Centre to set up study centre on Brahmaputra river at Gauhati Univ

The government announced today that a Brahmaputra Study Centre would be set up at Gauhati University at a cost of Rs 28 crore to conduct research on the causes of and how to prevent frequent floods in the river.

Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Jitendra Singh said the Brahmaputra was one of the largest rivers in the world and the study centre would offer an opportunity for research in different aspects of the river in hydrology, waterways, environment, disaster, flood management, hydro-power production, etc.

The government has approved setting up of an exclusive Brahmaputra Study Centre at Gauhati University in Guwahati for which a fund of about Rs 28 crore will be provided by the DoNER Ministry, Singh said.

Vice-Chancellor of the university, Mridul Hazarika, who called on the minister, said the university had decided to provide land within the campus for a separate block for the study centre.

Singh said Gauhati University was one of the oldest universities in the country and it needed to cultivate a unique identity for itself which could attract scholars from far and wide by setting up the study centre.

Describing it as a "one stop destination" for all issues and problems that might emerge from time to time with respect to the Brahmaputra river system, Singh said the first major study at the centre had already been initiated.

He said it was devoted to the research on the causes and prevention of frequent floods in the river and included some of the internationally renowned scholars from across the world.