GUWAHATI: The NGO ‘Save Bharalu (Bharalu Bachao) Abhijan’ led by surgeon Dr. Robin Mazumdar has been launching a silent revolution to save the dying Bharalu river in Guwahati.
To step up its awareness drive to save the river, the NGO is organising a half marathon on January 8. The half-marathon will be flagged off from Sonaram HS School playground at Bharalumukh at 6 am. It will pass through AT Road and GS Road to Khanapara and will back to Sonaram HS School playground, where the event will be flagged in. Both males and females above 12 years of old can take part in the half-marathon.
Constituted on September 26, 2021, Save Bharalu has been launching a series of awareness drives among the public and alerting them regarding the current plight and deplorable condition of the Bharalu river.
To focus on the urgency to revive the river, it has already conducted a series of awareness campaigns among school children and residents of the river bank.
The Bharalu River originates from the foothills of the Khasi Hills in Meghalaya and flows through Guwahati before meeting the Brahmaputra. It is known as the Bahini river in its upper reaches.
The Bahini finds its way through thickly inhabited areas of Basistha, Beltola, Rukmini Gaon, Ganeshguri, Dispur, and Hengerabari and then along the RG Baruah Road, where it finally meets with a major drain, which carries the wastage of Guwahati Refinery near Assam State Zoo cum Botanical Garden. From here the river assumes the name Bharalu.
Another stream of the river flows towards Paltan Bazar to meet Borsola Beel from where it flows to Deepor Beel carrying all the liquid wastes of the city.
Dr. Mazumdar has initiated the move after realising that the state government and the Guwahati Municipal corporation have failed to save the river, which carries 70 percent of rainwater for almost the entire city during the rainy season.
“We have the experience of swimming in the Bharalu river which is unimaginable now. The water was so clear that fishermen used to fish there. I remember there used to be beautiful green coverage from Rajgarh to Zoo Road in 1969, and the clean Bharalu river was flowing through it. But when Guwahati started developing, the river started deteriorating. There used to be no plastic culture in Guwahati before. People used to carry paper bags or some other bags to the market, but now things are different,” Dr. Mazumdar said.
“Due to the lackadaisical attitude of the authorities concerned the river, which was once home to varied aquatic species, has turned into a dirty drain carrying the waste of the city. The river which was the source of the people 60 years ago now remains black and dirty throughout the year,” he said.
The inaction of the government over the years has become an opportunity for some people to encroach upon the river banks and as a result of which the size of the river has reduced drastically, he said.
“The degradation of Bharalu started in 1975 but at present, it has become a river of only hazardous chemicals like arsenic, cadmium and chromium. In the recently conducted survey, the State Pollution Control Board has marked Bharalu as one of the most polluted rivers with a BOD level of 52.0 mg/l making it unfit for drinking,” he said.
“Bharalu’s development was not even a part of the smart city proposal given by the Assam government,” he said.
“We want to spread awareness that Bharalu is a river, not a drain, and Guwahati residents should refrain from dumping wastes in it,” said Dr Rubi Kataki, a dentist at Regional Dental College and joint secretary of Save Bharalu (Bharalu Bachao) Abhijan.
“We have conducted many activities to draw people’s attention towards the Bharalu. A cycle rally from Jonali to Bharalumukh was organized on September 26, 2021, to mark World Rivers Day. An all-Assam essay competition was held among the school children with Bharalu as the main theme. ‘On-the-spot painting competition’ was also organised among school students on November 14 at Kumarpara Namghar, a debating competition among college students and a quiz competition among senior school students,” Dr. Kataki said.
The state government has, from time to time, made numerous announcements about clearing the Bharalu from encroachment and preventing the dumping of garbage in it. But while dredging has been going on in the Bharalu at some sections, including in the stretch between RG Barua Road and GS Road, a section of irresponsible citizens has continued to throw garbage in it.
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The city generates around 70740 KL of sewage per day, a sizable portion of which must be flowing into the Bharalu and other rivers, streams, and other water channels of the city.
Currently, the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) has targeted to desilt around 1,000 km of a drain this year as part of the mission of flood-free Guwahati. It is learnt that all the structures constructed illegally along the water bodies will be demolished.
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