A few ideas for boosting development of Assam

A few ideas for boosting development of Assam

 

-Manoj Kumar Das (77-79 PU(Sc))

 

Since distant past Assam always attained considerable power and a fair degree of civilization as pointed out by several historians. Sir Edward Gait mentions that the soil of the Brahmaputra valley is fertile, but its climate is damp and relaxing, so that, while the people enjoy great material prosperity, there is a strong tendency towards physical and moral deterioration. The inhabitants become lazy and mellowed down over a few generations and are overrun by more aggressive people from the hills or the west from time to time. Similar fate awaits these newcomers in their near future. Thus the valley has become a demographic melting pot. It has more than 200 ethnic groups intermingled. Gait terms this as the ‘sleepy hollow’ of the Brahmaputra Valley.

 

Such a tragedy is in progress now, in our times and we can do nothing about it. Relentless migration across intra-national and international borders over past century has reduced the ethnic Assamese people to a minority, thus losing political power to new equations. In democracy numbers matter.

 

We are losing economically too. Assam is one of the richest regions in the world. It has oil, coal, forest, water, natural assets, wildlife, ethnic diversity, international borders, wide rivers and what not. During independence, Assam was on top of the chart on economic indicators. However, in a seminar last year former Finance Minister Mr. P Chidambaram debunked the claim, citing that the parameters were different then. The initial advantage was eroded by decades of lower plan investment, outflow of precious resources without reinvestment.  Over the years since independence the economic situation has degenerated due to depletion of the numerator due to outflow and ballooning of the denominator due to uninterrupted, huge influx.

 

 Produced below is comparative statement of per capita net domestic products for top ranking states/UT of India vis a vis Assam.

 

PER CAPITA NET DOMESTIC PRODUCTS FOR TOP RANKING STATES/UTs
1980-81 to 2005-06
sl no		States		1980-81		1990-91		1995-96		2001-02		2002-03		2003-04		2004-05		2005-06
1	Chandigarh								52385		58772		66512		75181		86629
	Ranking		na		na		na		1st		1st		1st		1st		1st
2	Goa		3145		8797		20141		44110		48839		54577		66135		70112
	Ranking		2nd		2nd		2nd		2nd		2nd		2nd		2nd		2nd
3	Delhi		4030		11057		21830		43587		45483		49825		55215		61676
	Ranking		1st		1st		1st		3rd		3rd		3rd		3rd		3rd
4	Pandicherry		2794		6683		11512		39138		44903		48547		44908		48477
	Ranking		3rd		6th		7th		4th		4th		4th		4th		4th
5	Haryana		2370		7509		13573		26077		28259		31509		35044		38832
	Ranking		6th		4th		5th		7th		7th		6th		5th		5th
6	Maharashtra		2435		7439		15770		24450		26697		29770		32979		37081
	Ranking		5th		5th		4th		9th		8th		8th		8th		8th
7	Punjab		2674		8318		16053		28949		29443		31192		32945		34929
	Ranking		4th		3rd		3rd		5th		6th		7th		7th		7th
8	A & N Island		1613		5590		10911		27112		30050		33150		31004		34853
	Ranking		11th		8th		9th		6th		5th		5th		9th		8th
9	Gujarat		1940		5891		12914		19823		22683		26922		29468		34157
	Ranking		7th		7th		6th		12th		11th		10th		10th		9th
10	Assam		1284		4281		6624		13153		14600		15687		16825		18598
	Ranking		25th		19th		23rd		25th		24th		26th		27th		24th
Surce: indiabudget.nic.in (1999-2000) and (2008-09)

 

 

British started the Assam operations with Assam Railways and Trading Company in 1838 AD, the companies registration Act was passed a just a couple of years back. They constructed elaborate rail tracks, developed inland water transport upto Sadiya. Huge saw mills were set up at Sadiya and Chichiborgaon to semi process and take out the timber wealth. Tea gardens were set up in the foothills and uplands, which numbered about 1000 at one point of time. Land was granted to companies at abysmally low revenue rates. Labourers were brought in thousands from Chottanagpur, Orissa, Telengana, Bastar etc. Rail and inland water transport evacuated coal, jute, tea from the region. Then accidentally oil was discovered at Digboi and first refinery in Asia was set up at Digboi in 1899 AD. Till this date oil is flowing out of Assam. Assam’s resources didn’t touch the lives of its inhabitants. Neither that money was reinvested back, both private and public. The fringe benefits went to others. Even today the registered offices of the tea companies are located in Kolkata. West Bengal enjoys employment, warehousing, logistics and huge tax benefits from Assam tea. I did some ballpark research on the value of the resources taken out from Assam. It’s no point talking about the British period. Hence I have chosen the period post independence. The amount is arrived at current prices. Logic is, had we invested back the proceeds, that would have wielded more than the current market prices with lot many add ons.

 

Table shows the cumulative figure of resources taken out from Assam post independence era, which could have been invested back.

 

Item name	Average Annual	Unit	No. of Years since 1947	Current average market price per unit($)	Total Amount per year (US$ Billion)	Total since 1947 (US$ Billion)	Basis
Crude Oil + Natural Gas, All Waxes, Petroleum Coke (equivalent of Crude Oil) (Price of 1 Barrel=$60 prices)	4.5 + 4 =9.5	MnMT	61	432	4.104	250.34	1MT=7.2 barrels (Oil India Ltd. produces 3.4 Mn MT per year and ONGC produces 1.2 Mn MT per year- ONGC used to produce upto 3 Mn MT sometime back, so average is taken at 4.5 Mn MT)
Tea	475 Mn	Kg	61	5	2.375	144.86	India produces 850 Mn Kgs of tea per annum, Assam’s share is 55%)
Timber	50 Mn	Cuft	35	3.5	0.18 (not to be added to current year)	6.13	(Assam used to supply upto 90% of India’s plywood demand. The log felling ban has put an end to legal logging operations)
Coal	0.85 Mn	MT	61	156.25	0.133	8.10	(Annual average production of NECF is about 0.85 Mn MT. Average price is Rs. 7500 per MT)
Bamboo	LS	-	30	-	0.50	15.0	(HPC and paper mills outside Assam has been exploiting the bamboo wealth of Assam for past 30 years)
Others	LS	-	61	-	1	61.0	Others like Agar, Agarwood, Shellac, Minerals, Silk, Jute, Medicinal herbs, Spices, Animal produce etc.
Total					8.11	485.43	At $Bn=4800 Rs.. crore. The amount is equal to Rs. 23,30,064 crores.

 

 

It is obvious that the wealth of the state was drained out through a system of Public Enterprises. The main revenue generating resources of the state were under the Central Sector while the sectors like policing, health, education etc. which are expenditure intensive were given to the state government. The total reversal of self-dependence on Food Production front due to National Embankment Policy crippled everybody since 1950. It has broken the backbone of the state’s economy.

 

What’s the way forward? I have been observing how states like Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra grew. Uttar Pradesh has recently launched a few mega projects like Yamuna and Ganga Expressways to give a fillip to spending, so that the economy gets a boost. The following few ideas of big buck spending to bring back Assam on the rail of development has come out of my idea box. This is for the experts to evaluate and take a prudent view. I am sure these projects will find favour with the central government as well as the private parties.

 

A. Development of the Brahmaputra river basin:

 

Scope of work:

 

Part#1  Canalizing and training of the river Brahmaputra and its tributaries:

 

·        Survey of satellite pictures and contour profiling of the valley to find channels and recesses to train the River Brahmaputra and its tributaries;

·        To find out how much channel depth and width will be required for full discharge of maximum flow in the river;

·        To study creation of ‘‘monkey’s mouths’’ during high floods for flood mitigation;

·        To do an estimation of the total land that could be recovered after the training of the rivers;

·        To do an estimation of the civil work needs to be done to dredge and dig the channels.

·        To do a cost estimate of above works.

 

Note:

 

On a rough estimate, some 1.5 million hectares can be reclaimed if the Brahmaputra river system is dredged, canalized and trained. There is also a novel idea of dumping the reclaimed soil in a North-South direction in mounds to get the maximum surface area.

 

Part#2 Utilities and facilities across the river:

 

·        Identification of locations for setting up of run of the river power plants, with lock grid system for uninterrupted navigation along the river;

·        Estimation of energy that can be generated from run of the river power plants;

·        Identification of river port sites, jetties, water parks, water animal reserves, irrigation channels, in consultation with National Waterways Authorities.

 

Part#3 Building of Brahmaputra expressways on the two banks of the river and  ancillary development:

 

·        Survey of a route for two parallel 8 lane- expressways from Sadiya to Dhubri; it will also act as a flood deterrent embankment with sluice gates at strategic locations;

·        Survey of other arterial roads along the tributaries;

·        Identification and development of PPP projects for setting up of ethnic tourist villages, craft museums, cultural centres, entertainment parks, water sports facilities, river cruise facilities, river beaches, water parks, spas, sanatorium etc.

 

Part #4            To prepare a CDM project for economic afforestation, medicinal, aromatic and bio-diesel plantations.

                        Project on the reclaimed lands and huge mounds to be created on the both sides of the trained river. An afforestation

 

B. Construction up of an Aerotropolis  near Doom Dooma, upper Assam:

 

Scope of work:

·        Study the current flow of traffic between pacific Rim, China, Korea, Japan to Middle East, Africa, West Asia and vice versa;

·        Identify existing transit, recreation, resting hubs in India, Thailand and vicinity;

·        Work out the pre feasibility of setting up a green field, state of the art, ultra modern aerotropolis for refueling, recreation, resting;

·        Identify the infrastructure, facilities like healthcare, entertainment, short tourist recreational facilities like golfing, spas, healthcare, sanatorium, shopping malls.

 

 

            Note:

Assam lies in between the far eastern countries of Japan, Korea, Pacific RIM countries and Africa & Middle east nations. Doomdooma in upper Assam is on the western head of the Stillwell road that connects Assam with the Southwestern part of China. This place is not far from Dibrugarh, the healthcare hub of upper Assam. This could be a refuelling, resting, recreation and transit stop for long distance travelers from the Pacific rim to South Asia, South Africa and West Asia. As of now, there is no such place. Bangkok is too near, Mumbai-Delhi are dull and Dubai is too dry and far. The aerotropolis will have World Class recreation hubs, education, accommodation, sports facilities and a satellite IT hub to tap the IT potential of the NE Region.

 

C. Creating a Metropolis:

 

There is a need to create a mega city, where about 15 million people could live. This city –state could have an area of influence of about 1,500 kms. In South East Asia Singapore, Kualalumpur, Bangkok. Kunming have their spheres of affluence. To the West are Dhaka, Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Karachi, Lahore, Tehran  etc. Guwahati is ideally located to yield such a sphere of influence, however it does not have the land.

 

The mega city will be a centre of consumption, manufacturing, trade & commerce. If Guwahati is chosen to be the candidate the city must expand to the North and the East. The great river is ideally located to support such a mega city. At least three bridges across the river, roads, drainage, water, sewage, sanitation, power, education, recreation, entertainment and health facilities needs to be created. The city will have to outgrow its current topographical limitations and metamorph itself into a great city.

 

D. Open up age old trade links of Assam:

 

There is need to build an all-weather, four-lane expressways through the Stillwell Road from Ledo to Mytkyina in Myanmar to link up with Route No. 9 of Trans Asian Highways that goes upto Singapore. In my estimate only 205 Km of road needs to be built through the Hukong Valley. It will push the insurgents and bring in prosperity and tourism from prosperous ASEAN and PACIFIC RIM. Without connectivity, the Centre’s “Look East Policy” will be a blind policy. The bogey of Chinese fear is not doing any good to our security either.

 

E. Build a spiritual tourism circuit:

 

Assam and the North-east have great endowment of extraordinary biodiversity, landscape, demographic diversity. It also has a fair share of myths right from the Mahabharata Times.

 

A well-designed and commercially viable spiritual tourism circuit can be established, starting point from the legendary Parsuram Kund on the Lohit in Arunachal, with theme parks and infrastructure at Sisupal Garh and Bhismak Nagar. The next stop will be Malini Than near Silapathar where Krishna was said to have been garlanded by Durga, in guise of a malini (flowerwoman). Bring the tourist to Majuli, which was blessed by krishna to be the second Vrindavan and is living upto the reputation with its numerous Sattras and the living Satriya culture.

 

Biswanath Ghat on the North Bank, known as the second Kashi, could be the next stopover with Tezpur's mystic past with Usha and Anniruddha providing the missing links. Kamakhya in Guwahati Ashwaklanta in North Guwahati, Madan Kamadeva near Hajo and Suryapahar ruins in Goalpara, and ultimately the Netai Dhubuni Ghat at Dhubri will provide the chain to the legendary connections to the mystic past.

 

We need to go back to our Pragjyotishpura days for connecting to the great Indian domestic pilgrimage traffic that brings in billions in search of succor to the soul.

 

 

            Millions will come to visit Assam for spiritual reconnection.

 

“Bajok xonkho bajok doba bajok mridong khol, oxom akou unnotir pothot -Jai Aii Oxom-bol”

 

“””””””””””””””””””””””””””END””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””