USTM is the root cause of flash floods in Guwahati, says Assam CM

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaAugust 7, 2024

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday blamed the University of Science and Technology Meghalaya (USTM) for blocking the inflow of water from the Meghalaya hills to Guwahati which is the root cause of flash floods in Guwahati and said he would soon discuss this issue with his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad Sangma to find out a solution.

“I will discuss the issue with Meghalaya Chief Minister. The damage is already done. Now the only way is that the inflow of water would have to be diverted to Deepor Beel or Shilsaku Beel,” Sarma told reporters on Wednesday.

He said USTM has dug up a big hill, taking advantage of the geographic location in Guwahati and Meghalaya. If somebody visits USTM, they will see that more than 4-5 hills have been removed. At the time of setting up the university, the Assam government should have taken up the issue with the Meghalaya counterpart.

“After the USTM was established, water flows unprecedentedly to the plain areas of Guwahati. Earlier, water used to flow slowly from the Meghalaya hills,” he also said.
“The Meghalaya government should have permitted for it to be constructed at a farther location. A DPS (Delhi Public School) was also constructed at the same place. Some people from Guwahati went to Meghalaya and set up this university. They also cut down the hills,” the Chief Minister also said.

Regarding Monday’s flood in Guwahati, the Chief Minister said: “Guwahati has received 25% of the season’s rainfall in one day on Monday. The drains we have already constructed cannot handle this amount of water. We face such a situation once or twice every year. During these days, the situation goes out of our control,” Sarma said and stressed the need for improved infrastructure and better planning to manage the heavy rainfall and prevent flooding in the city.”

 “To control the flash floods, we have to construct drains of double the size. We will need to acquire land from people to make this possible,” Secondly unprecedented flow of water from Meghalaya,” he said.

“If we construct drains, a lot of land will be required, which is beyond our financial capacity. We should not be emotional; rather, efforts should be made to resolve the issue practically,” he said.

“On the day before yesterday, there was a traffic jam, even as the water receded within 2 to 3 hours. This smart city cannot handle such an amount of water. We have to go for the next level of a smart city,” he further said.

“We will have to upgrade our infra for such days by going in for land acquisition to build a robust discharge system,” he added.

Meanwhile, Assam Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Ashok Singhal has attributed the severe flooding in Guwahati to water from neighbouring Meghalaya, citing the red hue of the floodwater as evidence.

Singhal pointed out that the red colour of the floodwater is due to the red soil from Meghalaya.