Assam’s Flood, Power Politics And Dams- Experts Deliberated Clues in Conclave

The penultimate session of The Conclave 2025 turned the spotlight on floods, dams, and power politics in Northeast India, with experts examining the region’s unique geographic and developmental challenges.

In Assam, the recurring problem of floods has long been intertwined with politics. Nayan Pratim Kumar, Political Editor of Pratidin Time, raised the issue, noting that from 1950 to the present day, Assam has continued to grapple with devastating floods. 

Responding, Bhagwat Pran Duara, Professor at the Department of Geological Sciences, Gauhati University, explained that the challenge is rooted in the state’s geopolitics and geology. The 1950 earthquake, he said, altered the structure of Assam and the hills of Arunachal, loosening soil. With August being flood season, floodwaters carried the loosened soil into the Brahmaputra. By 1954, Assam witnessed one of its most severe floods, which also affected Bihar, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh.

Following this, a three-tier flood management project was devised: measures to be taken during floods, short-term strategies, and long-term solutions. Embankments were built in Assam as a temporary measure, and today nearly 4,500 km of such structures exist. But long-term measures such as sediment trapping or sustainable developmental interventions remain absent.

As population has grown, so has the demand for land and shelter. People have cut down hills to settle in flood-prone areas that were previously uninhabited. “The government has yet to find a lasting solution, and people continue to suffer year after year,” he added.

Tarun C. Borgohain, Former Executive Director of NEEPCO, stressed that research and analysis alone cannot resolve the issue. Assam’s bowl-shaped terrain continuously receives sediment from the Himalayas, which settles in the Brahmaputra. Developmental activities have damaged riverbeds, while natural calamities like cloudbursts further worsen the situation.

He pointed out that while National Highway 15 was built 50–60 years ago at a slightly elevated level, today’s new highways in low-lying areas are being constructed 3–4 meters higher than the earlier standard. “This situation will persist, no matter how many seminars or debates are held,” Borgohain remarked. “We need progressive methods that adapt to reality and allow for siltation.”

He cited the Majuli–Dibrugarh embankments, where roads are built atop the structures. Yet, in the event of a massive flood, even these embankments would be submerged. He cautioned that in the name of planning, vast sums of money have already been wasted, urging policymakers to be more realistic.

On dams, Borgohain noted that designs often come from Delhi without considering regional needs. “Dams must be region-specific to last longer and remain durable,” he said, adding that national models like the Bhakra Dam cannot simply be replicated in Assam.

Advocate and social activist Tula Ram Gogoi highlighted the human and cultural costs of development projects. “The Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Project sparked debates over the protection of lives, livelihoods, and culture in the affected areas. From 2003 onwards, strong public movements emerged, culminating in court battles in 2016, many of which are still ongoing,” he said.

He recalled that even Prime Minister Narendra Modi had once opposed embankments at Pasighat, while then–Home Minister Rajnath Singh had led protests at Gerukamukh in 2009. “According to reports, there is no other embankment worldwide with 17 expert committees reviewing it, and yet the problem remains unsolved. Recently, the Lok Sabha identified this embankment as being in a dangerous condition,” he added.

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