Pond or Cash Cow: A Small Pond in Nagaon Renovated 16-times & Spends Rs 1.15 crore in 22 years

A CORRESPONDENT NAGAON:

Pond or Cash Cow in Nagaon District: Believe it or not, it's a fact that a development block in Nagaon district excavated and renovated a small pond sixteen times under four Centrally-sponsored schemes spending Rs 1.15 crore in 22 years, yet it has failed to give the pond its final shape.

The pond is in the Pakhimoria Development Block office campus. It is in the Goldsmith community-dominated Rantholi village. Rontholi village is six km from Nagaon district headquarters. The villagers allege that the pond with an area of 4,000 squire ft pond was excavated partially in 1997. It was given the shape of a pond in 2008.

"Every year a scheme under any programme is taken in hands in the name of the pond. Sometimes the block authorities excavate the pond, sometimes they renovate the pond and sometimes they go for its beautification. To avail funds under a central scheme, the authorities named the pond meant for block fishery. To avail fund for another scheme, they renamed it after King Rudra Singha. All these changes and works were shown in papers only. The pond is always a low-lying area of stagnant hyacinth-filled dirty water body," said Sonoram Bania, a Rantholi villager.

As per Pakhimoria Development Block office records, a scheme under NREGA - Renovation of Fishery Tank at block headquarters spending Rs 5,90,425 was completed in May 2019.

"In the office papers three years ago, the pond was excavated under NREGA spending Rs 10 lakh. It was renovated under a centrally-sponsored development fund next year," said Prema Bania, another villager.

According to Bania, that was not a pond. "In 1997, there was an office construction work in the block campus and the site was dug for bringing earth to the building plinth. In later period sometimes the pond was dug and sometimes it was filled up only in office files," he said.

As per office record, in 2019 altogether 475 local villagers got work and generated 2,634 wages till May to renovate the pond. The block spent Rs 4,96,946 in the name of wages of the job cardholders.

Other major expenditure included Rs 52,212 for purchasing bamboo, Rs 5,500 for hiring pump set, and Rs 8,664 for plastic rope etc.

"Two persons can clean the small pond in half of a day. However, in papers, they have spent nearly Rs 6 lakh for cleaning the pond. The ground reality, however, remains that still now the pond is dirty and its water is not potable," said Rupen Hazarika, a Deudhar villager.

"We want the small pond dismantled completely by the administration to bring an end of the two-decade-long corruption in the development block in the name of the pond. We are moving the Nagaon administration shortly with this proposal," said Ramakanta Hazarika, a Deudhar villager.

Pakhimoria Development Block BDO Denesh Pegu said on Sunday that the pond is in an abandoned stage right now, and the local panchayat as well as the blocking authority has some plan in hands for renovating it.

"It is now an abandoned pond. If we clean the hyacinth it could be used for fish cultivation. We have some plan with us in the pipeline," Pegu said.

Also Read: Last Rites of 18 Elephants Killed in Nagaon District Performed

Also watch: Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Meets Family of Grenade Attack Victim in Digboi