HT Correspondent
SIVASAGAR, Sept 3: The state water resources minister, Pijush Hazarika, paid a visit to the Brahmaputra erosion sites in Desangmukh and Aphala on Sunday, announcing an allocation of Rs 270 crore for protective measures. He stated that the work would commence during the winter months. Hazarika also mentioned that this marked his second visit to Aphala within a year and that minor repair work, covering a span of 600 meters in Aphala, would be initiated to safeguard the village.
Commenting on the issue of ‘One nation, One election,’ the minister expressed his willingness to sacrifice the remainder of his tenure as an MLA or minister to see it come to fruition. He emphasised the potential cost savings and efficiency benefits for the nation.
The minister was accompanied by his political critic in the Assembly, Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi, Thowra MLA Sushanta Borgohain, and various BJP activists and officials from the Water Resource Department.
In response to the minister’s announcement of Rs 270 crore for erosion control in Sivasagar, Akhil Gogoi, while addressing the media later, criticised the BJP’s ‘One nation, One election’ campaign, describing it as autocratic and stating that it would face staunch resistance from the entire Indian opposition. Gogoi also interpreted minister Pijush Hazarika’s criticism of the Congress party’s Tea Estate visits as a sign of growing anxiety about losing the Tea Tribes’ votes.
