GUWAHATI, Sept 12 - A colloquium on the mighty Brahmaputra was held in the conference hall of Cotton College today, a press release issued here informed.
It was jointly organised by Vision Assam Forum, Jana Jagriti, Brahmaputra Aradhana, NE Women�s Initiative for Peace and Development, NE Girls� Peace Volunteer Force, Purbuttor Mahamilan Manch, Biswanath Gupta Kashi Foundation, Centre for National Integration and Youth development, and Anannya.
A brief programme was conducted at the Sukreswar Ghat on Saturday morning to pay homage to the mighty river, which was attended by a large number of people.
The aim of the meet was explained by Nabajit Dutta, director, Brahmaputra Aradhana. Jhoola Sharma, director of Vision Assam Forum, delivered the keynote address, in which she explained about the basic philosophy behind the initiative and presented a brief overview of the objective of Vision Assam Forum.
Apart from Sadananda Sarma Bordoloi, retired Financial Adviser to the Govt of Assam, who presented a historical perspective of the Brahmaputra, others who spoke on the occasion included Dr Chandan Mahanta, faculty, Indian Institute of Technology, Manoj Das, director, India Institute of Entrepreneurship, Ashok Singhal, president, Jana Jagriti, Dr Hitesh Barman, faculty, Rangiya College, Dr Pradip Thakuria, social activist, Ruchi Awasthy, research scholar, JNU, Khanjan Nath, president, Kaziranga Suraksha Mancha, Jyoti Gogoi, president, North Bank Development Society, Rupanjali Thakuria, secretary, Anannya Socio-economic and Cultural Development Society, Meera Phukan, social activist, Umapada Lapang, social activist, Snigdha Goswami, secretary, Gupta Kashi Biswanath Foundation, and Arati Bora, social activist.
Several important issues related to preservation and protection of the river, unification of people of various religions and cultural backgrounds in the State, development of ancient historical and religious sites along the Brahmaputra, development of tourism, development of waterways, maintenance of cleanliness and beautification of the river front, development of the char areas, improvement of the socio-economic condition of the people residing along the river, etc, were discussed during the colloquium.
The meet also resolved to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to formally inaugurate the Mission Brahmaputra Aradhana in November. It also resolved to hold an international conference next month on various aspects related to the Brahmaputra in New Delhi.
The meeting also resolved to involve all NRIs from Assam in the initiative and seek international expertise and know-how to develop the river into one of the most resourceful in the world.
The forum also decided to approach the Central and State governments to take measures to develop Biswanath Ghat, also known as Gupta Kashi, into a major religious site to attract international as well as domestic tourists. The development of Biswanath Ghat will also help in generating huge employment opportunities for the local unemployed.
Another resolution was adopted to conduct religious arati on a regular basis on the bank of the river with the involvement of all sections of society to promote social harmony.
