Brahmaputra Board launches Basistha Riverfront Development Project to restore polluted river stretch

The Brahmaputra Board has launched the Basistha Riverfront Development Project in Guwahati with the objective of restoring and improving a stretch of the Basistha river that has been affected by indiscriminate dumping of solid waste over several years.

According to an official statement, the project will be implemented along the river stretch adjacent to the Brahmaputra Board headquarters in the Basistha area of the city. The initiative was inaugurated on Friday by Brahmaputra Board Chairman Ranbir Singh in the presence of local residents, senior citizens and officials.

The riverfront development initiative has been undertaken in response to the deteriorating condition of the left bank road-cum-embankment adjoining the Board campus, which had gradually turned into a dumping site for solid waste. The accumulation of waste reportedly contributed to environmental degradation, foul odour, mosquito breeding and growing public health concerns in the locality.

As part of the project, development work will be carried out across an approximately 370-metre stretch of the Basistha river. Planned interventions include landscaping and plantation, creation of green spaces, pedestrian pathways, viewing areas, riverbank protection measures and improvements in sanitation and waste management systems.

The project also aims to strengthen local biodiversity while creating a cleaner, more accessible and environmentally sustainable public space for residents.

For planning and design, the Brahmaputra Board has partnered with the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH).

Officials stated that the initiative is expected to serve as a model for similar riverfront improvement and river rejuvenation projects in other stretches of the Basistha river in the future.

Originating in the East Khasi Hills of Meghalaya, the Basistha river flows through parts of Guwahati before merging with Deepor Beel, a natural wetland ecosystem. The river also passes through Basistha Ashram, a prominent Hindu pilgrimage site in the region.