GUWAHATI: An interactive deliberation on rejuvenation of the Bahini-Bharalu ecosystem was held at the Department of Archaeology, Cotton University (CU) on Wednesday under the aegis of renowned historian and convenor of the Assam State Chapter of INTACH, Dr Sheila Bora.
The discussion conducted by Dr RN Mazumder, president of the 'Save Bharalu Abhiyan'. He narrated the entire course of Bahini-Bharalu from origin at Umtyrnga in the Khasi Hills of Meghalaya up to the confluence at Bharalumukh. Elaborating on the present sorry state of Bahini-Bharalu, once a live flowing river, he advocated a collaborative effort by citizens and the Government to rejuvenate it without further delay. The contaminant (heavy elements) gathered in Bahini-Bharalu are enough to make the citizens of Guwahati prone to diseases as 70 per cent people are still using ground water. He insisted on allowing Bahini-Bharalu to flow on its natural course by removing the gate at Natun Bazar, releasing sewage only after treatment, stopping of random throwing of garbage along with unauthorized encroachments.
Sumesh Dudani, Abhishek Kumar Upadhyay, Dhiraj Kakati, Mahesh Chandra Bora from INTACH, environmental journalist Mubina Akhtar, Narayan Sarma, Jonali Devi and Rwitika Sahu from Cotton University, Maan Baruah, Aditya Ranjan Pathak, and Ambrogio Colletti from Italy participated in the session.
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