Skip to content Skip to navigation

Guwahati ropeway project in doldrums

By Daya Nath Singh |

Much awaited Rs32 crore aerial ropeway project between north and south banks of Brahmaputra river connecting Guwahati city and North Guwahat, undertaken by the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) remains under the shadow of uncertainty due to objection raised by the Archeological Survey of India (ASI). According to reliable sources the GMDA issued work order for construction of the ropeway connecting both banks of the Brahmaputra via Urvashi Island to M/s Samir Damodar Ropeway Pvt Ltd, who constructed four big size RCC pillars in the Umananda Island to install high structure for ropeway project. Getting reports of some irregularities a team of a NGO, namely, Citizens’ First, consisting of Ajay Dutta, Ex- MLA, Krishna Kanto Borooah, Jagannath Das, General Secretary of the Forum and renowned archaeologist, Dr Pradip Sarma, visited the site of construction on the Umananda Island and found that the said company had occupied a portion of the island and piled deep inside its rock bed to raise RCC pillars. By its such act, the company had not only made an undue invasion in Umananda Island, but it made an onslaught on the revered place of Hindus.


In a memorandum to the Chief Secretary, Government of Assam, they said that it had come to the notice of the visiting team that the company damaged different sculptures of ancient period, which were found lying scattered there. By such irresponsible and improper acts the company clearly violated the provisions of Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act. The memorandum further mentioned that there had been a raging controversy regarding the construction of ropeway by the side of three islands of Urvashi, Karmanasha and Umananda. These are the witness to ancient ruins of temple and images of Gods and Goddesses. Besides, the islands are revered as place of pilgrimages from ancient times. There were visible signs of Royal sculptures in the islands. Being impressed with the site the British rulers had named the island of Umananda as “Peacock Island.’




The NGO mentioned that the people were very much anguished after the information about such construction on the Umananda Island and demanded the removal of such construction ropeway project. They also demanded that the Archaeology Department should take immediate steps to preserve the ruins of the Island which were lying scattered there. The organization appealed to the Chief Secretary, Assam, to impress upon the construction company to stop construction work on the rock bed of the Umananda Island considering the situation and take necessary legal action against all concerned, who in clear violation of provisions of Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act and the State government notification for taking up such construction work.



After getting the clearance from Environment Ministry and the Inland Waterways Authority, the GMDA had given green signal to begin construction work and the work started in the year 2009, but the problem started when the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation ) Act was passed in the year 2010. The very Act says that no construction works be undertaken within 300 meters areas of the centrally protected monuments/sites. According to GMDA sources the key pillar of the rope way would fall within 230 meters of Urvashi Island and the ASI put objection to it citing the provisions of the Ancient Monuments Act. Following the pressure from ASI, the construction works of the project was stopped since February 2011. The purpose of the ropeway was to boost tourism and reduce the travel time between the North and South banks of the Brahmaputra.



Dr H N Dutta, Director of ASI, Guwahati alleged the violation of by-laws of the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act 2010 by GMDA, as Umananda Island was also an archeologically protected site. The GMDA had changed the ropeway construction plan due to Ancient Monuments Act and has maintained that there was no problem in construction of the key pillar on Umananda Island as the pillar would not cost any impact on the beauty of the river island. The ASI director alleged that the GMDA had also breached its building by-laws while constructing the ropeway. Meanwhile the GMDA submitted around Rs.50 crore new project proposal for the ropeway to the State Government for its clearance and a committee has been formed by the Government headed by the Additional Chief Secretary J Khosla to look into the implimentation of the much hyped project.

Add new comment

Random Stories

10 yr rigorous imprisonment for rapist

9 Apr 2018 - 9:44am | AT News
TINSUKIA: A local court in Tinsukia has ordered ten years rigorous imprisonment of a tea garden worker four years after he raped a girl of his locality. Judge PJ Saikia, further has imposed Rs 10,...

Mangaldoi youth club performs at cultural night in Mumbai

18 Feb 2012 - 12:53am | Jutika Mahanta
The cultural night organized by Asom Vaisnav Samaj, Mumbai in association with Youth Club Mangaldoi, Assam at Fine Arts Society, Chembut Mumbai on 11th Feb 2012 was a grand success. The...

Mahanta defeats Hazarika, regains AGP presidentship

27 Apr 2012 - 2:59am | editor
Former chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta has been elected as AGP president after the founder president defeated his rival Padma Hazarika by a margin of 37 votes in the party’s first-ever...

Uneasy calm in BTAD

5 May 2014 - 8:32am | Jintul Talukdar
The overall situation in BTAD areas remained normal. There is no report of any untoward incident during the last 48 hours.Baksa, Chirang and Kokrajhar district administration have relaxed curfew from...

Other Contents by Author

Construction of Tipaimukh Dam opposed by COPE

Hundreds of people representing Bengali, Manipuri, Naga, Khasi, Reang, Dimasa and other communities living in southern part of Assam district staged demonstration in front of Deputy Commissioner's office at Silchar last week demanding total scrapping of controversial Tipaimukh Dam to be constructed on Barak River. During the demonstration they shouted slogans condemning government’s attitude and demanded immediate scraping of this project. Pijus Kanti Das, Secretary General of Committee on Peoples and Environment (COPE) and a number of leaders from different organizations and groups joined the demonstration before the DC’s office. It may be mentioned that the people, both in...

Azhar Alam gets best Assamese film critic award

Under the aegis of Directorate of Cultural Affairs and Assam State Film Finance and Development Corporation (ASFFDC), Film Award Festival -2010, was formally declared open by Assam Chief Minister, Tarun Gogoi at the Rabindra Bhawan on March 10 last. The celebration of 75 years of Assamese cinema was graced by presence of a number of dignitaries in the field, prominent among them were Parikshit Sahani, Seema Guha and Jahnu Baruah. Veteran film director, Jahnu Baruah conferred Pabitra Kumar Deka Memorial Award for the best film critic announced by the Assam Cultural Affairs department on Assamese films, to Azhar Alam, a senior journalist of Pratah Khabar, a Hindi Daily, published from...

The Week is not too weak

Despite reluctance of Assam Chief Minister, Tarun Gogoi to go for inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Rupees one thousand crore scam of North Cachar Hills development fund, as demanded by the Opposition parties of the state, he had to bow down and decided to go for the same after getting advice from the Union Home Ministry. According to the news item published by The Week, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), had earlier suggested that since there were the evidences of nexus between the militants, politicians and government officials, the government should go for the probe by the CBI, but the chief minister did not agree to the suggestion. He repeatedly denied...

NGOs Forum alleges anomalies in distribution of fund by DoNER

The North East NGO Forum has shown concern over distribution and diversion of funds for development of the North Eastern region of the country by Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER). Addressing the media persons, Paresh Chandra Baishya, the general secretary of the organization, alleged that the funds for development of the north eastern region is being given to the organizations of other states by the ministry of North East Region’s Development (DoNER). Giving a few instances he said that during the year 2008-09, rupees twenty three lakhs were given to the Government of India’s Administrative Staff College, Hyderabad. During the same period Indian...

Burma demands return of democracy

Burma’s largest political party, National League for Democracy (NLD), which won 392 seats out of total 492 parliamentary seats, in the country’s general elections of 1990, could not form its government even after its landslide victory, as the military junta regime ignored the verdict of the people and refused to hand over the power to NLD. That was a blatant mockery in the name of election in Burma. It may be recalled that the people of that country have not forgotten the days when due to deterioration of Burma’s economic situation and oppressive one political party rule on August 8, 1988 (which is also known as 8-8-88), when the workers, monks, peasants, teachers,...

Top level corruption: root cause of all ills

Abductions, extortions, killings and all sorts of violence have their roots in certain forms of corruption. Since the last part of twentieth century and the beginning of twenty-first century, all types of violence throughout the world have increased day by day. Those did not take place overnight. The Indian society had also to bear the brunt of such evils. The frustration among the poor and deprived people in the country was brought due to corruption. Money and muscle powers took lead in spreading these ills. The rich and influential people began to acquire more and more wealth and property, whereas the poor and innocent had to lose even what they had. In administration the number of...

Sri Lankan ‘Akasa Kusum,’ Inaugural film at Guwahati IFF 2010

Cine Arts Society, Asom is organizing second Cine ASA Guwahati International Film Festival from January18 to 24 at Rabindra Bhawan, Gauhati University, IIT Guwahati and Jonakee, Panjabari. This year’s programme is being inaugurated by Assam Governor, Janaki Ballav Pattanayak at Rabindra Bhawan on 18th January. Eminent Sri Lankan film maker, Prasanna Vithanage would be the Chief Guest at the function and his film Akasa Kusum would be the inaugural film. His other films will be screened in the Jewel of Asia section of the programme. The festival programme includes a retrospective of Pedro Almodovar, a tribute section on the works of acclaimed South Korean filmmaker Kim Ki Duk, a...

New hopes rising in Indo-Myanmar relations

Although delayed, a ray of hope has been seen in better Indo-Myanmar relations with accepting the Indian proposal by Junta government of that country to open Stilwell Road, which will encourage and boost India’s trade with the South-eastern Asian countries, especially with China. The Foreign minister of Myanmar, Nyan Win, has agreed to the request of Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC), at a recent meeting in Kolkata to this effect. With the opening of Stilwell Road, distance between India and China via Tenai in Myanmar will be cut to the minimum. The minister informed that China has already constructed road up to Tenai and he has offered to construct the balance part of the road with...

PETA releases magnificent calendar for 2010

A dozen of touching stories, each illustrated with a beautiful photograph, make up the 2010 calendar from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, has been released to mark the organization’s Tenth anniversary. Each month features a brief description of an animal’s life before he or she was rescued as well as a photograph showing how he or she has fared after the rescue. In addition, each story is accompanied by information on how to avoid contributing to animal exploitation. Mahesh Hiramath was working in his field near the village of Kupwad when he saw a herd of horses being driven past. He noticed that one young animal was severely wounded, bleeding and...

Corruptions and irregularities plague child welfare schemes in Assam

Rampant corruption, understaffing, poor infrastructure, erratic supervision, inadequate training and lack of awareness among the people in the rural areas are the hurdles that plague the children’s development schemes in Assam. This is the observation of a Non-Governmental Organist ion, namely, FORCES_NE (Forum for Crèche and Child care Services-North East). FORCES, a National network of organizations was set up in 1989, to take up the issues of women in the unorganized sector and their need for child care. The network completes 20 years and has had a consistent record of advocating the rights of the young children and mothers. In April 2009 the network extended itself to...