5 Sep :The Brahmaputra Board was constituted in 1980 by an Act of Parliament with the objective of planning and integrated implementation of measures for control of floods and bank erosion in Brahmaputra and Barak Valley and for matters connected therewith. The Board started functioning since January 11, 1982 with the headquarters at Guwahati, Assam. Its jurisdiction include the Brahmaputra and Barak Valleys and the rivers of Tripura. The States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya and parts of the States of Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura were included in its jurisdiction as initially notified under the act. The jurisdiction has been extended in June 2006 to include Sikkim and a part of West Bengal falling within the Brahmaputra basin.
The Board consists of the Chairman, Vice Chairman, General Manager-full time member, financial advisor/ex-officio member and 17 part time members representing 7 States of the North-Eastern region. The part time members also include the representation from North-Eastern council, concerned Ministries of Government of India namely Water Resources, Finance, Agriculture, Power, Surface Transport, and the organisations of the Government of India namely Central Water Commission (CWC), Central Electricity Authority (CEA), India Metrological Department (IMD) and Geological Survey of India (GSI).
The Board does survey and investigations in the Brahmaputra Valley and prepares master plans for the control of flood and bank erosion and improves the drainage giving due importance to the development and utilisation of water resources of the Brahmaputra valley. As per the act, the Board functions for irrigation, hydropower, navigation and other purposes. The functions of the Board also include preparation of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) and estimates of projects and the construction of multi-purpose dams and other works, proposed in the Master Plans, as approved by the Central Government.
The Board has carried out Detailed Planning and Documentation of the Water Resources of the North-Eastern region since its inception. It has also done surveys and investigations, preparation of Master Plans and DPRs, various projects construction works in the areas of drainage development and erosion. Flood control have also been taken up by the Board since 1999-2000.
Master Plans prepared by Brahmputra Board and approved by the Government have been to States for necessary action and implementation. The Master Plans which have been prepared river basin/sub basin-wise, include information on water resources available, temporal distribution of water resources, design flood, water requirement for various uses and water balanced study. These also include problem areas identified, past works done, suggest measures for tackling balanced problem, probable cost of measures suggested, benefits likely to accrue on implementation of Master Plan recommendation etc. The structural and non-structural measures for flood management, on short, medium and long term basis apart from multi purpose projects are included in the main recommendations.
The DPRs have been completed for 5 projects viz – Siang Single stage, Subansiri single stage in Arunachal Pradesh, Tipaimukh in Manipur and Mizoram, Pagladiya in Assam and Bairabi in Mizoram. Pagladiya dam project is under execution by the Board. Siang and Subansiri dam projects have been handed over to National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC) for execution. The Tipaimukh and Bairabi dam projects have been handed over to North-East Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO) and the Government of Mizoram respectively. The DPRs for Dibang project in Arunachal Pradesh were partially completed and handed over to NHPC for DPR completion and implementation.
The DPR for 8 projects namely Lohit, Noa-Dehing, Jiadhal, in Arunachal Pradesh; Kulsi Kling in Assam and Meghalaya; and Simsang, Kynshi Stage-I, Kynshi Stage-II in Meghalaya are in various stages of investigation and DPR preparation.
So far as Drainage Development Scheme (DDS) is concerned, out of 41 Drainage Congested Areas identified in Master Plan (25 in Brahmaputra basin, 12 in Barak basin and 4 in Tripura), DPRs for 20 schemes have been prepared. Out of these 20 schemes, 9 schemes viz. Harang, Barbhag, East of Barpeta, Jakaichuk, Joysagar, Jengrai, Singla and Amjur in Assam and Kailashahar in Tripura have been taken up by the Brahmaputra Board for execution. The remaining 21 drainage development schemes are under various stages of investigation and DPR preparation.
The North-Eastern Hydraulic and Allied Research Institute (NEHARI) was established under Brahmaputra Board as per the Assam accord and operationalised during 1996. Its main function include material testing and carrying out model studies etc. The institute has facilities of hydraulic laboratory with model trays and flumes and laboratories for testing soil, concrete and other construction materials and foundation rock. It has working arrangements for coordination with Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Pune and Central Soil and Material Research Station (CSMRS), New Delhi.