools for lack of ferry service. Patients are left in the lurch for lack of boats to take them to hospital while the livelihoods of farmers, mainly engaged in jute and paddy cultivation, have taken a hit. I would say about 40 lakh people in the char areas have been directly affected by the ban. Yet the state government has not put in place optional ways to continue the river transport service,” Sarkar told The Shillong Times on Sunday.
The union has approached the district magistrates of South Salmara, Nalbari, Dhubri and Goalposts districts but to no avail.
“We have met the deputy commissioners of the four districts but to no avail as they have hinted that they were bound to adhere to the government directive. The mishaps apparently are happening because of negligence on part of the department and why should commuters bear the brunt either way,” he said.
The AAMSU chief demanded that the government should take immediate measures to bail the hapless riverine residents out of this problem at the earliest.
Meanwhile, despite the ban on the country boats, a number of overloaded bhutbhutis (mechanised ferries with a load capacity of 15 people varying with size) were reportedly operating at Lahorighat in Morigaon district on Sunday. From people to farm material and cycles to livestock, as many as 30 to 40 boats without any safety equipment on board are said to ply over the river in the area everyday.
“These people will always be at risk in the absence of optional modes. Their lives and livelihoods hinge on river transport and it is unfortunate that the authorities are looking the other way, ” Sarkar said.